Help needed - ASAP - C30 Rudder

[John S]

This past weekend I noticed that the rudder cap on my 1987 Cat 30 has stress / corrosion cracks. Is the cap and the thru bolt the only thing that holds the rudder in place? Can it(the cap) be replaced while the boat is in the water?

 

[Dan]

Rudder cap

I have a C30 1981. The cap, held in place by the throughbolt, is all that holds it on. It can be carefully removed while afloat but is much easier and safer to do when out of the water.

 

[John S]

Ruddercap = More questions

Thanks for the response.My boat will be hauled in 2 weeks. Do you think it would be safe to sail with the damaged cap?I am thinking of performing a temporary repair -simply rapping line around the cap to hold things in place. Worst case the rudder should only slip down a couple of inches. The thru bolt should stop the drop.All I need is another (2) weeks!Any advice on what I should do if I attempt the repair while the boat is in the water?

 

[Allen Schweitzer]

Do it in the water!

John,I replaced my rudder while it was on the hard, but it should be easy for you to do a repair while in the water assuming you only need to replace the cap.First of all, if you have wheel steering, the quadrant will prevent the rudder from falling out & you should be fine.If you have tiller steering, then all you would need to do is use a clamp, pipe wrench or huge vice-grip pliers & clamp it down TIGHTLY on the rudder stock. I'd lift the rudder 1/2" & clamp it where the stock meets the lower bearing. You can then rest the weight of the rudder on the clamp to test if it will hold during your repair. If it does, then remove the cap & replace/repair as necessary.Hope this helps!Allen Schweitzers/v DrambuieC-30 Hull# 632