rudder!!

[dbdaniel]

I moved my 1995 Hunter Passage 42 to a new marina two days ago that is a stern-to docking set-up. Upon arriving home (i live aboard) about ten minutes ago I noticed that the rudder is touching the bottom and the rudder shaft has moved up about a 1/2-3/4 of an inch from its original position. Is anything likely to be broken? How do I know if anything is broken? Worst case scenario, what kind of damage/cost am i looking at? And go easy with the hindsight input, i'm brand new to boating. Any help would be great.

 

[Dave Groshong]

I'm not sure about shaft damage but

A new rudder for that boat is $3587 here on this site, so be careful!!

 

[Ross]

How hard is the bottom.?

Most boats will tolerate a soft grounding.

 

[higgs]

Depends

Ii would think if you had hit your rudder hard enough to do any serious damage, you would know. Look at it this way, if it is seriously damaged in a situation where you were not aware of damage, then you might want to think about a different boat. It is not uncommon for rudders to have a little up and down play, though often, since many float, they are at their highest point anyways. I would suggest contacting Hunter on this.I would be surprised if you have done serious damage, such as bending the shaft. Boats are pretty tough and it takes a bit to damage them seriously.

 

[Jim]

Brad, don't freak put

how can the rudder move up? The water should be clear in Fort Lauderdale. Dive down and take a look for damage. Record any finding then call or Hunter and ask for advice. How can the shaft move up? The Rudder would stop it, I would think?You might want to rent an underwater cameria and take pics.

 

[mike C16582]

check tomorrow. If.......

your boats full of water, then there's a problem.Have a beer, relax and think about buying a laser.

 

[Denise]

Uh OH!

There was a thread on another forum about the same boat as yours. They lost the rudder on a trip to the islands. If yours is like that one your shaft is fiberglass? I'd get a phone call into Hunter real quick! good luck

 

[Landsend]

It's not good to sit on the rudder...

damage will happen, if it hasn't been done already. Finder a deeper boat slip.

 

[s sauer]

Depth Sounder

So if the bow is facing out what's the depth sounder reading? Maybe the 1st thing you could do is turn the boat around if there's more water at the other end of the slip.What's the tidal range and how often are you on the bottom? I wouldn't let it sit on the rudder and risk damage; move to a deeper slip

 

[Joe]

Laser

Jeeze Mike, wake up on the wrong side of the row boat?First, check for leaks. If none, get your boat to some safe water and see if stearing performance has changed.If your not confident in your ability, get a quote to have someone from your marina ro check things out. We all need the help from others on occasion. This will give you some peace of mind.Best of luck!Joe

 

[Rick]

hey Brad

What about your niebors? Did they hit the bottom too? It's hard to believe that nobody knew the water was so shallow.Call Hunter and get thier opinion.

 

[higgs]

Brad

Don't leave us hanging on this issue, Let us know the outcome.  I say you have not done any serious damage.

 

[Marco Garcia]

Forgot...

I guess with time, the washer under quadrant deforms due to the weight of the rudder and its constant movement, increasing the clearance.Marco