I chartered a 2005 Hunter 38 for a four day trip to catalina island. We left Marina Del Rey for Catalina Island and the trip over did not have good winds so we motored most of the way. On the return trip we had 20-23 knot winds and I thought we would have a great sail back to MDR. I started out with about 75% of the main and about 85% of the jib and the boat was overpowered so I rolled up the main to about 50% and left the jib as was and the boat felt balanced. I had a little weather helm in the gusts but felt ok with it, We had great sailing for about 45 minutes then I lost steering. Wow,I can't tell you how that felt, anyways the boat rounded up and I rolled up the jib and installed the emergency tiller and got the boat under control and removed the access cover to the steering assembly. After removing the cover I found the problem immediatly it was a bolt that connected a push pull rod from the wheel to the rudder post. Now it seems to me that this bolt about 3/4" in diameter is totally insufficient to handle the loads that a rudder can apply to this part. Now I know that when the gusts came I was applying rudder to conteract the tendancy of the boat to round up, thus the tremendous load on the steering system , but It should handle this no problem right?
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Correct
The sizing certainly isn't an accident nor likley Hunter engineering. You didn't say what failed. I should certainly think a 3/4 inch bolt is strong enough to handle any steering load. I hope this was reported. Hunter and the steering manufacturer will want to know. Rick D.
The sizing certainly isn't an accident nor likley Hunter engineering. You didn't say what failed. I should certainly think a 3/4 inch bolt is strong enough to handle any steering load. I hope this was reported. Hunter and the steering manufacturer will want to know. Rick D.
What exactly happened to the bolt?
Was the bolt sheared off, worn through, or did it just come off after losing its nut? It may have been installed incorrectly or even be the wrong bolt. Certainly is a concern and warrants follow up as Rick says. One thing about being a charter boat is you (and we) don't know the boat's history, such as if there's been any previous damage/repair to the steering system.
Was the bolt sheared off, worn through, or did it just come off after losing its nut? It may have been installed incorrectly or even be the wrong bolt. Certainly is a concern and warrants follow up as Rick says. One thing about being a charter boat is you (and we) don't know the boat's history, such as if there's been any previous damage/repair to the steering system.
rudder failure
The bolt just sheared off and seemed to me inadequate for the job. Steering with the emergency tiller was tiresome at best, but I started thinking about the steering system and realized that the autopilot was independent of the wheel and it still worked so it took me to the marina. I disengaged it and used the tiller to navigate the harbor and pull into the slip
The bolt just sheared off and seemed to me inadequate for the job. Steering with the emergency tiller was tiresome at best, but I started thinking about the steering system and realized that the autopilot was independent of the wheel and it still worked so it took me to the marina. I disengaged it and used the tiller to navigate the harbor and pull into the slip
Contact info
Here is the steering system: "Edson's CD-I® Geared Steering System w/ Single Lever Engine Control w/ Brake, Lighted Compass and Stainless Steel Wheel Guard" Edson is pretty much a US standard in sailboat systems, so Hunter should be notified: Contact Hunter Marine Corporation Route 441, Post Office Box 1030 Alachua, Florida USA 32616 Phone: 386-462-3077 Fax: 386-462-4077 Sales related questions: info@huntermarine.com Customer Service: customerservice@huntermarine.com (8am to 5pm EST) • 1-800-771-5556 Thanks for bringing it to everyone's attention. You'll be doing everyone a favor by notifying them. No doubt Edson does not make their own bolts, so they should find this out. I had a rod bolt on a Yanmar fail once and Yanmar certainly wanted to know. Rick D.
Here is the steering system: "Edson's CD-I® Geared Steering System w/ Single Lever Engine Control w/ Brake, Lighted Compass and Stainless Steel Wheel Guard" Edson is pretty much a US standard in sailboat systems, so Hunter should be notified: Contact Hunter Marine Corporation Route 441, Post Office Box 1030 Alachua, Florida USA 32616 Phone: 386-462-3077 Fax: 386-462-4077 Sales related questions: info@huntermarine.com Customer Service: customerservice@huntermarine.com (8am to 5pm EST) • 1-800-771-5556 Thanks for bringing it to everyone's attention. You'll be doing everyone a favor by notifying them. No doubt Edson does not make their own bolts, so they should find this out. I had a rod bolt on a Yanmar fail once and Yanmar certainly wanted to know. Rick D.
3/4" bolt
A 3/4" bolt takes like 14600 lb of force to shear off. On a typical steering system you have like a foot of clearance from the rudder shaft to the attachment bolt and that works out to 14600 ft-lb of toqure. The feed back would have ripped the helm from your hands! Since it is a charter boat a previous user may have forced the helm over and caused a cracked to start. Once it starts it may take a while but the outcome is what you experienced. Redundancy is the key to success. Glad you had an emergency tiller. Good job handling the situation.
A 3/4" bolt takes like 14600 lb of force to shear off. On a typical steering system you have like a foot of clearance from the rudder shaft to the attachment bolt and that works out to 14600 ft-lb of toqure. The feed back would have ripped the helm from your hands! Since it is a charter boat a previous user may have forced the helm over and caused a cracked to start. Once it starts it may take a while but the outcome is what you experienced. Redundancy is the key to success. Glad you had an emergency tiller. Good job handling the situation.
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