finishing the rudder... ???

[centerline]

I have the rudder ready for finishing and I know epoxy is the best to use, but as a day sailer, do I need to go to the expense of using epoxy? I think polyester resin would be ok for my usage. even if I do keep the boat in the water for any length of time, I can always ship the rudder....

I dont know why I keep going back and forth on this simple decision, but to hear someone elses thoughts might put my mind at ease.... thank you

 

[Sumner]

First off the work you did looks great .

How much would the savings be between doing one or the other? Would you want to have to do it again? On our S we can't get...

...the rudder all of the way out of the water. If it was me I'd bite the bullet and go with the epoxy and not box myself in. Not sure if you are aware of Duckworks or not....

http://www.duckworksbbs.com/supplies.htm

....and not sure if they would be cheaper or not, but there is the link,

Sum

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[Phyrexii]

I vote for epoxying the rudder, unless you want to make a new one every couple of years. You could go to Walmart and get a quart of Bondo fiberglass resin, and do it relatively cheap ($13 here in MA).

Clark Craft is another great source for epoxy and other wood boat supplies, if you want something a little better:

http://www.clarkcraft.com/cgi-suppl...esin&cart_id=f6db0a8883013d6415af11ae5dd5cdfb

This epoxy is super easy to work with, and it's more flexible than polyester. Plus, it doesn't make you high when you use it . Great prices, too. But, it's not UV stable - so it needs to be coated (even though the site says it's great for bare wood applications because it's ultra clear. Don't know off hand how to stabilize it).

 

[centerline]

thank you for the reply.... and NO, I dont want to have to do it again. I am weighing the fact the epoxy has no UV stabilization, and the rudder on this 21 is easy enough to handle (with a safety rope tied on) to pull the whole thing aboard......
I would like to keep the wood look, even though it will be glassed over, but I dont know what to do about the UV situation... are ther UV stabilizers I can add to the epoxy?
I will admit I am not going to do the glassing myself anyway.... I will hire it done by a local fiberglass shop that does custom work. I think by the time I set up to do it, and buy what supplies I need, I will be close to the cost of having it professionally done. I have done fiberglass work before so I dont need the experience, LOL..... it wasnt so much fun then, and the experience I have tells me there wont be any happy thrills in it this time either.

 

[Bob McL]

The '' Wood '' Look

I had a cedar wood strip canoe - beautiful piece of art. It had one coat of glass and epoxy on the outside and I varnished it annually with a varnish with a UV inhibitor. Looked great for the 15 years I owned it. . . . and it it looked like "wood" all the time - you never saw the glass layer once epoxy covered.

An example is at this site: http://www.compumarine.com/how.htm

 

[Phyrexii]

For what you are doing, you don't actually have to use any fiberglass - so it's simply a case of painting the stuff on before it sets up - easy!

 

[centerline]

For what you are doing, you don't actually have to use any fiberglass - so it's simply a case of painting the stuff on before it sets up - easy!

you make it sound so easy...... I was thinking i needed to encase the wood entirely in cloth...... I would atleast like cloth on the sides to give it strength.... the upper piece has a crack running about 2/3 the way down it that im going to drill clear thru (fore and aft) and run a piece of stainless all-thread thru and bolt it together. and countersink the hardware so its buried and hidden
the PO used it fine the way it is and the crack has no movement, but in my opinion stronger is better. I DONT want to have to do it over... if I only need to thin it and paint it on so it soaks in, then it should be a simple project.

 

[MrBill_FLL]

its not hard. you should do it! its character building! LOL!

-polyester resin, will accept a patch of more polyester better than epoxy on epoxy, so when you ding it touch up is easier w. poly.

not sure about keeping it looking like wood though. will the rudder stay in the water for long periods? weeks and months?

btw, you might want to add some weights to the bottom of the blade to help it sink.

is that teak?

 

[centerline]

its not hard. you should do it! its character building! LOL!

-polyester resin, will accept a patch of more polyester better than epoxy on epoxy, so when you ding it touch up is easier w. poly.

not sure about keeping it looking like wood though. will the rudder stay in the water for long periods? weeks and months?

btw, you might want to add some weights to the bottom of the blade to help it sink.

is that teak?

I am pretty sure it is teak.... it looks like the rest of the wood did when took it down to bare wood. I used Epifanes on everything else... its all too shiny now. I need to polish and wax the topsides and deck to blend everything together. the rich, dark wood doesnt seem to fit with the white hull and light blue trim.... from the contrast of seeing it when the wood was all exposed, faded and gray.
the rudder wont stay in the water for any length of time..... maybe a week at a time.
the PO had a small twine he attached to a hole in the rudder blade that he tied up..... it would break easily if he grounded the rudder. I was thinking of rigging a bungie rubber or stainless spring to keep it down, but still allow it to swing up if necessary. I will figure out how im going to do it when I get it all back together...

 

[Phyrexii]

These work great for rudder hold-downs:
http://www.duckworksbbs.com/hardware/cleats/sd002570/index.htm

I've got pictures of mine on this thread:
http://forums.macgregor.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?p=884816#post884816

 

[rgranger]

FWIW: Bondo is polyester not epoxy

My rudder is just varnished and it is 40 years old. I just touch it up each season. One thing to keep in mind is that the rudder gets dinged, scratched gouged etc. and you will breach the epoxy barrier coat sooner rather than later. And to touch it up, you will need to mix 2-part epoxy, don protective clothing and a mask etc. or just re varnish it... if you decide to go with varnish. Don't use polyurethane. It does not hold up well to UV exposure.

2 cents.

 

[MrBill_FLL]

I agree on stopping the splits is critical. butterfly joints can work in places you can't thru bolt it.

teak is oily. wipe down with acetone...

but you've already had luck having paint stick, so should be OK there.

varnish will have the nicest look. or polyurethane. I've used that on teak, but it was above the waterline. poured it on, 2 thick coats, w/ foam brush.

 

[alfred gamil]

I have buikt myself a mahogany NACA 12 rudder blade and just varnish it with a marine varnish , 6 coats , and one coat every spring, it works well 5 years now ,
The thing is I keep the rudder blade out of the water at the end of the day

Kick up rudder on my 22 mac

simple and no headache : ) and more time to enjoy canadian beer at 65

 

[centerline]

I took everyones advice and did it all myself with epoxy.... top quality marine grade stuff from TAP Plastics. it takes surprising little to do the job and I bought a quart of resin and a pint of hardner (mixes 2-1) and used a squeegee instead of a brush. I gave it 4 coats and it came out very nice... I used a quarter bottle of resin. after about 6 weeks of curing I will give it a couple of coats of epifanes for UV protection.
the crack you see running verticle in the upper Board was solid, but I thru-bolted it fore and aft in 2 places with stainless all-thread... I countersunk the washers and nuts and then filled the recess with epoxy putty and sanded them smooth before installing the first coat of resin....

 

[Phyrexii]

Nice!

 

[rgranger]

Looks good...