loose tiller head

[jim muir]

Hi I belong to a coo-op that has 5 mid 70's C-27 all the boats have a sloppy tiller heaad from wear. I read somewhere that Patrick Childress had the same problem and had drilles out the bolt through the rudder shaft to fit a 1/2 inch bolt. Our boats are worn there as well as the bolt that conects to the 2 bronze arms to the head. they are fine where it conects to the tiller handle.I am curious if redrilling these weekens it to much. We really dont want to replace these but the slack i am sure is accelorating the wear.any previous hands on experiance would be apreciated

 

[Dave]

How loose

Jim: Not sure how much play that you have to warrant 1/2 in. upgrade....I redid mine a year or so ago and went up 1/16 in. from what was in there and it took care of the slop problem. Sorry that I don't have the diminsions at my finger tips for exact size. Good luck!

 

[Rod]

loose tiller head ?

My tiller head loosens up over time and I just tighten it up once a year. The tiller is able to stand straight up when at anchor or at the dock without any support.The tiller head is constructed of chrome plated brass.You should inspect the head and the attaching strap to ensure that you do not have any fractures. If so take it to a machine shop and have it repaired. Mine had a tendency to get loose very easily and the head fractured. The repair was much cheaper then getting a replacement head. Hopefully that helps