I had a great sail from Boothbay, ME to Newburyport, MA this fall. When I hauled my boat, I noticed some minor damage to the trailing edge of my rudder. Is MarineTex OK with a coat of anti-fouling paint over it or is there a better way for a do-it-yourselfer to complete the project properly? (98 days and counting to spring launch!)
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I would use West Epoxy
I have used Marine Tex above the waterline for cosmetic repairs with success. However for a rudder below the water I would use West Epoxy with the high strenghth filler that is designed for this type of repair. It will cost more but will never need repair again unless you really bang it up.
I have used Marine Tex above the waterline for cosmetic repairs with success. However for a rudder below the water I would use West Epoxy with the high strenghth filler that is designed for this type of repair. It will cost more but will never need repair again unless you really bang it up.
Do it in Spring
Drill a hole in the bottom of the rudder to insure water didn't get inside. MarineTex is great stuff but a bit brittle. I'd vote for West although the original rudder is polyester
Drill a hole in the bottom of the rudder to insure water didn't get inside. MarineTex is great stuff but a bit brittle. I'd vote for West although the original rudder is polyester
Marine Tex brittle? No, just expensive
Marine Tex is about three time the price of West resin and filler. It's very good for repairs, and so are the West products. With West you can choose how much and what kind of filler to use. Trailing edge of the rudder isn't a high stress area anyway. Use what's handy and easy to sand, like West resin and microspheres. Maybe more resin for the first layer (stronger) and less resin more spheres for finish (easier to sand) Around here the microspheres are available from Industrial Plastics for a lot less than West sells them for. I've used both, and other brands of microspheres. They all worked fine. Couldn't tell the difference.
Marine Tex is about three time the price of West resin and filler. It's very good for repairs, and so are the West products. With West you can choose how much and what kind of filler to use. Trailing edge of the rudder isn't a high stress area anyway. Use what's handy and easy to sand, like West resin and microspheres. Maybe more resin for the first layer (stronger) and less resin more spheres for finish (easier to sand) Around here the microspheres are available from Industrial Plastics for a lot less than West sells them for. I've used both, and other brands of microspheres. They all worked fine. Couldn't tell the difference.
Sorry, just looked at your picture again.
fairing compound on the rudder seems to be coming loose. The clean white part may be the original rudder and it's been faired with something that didn't stick so well. The dilemma is whether to peel it back or just patch it up. Your boat will still work fine if it all falls off, but if it's the middle of the season you will have a spot with no bottom paint. I would pick at it gently and get a bit more of the loose stuff off, then sand the smooth white part, coat with epoxy resin (like West), then mix up some microspheres or the filler de jour (do I dare say fillet de jour) smooth it out, and don't bother with it unless more falls off next year. I don't like the look of the gap between the bottom painted layer and the snooth white surface in the picture. You can be sure that water got in there and left a layer of scum when it dried (if it dried).
fairing compound on the rudder seems to be coming loose. The clean white part may be the original rudder and it's been faired with something that didn't stick so well. The dilemma is whether to peel it back or just patch it up. Your boat will still work fine if it all falls off, but if it's the middle of the season you will have a spot with no bottom paint. I would pick at it gently and get a bit more of the loose stuff off, then sand the smooth white part, coat with epoxy resin (like West), then mix up some microspheres or the filler de jour (do I dare say fillet de jour) smooth it out, and don't bother with it unless more falls off next year. I don't like the look of the gap between the bottom painted layer and the snooth white surface in the picture. You can be sure that water got in there and left a layer of scum when it dried (if it dried).
Yeah, The brown spot at the lower right needs to
be checked closely. Brown means oxidation. That could come from rust. And that could come from inside the rudder. Like Daryl said, drill a hole in the bottom and see what ya got.
be checked closely. Brown means oxidation. That could come from rust. And that could come from inside the rudder. Like Daryl said, drill a hole in the bottom and see what ya got.
