Rudder (Skeg) Surprise – Found Water, Found Cracks… Found a New Project

[testingthewaters91]

Well, I was minding my own business at the yard the other day, when I saw a couple of other folks poking around their rudders. Naturally, that got me curious (never a good sign for my wallet).

So I go to check mine, and what do I see? A little bit of water seeping out. Being the rational, cautious boat owner that I am… I grabbed the angle grinder.

One thing led to another, and… well… you can see the carnage in the pictures. I traced some hairline cracks and found water lurking inside, so I kept chasing them. Turns out it wasn’t just a couple cracks — it’s a full-blown “let’s open up the patient” situation.

I’ve let it dry for a couple days (and will probably give it a bit more time), but I’m going to have to rebuild. My current plan:

Fill the internal voids with West System epoxy thickened with 406 colloidal silica

Lay up 17-oz biaxial cloth with epoxy over the repair area

Seal the whole thing with an epoxy barrier coat

Finish with ablative paint


It looks like someone repaired this rudder skeg before, but skipped the barrier coat. That let water in, and with freezing/thawing cycles plus rudder loads, cracks formed. This section I opened up is forward of the rudder — the part that connects to the hull (skeg).

Anyway, now you know my plan. I’d love to hear tips, horror stories, or “don’t do that” advice from folks who’ve been down the rudder-repair rabbit hole before.

And yes, I realize this all started because I couldn’t mind my own business.

 

[Richard19068]

Is that the rudder? From the picture it looks like the skeg.

 

[testingthewaters91]

Is that the rudder? From the picture it looks like the skeg.

That's right. The skeg!

 

[Tally Ho]

Well, I was minding my own business at the yard the other day, when I saw a couple of other folks poking around their rudders. Naturally, that got me curious (never a good sign for my wallet).

So I go to check mine, and what do I see? A little bit of water seeping out. Being the rational, cautious boat owner that I am… I grabbed the angle grinder.

One thing led to another, and… well… you can see the carnage in the pictures. I traced some hairline cracks and found water lurking inside, so I kept chasing them. Turns out it wasn’t just a couple cracks — it’s a full-blown “let’s open up the patient” situation.

I’ve let it dry for a couple days (and will probably give it a bit more time), but I’m going to have to rebuild. My current plan:

Fill the internal voids with West System epoxy thickened with 406 colloidal silica

Lay up 17-oz biaxial cloth with epoxy over the repair area

Seal the whole thing with an epoxy barrier coat

Finish with ablative paint


It looks like someone repaired this rudder skeg before, but skipped the barrier coat. That let water in, and with freezing/thawing cycles plus rudder loads, cracks formed. This section I opened up is forward of the rudder — the part that connects to the hull (skeg).

Anyway, now you know my plan. I’d love to hear tips, horror stories, or “don’t do that” advice from folks who’ve been down the rudder-repair rabbit hole before.

And yes, I realize this all started because I couldn’t mind my own business.

Seems like a reasonable approach if you can get down to solid glass.

But do yourself a favor….if you see any water oozing from the rudder….drill a hole in it (or a couple) to get the water out. Way easier to seal up the drill hole than whacking it with an angle grinder

Greg

 

[testingthewaters91]

Seems like a reasonable approach if you can get down to solid glass.

But do yourself a favor….if you see any water oozing from the rudder….drill a hole in it (or a couple) to get the water out. Way easier to seal up the drill hole than whacking it with an angle grinder

Greg

That’s a great tip — I might have to put the grinder in time-out next time.

Have you gone the drill-hole route yourself and lived to tell the tale? I’m curious how much water you managed to get out that way, and how long you let it dry before sealing up.

From what I can tell, I’m down to the foam/fairing compound that makes up the core of the rudder skeg. Does that sound about right to you? Or am I about to get a crash course in “you’ve still got more grinding to do”?

