I ran aground at speed (not paying attention and depth was broken)and bent the rudder shaft which cost a fortune to fix (mostly because I was charged for new haulout ($500 of total $700 bill) every time they tested to see if they had bent the rudder post back enough to fit properly). Now the rudder is lower than keel and likely to happen again. Has anyone had success cutting off 6 to 12 inches off rudder and skeg and re-attaching together? This is not a shortened keel but came from factory with 3 ft 9 in shoal draft but rudder was the same draft as keel. When I hit mud bottom at 5 knots it skewered the rudder to one side and lost the attachment to skeg and when yard re-attached the rudder it is now a few inches lower than the keel. Any suggestions as to fix? Bill S
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Same on the 33
I had the same thing happen when Tow Boat US was to aggressive in a pull off. My fix was to take off 7" from the bottom of the rudder and extend the back edge by 7". The rudder is now more a square shape and works very well. And best of all is now protected by the keel rather than the lowest point on the boat. I would recommend this change for your boat also.
I had the same thing happen when Tow Boat US was to aggressive in a pull off. My fix was to take off 7" from the bottom of the rudder and extend the back edge by 7". The rudder is now more a square shape and works very well. And best of all is now protected by the keel rather than the lowest point on the boat. I would recommend this change for your boat also.
I cut down the rudder on my 28.5 13 yeares ago.
It was a accident waiting to happen... My shoal draft 28.5 had a rudder 6" longer than the keel. Cut it off with a jig saw. Reglassed it and it's been fine since. Wery poor thinking and bad engineering on the part of Hunter Marine. Made no adverse effect on boat handeling.
It was a accident waiting to happen... My shoal draft 28.5 had a rudder 6" longer than the keel. Cut it off with a jig saw. Reglassed it and it's been fine since. Wery poor thinking and bad engineering on the part of Hunter Marine. Made no adverse effect on boat handeling.
too deep rudder problem
Sorry, but the 28.5 from your photo has no skeg like the 74-83 H-30 does. I am sure the H-30 was designed for the rudder to be at the same depth as the keel but with crew in the cockpit, fuel and gear weight the rudder winds up being lower than the keel resulting in hitting hardest in the most vulnerable part of the boat. The bent rudder post prevented me from steering 180 degrees as it hung up on the little dovetail Vee on the aft end. It sounds like an easy fix to just slice off 6 inches but there is the stainless rudder post and flange to consider inside the rudder. Could I just slice off 6 to 8 inches off the bottom and use a stainless strap to connect the rudder to the skeg or slice off in the center of the post and re-weld, or must I slice open and rebuild the entire rudder? Anyone out there who fixed same problem? Factory help? There were many Cherubini designed Hunter 30's built in the nine year run and I am sure this isn't the first owner who had this problem.
Sorry, but the 28.5 from your photo has no skeg like the 74-83 H-30 does. I am sure the H-30 was designed for the rudder to be at the same depth as the keel but with crew in the cockpit, fuel and gear weight the rudder winds up being lower than the keel resulting in hitting hardest in the most vulnerable part of the boat. The bent rudder post prevented me from steering 180 degrees as it hung up on the little dovetail Vee on the aft end. It sounds like an easy fix to just slice off 6 inches but there is the stainless rudder post and flange to consider inside the rudder. Could I just slice off 6 to 8 inches off the bottom and use a stainless strap to connect the rudder to the skeg or slice off in the center of the post and re-weld, or must I slice open and rebuild the entire rudder? Anyone out there who fixed same problem? Factory help? There were many Cherubini designed Hunter 30's built in the nine year run and I am sure this isn't the first owner who had this problem.
Question for Paul F. of Clearwater
Paul; can you recall what the changes to the shape of your rudder made to the feel and effort required at the wheel? I extended my rudder back('83 H33) about an inch and a half a few years ago. No notable increase to effort and a small improvement to control. Effort at my wheel is very light and pleasant, but I sure would like some more control and responsiveness. I've since wondered what a greater increase going aft would have done. For the record, from what I've been able to piece together, the early shoal draft 33's had the same deep rudder as the full draft 33's. It seems at some point Hunter cut off the extra 7 inches but added no width, thereby decreasing the total area of the rudder. This appears to be a major factor in making the later shoal draft 33's prone to weather helm and broaches.
Paul; can you recall what the changes to the shape of your rudder made to the feel and effort required at the wheel? I extended my rudder back('83 H33) about an inch and a half a few years ago. No notable increase to effort and a small improvement to control. Effort at my wheel is very light and pleasant, but I sure would like some more control and responsiveness. I've since wondered what a greater increase going aft would have done. For the record, from what I've been able to piece together, the early shoal draft 33's had the same deep rudder as the full draft 33's. It seems at some point Hunter cut off the extra 7 inches but added no width, thereby decreasing the total area of the rudder. This appears to be a major factor in making the later shoal draft 33's prone to weather helm and broaches.
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