Rudders

[Lt.]

I've been reading lately, and am wondering what kind of Rudders you guys have, skeg, or spade, or double hung with an aperture for the prop, or other?

On another, similarish topic, if your boat was built without a tillar, do you have some sort of back up way of hooking up an emergency tillar in case the helm fails?

[gts1544]

As a casual cruiser, I would have to say that the vessel's steering system is one of the most "taken for granted" areas on the boat as it is "out of sight, out of mind"! Try steering your boat when it quits working! It can be done with sail trim, but is not for the faint of heart, particularly in close quarters. In 2 boats that I own, I have discovered a delaminated rudder full of water / a rusted chain over the wheel sprocket that was on the verge of freezing up and breaking / frayed cables between the sprocket chain and the quadrant / cables off of their pulleys / a rudder fitting that was on the verge of failure. Periodic competent inspections of your entire steering system will pay significant dividends, not the least of which is "peace of mind"! The rusted rudder bracket was discovered because I noticed a small rust streak running down the leading edge of the rudder and skeg. I could have ignored it at my peril! gts1544

[micah719]

My boat is still being built in my mind. Canoe stern, easy access to the top of the rudder to fit an emergency tiller. Still looking at rudder foil section, and whether to have a fenestrated rudder (works like flaps on a wing). Linkage to helm by chain, sprockets and shaft. Other emergency steering options include weather vane, cassette rudder, or yuloh, but I'll put in m best effort to build the main system strong and keep a close eye on it. How many cruisers do scheduled inspections of their vessels?