After two weeks without any real wind I was Jonesing bad. Saturday broke hot and bright with the weather channel calling for 10 mph winds NNE all day. Off to the boat. Hardly a stinkpot in sight, relatively speaking. Off go the tiller, motor and main cover. On goes the jib and the engine fires up pretty as you please. Cold fruit and drinks in the cooler and the admiral is a the helm as I push back. I jump on she slides over I grab the tiller and puch it over hard and damn near fall overbaord. NO RESISTANCE. That's when I look over the transom and see my newly designed (though I don't know by what yet) two foot long rudder! It had been sheared off just below the lower pintel. The lower half was nowhere in sight. Used the motor to make a nice tight circle back into the slip and peer through tears as the rudder moves effortlessly over the water. Oh those viscious wind gods! I see Rudy has a replacement @ $630. I'll order if I must but wonder if there are any other possibilities that don't include my building one. Meanwhile I guess this is a good a time as any to drop the mast and do that lines aft project that's been on hold for a couple of months. Any ideas? Later, Mike
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R.W.Landau
Mike
Mike, I am sorry for your situation. I don't know of any resolve that would not includeyou building a rudder. I would not want be in that situation. I am relieved thought that I love to sail, but I also love to fish, and I also love just being on the water. So, If I could move that boat even without the rudder , I would still be using it. I noticed today that the laminations on my tiller were delaminating just infront of the rudder head. Check this so as not to delay your sailing later. Sorry for the financial situation, I know that money would do alot of things I want done on mine. r.w.landau
Mike, I am sorry for your situation. I don't know of any resolve that would not includeyou building a rudder. I would not want be in that situation. I am relieved thought that I love to sail, but I also love to fish, and I also love just being on the water. So, If I could move that boat even without the rudder , I would still be using it. I noticed today that the laminations on my tiller were delaminating just infront of the rudder head. Check this so as not to delay your sailing later. Sorry for the financial situation, I know that money would do alot of things I want done on mine. r.w.landau
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Don Evans
Rudy Rudderson...
I hate to poke phone at our supply god, but you have been baptized into the "no helm gang". Honestly Mike I feel for ya, but I see a call to Rudy in your future. Been there, done that, screw the T-shirt. If its any consolation, my price is 1100 Canadian...yippee. You can see why I built one. I understand the "new" foam core rudders are built better (should be for that price). I think I know what I'm going to be doing in my retirement years... building wooden rudders for old O'Days...8^). Sorry mate. Don
I hate to poke phone at our supply god, but you have been baptized into the "no helm gang". Honestly Mike I feel for ya, but I see a call to Rudy in your future. Been there, done that, screw the T-shirt. If its any consolation, my price is 1100 Canadian...yippee. You can see why I built one. I understand the "new" foam core rudders are built better (should be for that price). I think I know what I'm going to be doing in my retirement years... building wooden rudders for old O'Days...8^). Sorry mate. Don
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Mike Whalen
Home built
Don, I know you built your own. I just got off the phone with an old cabinet maker (who now builds beautiful wooden canoe and kayak paddles) who says that to do it right you'd hae to cut the wood into strips, rotate the strips to rotate the grain, glue & glass. Didn't you make your's from a single piece? I'm still affraid that iwth the limited time I have for projects that by the time I finished building I'd have spent more and missed a lot of sailing. Maybe I'll buy one from Rudy and trace it out and start building. Still curious as to how the old one boke. Your dondolences are sincerely felt, now could ya loan me about $650! Later, Mike
Don, I know you built your own. I just got off the phone with an old cabinet maker (who now builds beautiful wooden canoe and kayak paddles) who says that to do it right you'd hae to cut the wood into strips, rotate the strips to rotate the grain, glue & glass. Didn't you make your's from a single piece? I'm still affraid that iwth the limited time I have for projects that by the time I finished building I'd have spent more and missed a lot of sailing. Maybe I'll buy one from Rudy and trace it out and start building. Still curious as to how the old one boke. Your dondolences are sincerely felt, now could ya loan me about $650! Later, Mike
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Don Evans
Ha..Ha..Funny Typo...
