Loose Rudder

[h28.5 sailor]

Hello, I seem to have excessive play in my rudder shaft. As I turn the wheel, I can see the rudder shaft and steering quadrant lean from side to side. I came across an article in the link provided, it says that this problem is caused by a loose bearing attached to the boat just below the steering quadrant. I had the same symptoms in my boat as the article described, so I took it apart and was unable to find a loose bearing. I put in some extra screws into the base anyway, but this did not solve the loose rudder problem. Is there another bearing farther down the rudder shaft that could be causing the shaft to wiggle? What can I do to fix this problem?Thanks

 

[Terry Cox]

Our model has a plastic bearing at the top and...

bottom end of the rudder tube. Over time the bearings will wear and cause some play. Up to one eighth inch play is acceptable for our model. One way to reduce the play without replacing the bearing is to insert a cut-to-fit piece of teflon sheet around the rudder post. This was a tip from my surveyor, but I have yet to try it. Best to do it while on the hard where you can lower the rudder a few inches to insert the teflon.Terry

 

[Tim22902]

Another method.....

....that I read something about was to remove the rudder and coat the post with mold release wax and then inject thickened epoxy into the rudder tube. The mold release wax prevents the shaft from sticking and when cured, you have a perfect fit. Sounds good on paper, anyway. Might be worth some research.Tim

 

[Tim22902]

The "bearing".......

....is just the plastic flange that your rudder post passes through.Tim

 

[Alan]

I did exactly...

...on my old 34. I used West epoxy and impregnated it with carbon black as a lubricant. The trick is to use several WELL APPLIED layers of mold release wax. If the shaft fails to break out your in REAL trouble.After completion I installed upper and lower Zerk fittings to the outer post. Then grease can be injected into the shaft on a regular basis and it will never wear out again.

 

[s sauer]

Lower Bearing

Tim's suggestion for casting in a new lower bearing is written up in a WestSystem epoxy manual. The thickened epoxy is also mixed with graphite powder to provide a more lubricated bearing surface.O did it years ago but since I didn't trust mold release and didn't want the rudder post bonded in place, I dropped it out and replaced it with a piece of PVC that was lightly wet sanded to a couple mics more than the original stainles steel shaft. I was able to remove the PVC and also drilled in a couple zerk grease fittings so I now have an excelent lower bearing 3-4" in width at the bottom of the rudder tube. I reinforced the top plywood bearing platfprm with six or seven layers of glass cloth and re-drilled all four holes to hold dow the top bearing much like your original reference link.It may be a little more work but the results are worth it.Try the 28.5 web site for other info: www.huntertwentyeightfive.com

 

[walmsleyc]

Not an expert ... but ...

many of the bearings you can buy for rudder shafts are self aligning. This is, in part, to allow for continued smooth operation, and normal wear when the shaft is under stress while sailing. The rudder shaft may bend and bow when under load, and self aligning bearings can handle that.A poured in place epoxy bearing would have no "give" and could result in extra wear, and points of high stress on the shaft. Now, having said that, I'mm guessing that most production boat don't use such bearings, and that they are more common in racing boats with carbon rudder shaft that have muhc more flex, and as such, an epoxy bearing might be no worse that what was originally used.Just some thoughts.Chris

 

[h28.5 sailor]

Thank You

Thank you for all the information. It looks like I will have to wait until fall to do any work on it, so I think I will take it easy on the rudder this year. Please let me know if you come across any more information.