H260 trouble with wheel steering below two knots

[svripple]

Hello everyone, I recently upgraded from a 1994 Hunter 26 tiller boat to a 2004 260 with wheel steering. Wanted to know if any 260 owners encountered any issues with steering under power or under sail while tacking below 2 kts. I had the centerboard 1/4 down under power while leaving dock. When I go to turn to starboard, I slid sideways toward the opposite dock. Then while under sail, I had no steering ability while trying to tack to port in 7kt winds (had the centerboard fully down). I end up having to turn the engine on to execute the tack. This is driving me totally nuts. To add to my discomfort while docking/undocking, I used to be able to use the engine tiller to assist in maneuvering but don't have the same range of motion with the wheel as the helm seat gets in the way. Any feedback or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Pat s/v Ripple II

 

[Clark]

Part of your difficulty is in translating from tiller to wheel. Wheels just do not provide the feedback that a tiller can. We went from a tiller/outboard to a wheel/inboard and it took me a while to get used to it and learn to take advantage of prop walk and visualizing where the rudder is when I turn the wheel. If you're trying to tack in 2 kts of wind you have to be gentle and maintain as much speed as you can through the tack. Don't release the jib too soon as you turn. You could even tighten up on the jib as you start your tack to help maintain just a little more lift and let it backwind for a moment to help push the bow over and allow you to straighten the rudder sooner (this creates less drag from the rudder). Tacking in 7kts ought to be a breeze.
This is all assuming that you do not have any linkage issues between the wheel and the rudder.

 

[svripple]

Hi Clark, thanks for the feedback. In going to be doing some serious note taking the next time I sail. No linkage issues. I confirmed with a rigging specialist. It also seems that other 260 owners commented on how difficult it is to maneuver at low speed. Thanks again. Pat

 

[cephius (Dave)]

Do you have the outboard connected to the rudder. That will improve maneuverability under power. You can find several examples of this in the modification section of this site: http://hunter.sailboatowners.com/index.php?option=com_kb&Itemid=267&cat_id=20&page=model&mn=260

While this boat is know for issues at low speed under power, there are no such issues under sail. I've been so slow the gauge read 0.0 Knots and still been able to use the rudder to turn.

Check to see if your rudder is fully down next time you have trouble under sail.

 

[svripple]

Hi Dave, thanks for the suggestion and feedback. I saw earlier posts on the EZ steer as well. I'm going to go ahead and order it. The rudder; I had a habit of only keeping it 3/4 down as I sail in a shallow area (it can get to less than 3 feet at low tide in my marina). Does that make a significant difference? Appreciate your input. Pat

 

[tbeitzel]

I have also installed steering link as described, it works great. I have my boat in a slip with only 3 foot of water and I have my rudder 3/4 of the way up and I can steer fine even at slow speeds. having the thrust of the motor and the rudder going in the same direction make steering this boat very easy. This works even when backing boat into slip.

 

[cephius (Dave)]

Yes. When you get enough depth, put it all the way down to see the difference. There is also a possibility of hitting the prop.

Since you sail in low water, you might look at IdaSailor's short rudder. Rudder failure is common. IdaSailor is a very popular replacement.

By the way, Cabela's offers an Auxiliary Motor Connector Rod at a very reasonable price. In my application, this rod mounted on the existing outboard boss and I only needed to drill a hole in the rudder arm. Since it is spring mounted on ball joints, it pops off when the motor is up and I'm under sail.

 

[svripple]

TBeitzel, thanks for sharing your experience! Dave, I never heard of cabelas. That auxiliary rod really is reasonable. I think I'll try that first before the EZ steer. Appreciate everyone's thoughts.

 

[Brian M H23]

For the time being, keep in mind that if your rudder is too far "back" because it is partly up, that's the same as having the sails too far forward. In that scenario, I'd definitely expect a slow-moving boat to have a hard time turning through the wind.
Try to lengthen your forestay (and retension your shrouds) to rake the mast back. Also try sailing on main alone; if your steering problems go away it's definitely a balance issue. These things are hard with wheels, you don't quite know how much weather or lee helm there is.

 

[Hugh Straub]

I suspect steering with the rudder not in the fully down position greatly increases the stress on the rudder blade where the rudder blade connects to the steering head. This site has many rudder blade failure posts and I would not be surprised if a partially down rudder was found to be a contributing factor.

Kind regards

Hugh