Dondolences...LOL... I could spot you the Canadian money but it would only buy you the tiller...LOL I would not question the wisdom of an "old cabinet maker", as he is thinking in terms of the rudder being passed down 3 or 4 generations (like his canoe paddles). Boy that would be some rudder. Mike I know you have all these projects stacked up, but if it was me I'd reprioritize. Sailings' not so hot with no rudder. Bingo...head of the list. Although I'd be tempted to just buy the dam thing and go sailing. I built one out of a stock 2" mahogony board, that just happened to be available. If I was doing it again I'd consider 2 glued pieces of 3/4" marine plywood, shaped, faired then glassed. Probably the better part of a week to finish. The glassing would take most of the time. If you do consider adding a third gudgeon and pintle to better stabilize the board and to support the heavier rudder. What to do...what to do... Don
Dondolences...LOL... I could spot you the Canadian money but it would only buy you the tiller...LOL I would not question the wisdom of an "old cabinet maker", as he is thinking in terms of the rudder being passed down 3 or 4 generations (like his canoe paddles). Boy that would be some rudder. Mike I know you have all these projects stacked up, but if it was me I'd reprioritize. Sailings' not so hot with no rudder. Bingo...head of the list. Although I'd be tempted to just buy the dam thing and go sailing. I built one out of a stock 2" mahogony board, that just happened to be available. If I was doing it again I'd consider 2 glued pieces of 3/4" marine plywood, shaped, faired then glassed. Probably the better part of a week to finish. The glassing would take most of the time. If you do consider adding a third gudgeon and pintle to better stabilize the board and to support the heavier rudder. What to do...what to do... Don
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Mike Whalen
marine grade plywood . . . hmmmm
Talked to Rudy. He can't ship one for 7 days but I suspect I'm gonna order one anyway. Riddle me this. My boat is in a "summer slip" as its too shallow to use at winter lake level. When I forget to haul up the center board it sits on the bottom. I have to really pull to get it up. I'm wondering if that means that when the motor traffic is heavy could it have lifted my boat and dropped it between wakes and the rudder hit bottom. I push the tiller over when I leave and tie it off so the fat side faces out to keep it from flopping. I've never gotten a line from side to side to hold my tiller in position so that the rudder is parrellel to the centerline. Is this a bad practice. I haven't seen any other boats with broken rudders. Maybe it was just tired. Damn I hate missing another weekend of sailing. Wanna bet the wind will be good. Hmm those hatch boards tacked to a two by four just might work . . . Later, Mike
Talked to Rudy. He can't ship one for 7 days but I suspect I'm gonna order one anyway. Riddle me this. My boat is in a "summer slip" as its too shallow to use at winter lake level. When I forget to haul up the center board it sits on the bottom. I have to really pull to get it up. I'm wondering if that means that when the motor traffic is heavy could it have lifted my boat and dropped it between wakes and the rudder hit bottom. I push the tiller over when I leave and tie it off so the fat side faces out to keep it from flopping. I've never gotten a line from side to side to hold my tiller in position so that the rudder is parrellel to the centerline. Is this a bad practice. I haven't seen any other boats with broken rudders. Maybe it was just tired. Damn I hate missing another weekend of sailing. Wanna bet the wind will be good. Hmm those hatch boards tacked to a two by four just might work . . . Later, Mike
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Tom Akin
Temporary fix
Sometimes, for a short while, we can put up with less than perfection, to get by. If your goal is to sail, and you need time to save up for a new rudder, just make a temporary one. Two sheets of marine grade plywood about 3/4 thick. Draw out the rudder and cut out. Glue and Dri-wall screw together with about 75 screws, slap the hardware and 4 coats of paint on it.... I think it would be ugly as hell and work for a month or three. Throw it in the dump in September! Or if it works out well, glass it.
Sometimes, for a short while, we can put up with less than perfection, to get by. If your goal is to sail, and you need time to save up for a new rudder, just make a temporary one. Two sheets of marine grade plywood about 3/4 thick. Draw out the rudder and cut out. Glue and Dri-wall screw together with about 75 screws, slap the hardware and 4 coats of paint on it.... I think it would be ugly as hell and work for a month or three. Throw it in the dump in September! Or if it works out well, glass it.
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Mike Whalen
Its on order
I ordered one from Rudy yesterday. It will probably be two weeks before I get it. He didn't have one on hand and it takes 5 days to ship. Really, who needs to save money when you have a credit card! Oh well . . . I have some scrap plywood around and I'm thinking that before I drill and mount the hardware I'll lay that sucker out trace myself a back up. Then I can get around to it next winter, glue it, screw it, glass it and leave it in the basement. THat's right I'll be practicing to compete with Don Evans in that post retirement rudder building business! Later, Mike
I ordered one from Rudy yesterday. It will probably be two weeks before I get it. He didn't have one on hand and it takes 5 days to ship. Really, who needs to save money when you have a credit card! Oh well . . . I have some scrap plywood around and I'm thinking that before I drill and mount the hardware I'll lay that sucker out trace myself a back up. Then I can get around to it next winter, glue it, screw it, glass it and leave it in the basement. THat's right I'll be practicing to compete with Don Evans in that post retirement rudder building business! Later, Mike
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