A little more info about the picture and the boat
Thanks for the responses -- sounds like West Epoxy is the right approach. Here is a little more info about my boat and the picture. I keep my boot moored in Boothbay Maine. The water there is very cold and usually we don't get much growth (like barnacles), it is almost always slime. I sail her from Boothbay to Newburyport, MA at the end of each season so I can store her near where I live. The picture is just after she was hauled (still on the ramp) so the brown is probably slime. Hopefully there isn't anything inside my rudder that would oxidize (like iron) -- I was hopping it was all stainless?
Thanks for the responses -- sounds like West Epoxy is the right approach. Here is a little more info about my boat and the picture. I keep my boot moored in Boothbay Maine. The water there is very cold and usually we don't get much growth (like barnacles), it is almost always slime. I sail her from Boothbay to Newburyport, MA at the end of each season so I can store her near where I live. The picture is just after she was hauled (still on the ramp) so the brown is probably slime. Hopefully there isn't anything inside my rudder that would oxidize (like iron) -- I was hopping it was all stainless?
Steve, I'm sure stainless is in your rudder.
It's just that iron is a part of stainless. That's the 'stain' part of stain-less.
It's just that iron is a part of stainless. That's the 'stain' part of stain-less.
if it is rust
as opposed to slime, the iron oxide would come from rusting of the welds holding the internal frame to the rudder post. The iron in steel is too insignificant to be visible. The bad news is that if in fact it is rust staining, the welds have been oxidized and thereby weakened which simply patching the outer core will obviously not fix. If it is rust, I'm sorry to say that you could have a potentially serious deterioration of the internal frame of the rudder and it won't get any better by covering it up. The good news is that, if you figure it out now in winter, you'll still have plenty of time to tear apart the rudder to fix it properly before the new season begins.
as opposed to slime, the iron oxide would come from rusting of the welds holding the internal frame to the rudder post. The iron in steel is too insignificant to be visible. The bad news is that if in fact it is rust staining, the welds have been oxidized and thereby weakened which simply patching the outer core will obviously not fix. If it is rust, I'm sorry to say that you could have a potentially serious deterioration of the internal frame of the rudder and it won't get any better by covering it up. The good news is that, if you figure it out now in winter, you'll still have plenty of time to tear apart the rudder to fix it properly before the new season begins.
If the rudder feels solid I wouldn't get too
excited about the rust stains. Hold the rudder with good gloves on and get a friend to push back and forth on the tiller (sloooowly). If it feels good and solid, drill a hole as suggested by others here. If really ugly rusty water comes out, get some hands on opinions from tech friends you trust (more experience owning boats the better. Ignore advice from books, magazines and folks who get their opinions from them) before you tear things apart. If nothing, or mildly rusty water comes out and the rudder feels solid, smooth it up as discussed and go sailing. Too many folks tear up their boats when there's nothing wrong in search of some ideal perfect boat. Fix things that need fixing, do normal maintenance, then use your boat. A little rust can make a big stain. If there's a metal frame in your rudder, it has a lot of metal in it. It will give a lot of warning before it fails. Unless you plan a long offshore passage, don't worry until you have a real reson.
excited about the rust stains. Hold the rudder with good gloves on and get a friend to push back and forth on the tiller (sloooowly). If it feels good and solid, drill a hole as suggested by others here. If really ugly rusty water comes out, get some hands on opinions from tech friends you trust (more experience owning boats the better. Ignore advice from books, magazines and folks who get their opinions from them) before you tear things apart. If nothing, or mildly rusty water comes out and the rudder feels solid, smooth it up as discussed and go sailing. Too many folks tear up their boats when there's nothing wrong in search of some ideal perfect boat. Fix things that need fixing, do normal maintenance, then use your boat. A little rust can make a big stain. If there's a metal frame in your rudder, it has a lot of metal in it. It will give a lot of warning before it fails. Unless you plan a long offshore passage, don't worry until you have a real reson.
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