 

[ggrizzard]

Having had my skeg professionally removed twice over the past 43 years, I can tell that whoever did the work on yours was an amateur.
The seam between the skeg and the hull (joint) looks very crude in that, I think water probably got in that area after work was done (poorly) on the skeg at some point in the past.
I would have it professionally removed, drained or opened up for drainage and repaired with fiberglass, re-sealed, painted properly and then reinstalled...
But then, that's just me!

 

[Tally Ho]

That’s a great tip — I might have to put the grinder in time-out next time.

Have you gone the drill-hole route yourself and lived to tell the tale? I’m curious how much water you managed to get out that way, and how long you let it dry before sealing up.

From what I can tell, I’m down to the foam/fairing compound that makes up the core of the rudder skeg. Does that sound about right to you? Or am I about to get a crash course in “you’ve still got more grinding to do”?

I haven’t had to drain mine, but 2 buddies at my marina with newer Hunter 33’s both had water in their rudders. They drilled holes to let the water out over the winter. In the spring, before launch, they plug the holes.

I did have a bit of a split on my rudder…I ground it down (carefully) with my grinder, then sealed the edge with fiberglass tape, epoxy, barrier coat and several coats of VC17 (my anti-flouting paint). I haven’t had to do any repairs since…

Greg

 

[testingthewaters91]

Having had my skeg professionally removed twice over the past 43 years, I can tell that whoever did the work on yours was an amateur.
The seam between the skeg and the hull (joint) looks very crude in that, I think water probably got in that area after work was done (poorly) on the skeg at some point in the past.
I would have it professionally removed, drained or opened up for drainage and repaired with fiberglass, re-sealed, painted properly and then reinstalled...
But then, that's just me!

I’d love to have a pro handle it, but around here there’s no one I trust anymore—my last 'professional' experience was a disaster. I’m pretty handy with glass work, so I’d rather dig into it myself and do a proper layup. At least then I’ll know exactly what went into the repair.

 

[testingthewaters91]

I haven’t had to drain mine, but 2 buddies at my marina with newer Hunter 33’s both had water in their rudders. They drilled holes to let the water out over the winter. In the spring, before launch, they plug the holes.

I did have a bit of a split on my rudder…I ground it down (carefully) with my grinder, then sealed the edge with fiberglass tape, epoxy, barrier coat and several coats of VC17 (my anti-flouting paint). I haven’t had to do any repairs since…

Greg

I'll be taking the DIY path, myself!

 

[dLj]

This skeg is on a 1981 Hunter 30? Is this a Cherubini Hunter 30?

I think if I were doing that skeg, I'd drop the rudder and get a good look at how it attaches - I seem to recall these were often attached in a less than optimal way. If you are going through all this work, might go to ground zero and rebuild it well.

dj

 

[testingthewaters91]

This skeg is on a 1981 Hunter 30? Is this a Cherubini Hunter 30?

I think if I were doing that skeg, I'd drop the rudder and get a good look at how it attaches - I seem to recall these were often attached in a less than optimal way. If you are going through all this work, might go to ground zero and rebuild it well.

dj

I see. I'm not sure how to drop the rudder and the boat didn't come with any instructions on how to do so. I would consider doing the full evaluation if I knew the steps for how to remove it. I'm also working alone at a boat yard in my free time off of work.

So far this is the first I've heard of a 'less than optimal' skeg attachment for this model.

 

[dLj]

I see. I'm not sure how to drop the rudder and the boat didn't come with any instructions on how to do so. I would consider doing the full evaluation if I knew the steps for how to remove it. I'm also working alone at a boat yard in my free time off of work.

So far this is the first I've heard of a 'less than optimal' skeg attachment for this model.

Post photos of the entire rudder and skeg - include photos of the rudder attachments. I had the same model but a couple years older but I'm not remembering the exact set-up. Photos may help jog my memory. I seem to recall you'll have to get to the back of your port side quarter berth back behind the engine to see the top of the rudder post.

Of course you could just patch up what you've got and go sailing... Kinda depends upon how you like to roll....

dj