Dropping Spade Rudder

[Tmacmi]

Further to my thread below about the fore/aft play in the propeller shaft, I may be heading toward removing the shaft altogether.

That will require dropping the rudder. It is a spade rudder with radial cable steering.

Can anybody give me an overview of the process or point me to a resource?

[Nicholson58]

On our boat, the rudder shaft has an access port in the deck for a manual tiller. We attach a lift eye in the taped hole in the shaft end. With our mizzen boom, we put a tackle from boom to lift eye.

Next, dig a hole below the rudder. Remove the steering and sector components and lower the rudder.

Another thing. Our prop shaft is angled just enough that if the prop is removed the shaft will pass the rudder. Could you be that lucky? If you partly drop the rudder can you then get the rudder shaft bearings out of the way and have space to deflect the rudder?

Do you need to fully remove the shaft?

Kind of cold for outdoor work in GH. Where is the boat? Torresen? We happen to be in GR today, headed for Trinidad Friday. Time to fly south.

[Dockhead]

Like he said, it would be unusual to have to drop the rudder out to remove the shaft. All boats I've ever been around had a slightly angled shaft to allow it to be pulled out around the rudder. You will have to remove the propeller, but that is vastly simpler than dropping out the rudder.


In case you want to drop out the rudder anyway (it's good to do it every few years and check, clean, service or replace the bearings and lip seals, and go through the steering gear thoroughly), then normally you will block up the rudder and unbolt the quadrant, which is usually clamped onto the shaft, sometimes with a key. If you are lucky enough to have a threaded hole in the top of the shaft, you can rig a tackle to that, but in most cases you will have to manhandle it down. Sometimes the quadrant is on a flange and you have to unbolt that before you can get to the clamp. Sometimes you have to tap on the top of the rudder shaft to get it unstuck from the bearings.

[a64pilot]

Some boats you do have to drop the rudder, but sometimes there are other options.
My Island packet has zero shaft off set, the shaft hits the rudder dead center, but you can remove the shaft log and that gives you plenty of play to then remove the shaft.
However I had a “groove” cut into one side of my rudder that gives enough clearance with slight pulling to get the shaft out and leave the shaft log in place.

[Tmacmi]

Originally Posted by Nicholson58

On our boat, the rudder shaft has an access port in the deck for a manual tiller. We attach a lift eye in the taped hole in the shaft end. With our mizzen boom, we put a tackle from boom to lift eye.

Next, dig a hole below the rudder. Remove the steering and sector components and lower the rudder.

Another thing. Our prop shaft is angled just enough that if the prop is removed the shaft will pass the rudder. Could you be that lucky? If you partly drop the rudder can you then get the rudder shaft bearings out of the way and have space to deflect the rudder?

Do you need to fully remove the shaft?

Kind of cold for outdoor work in GH. Where is the boat? Torresen? We happen to be in GR today, headed for Trinidad Friday. Time to fly south.

Good tips from everyone. My biggest concern is unrigging and rerigging the radial/cable steering from the rudder shaft.

There is no guarantee that the shaft has to come out. This weekend I'll undo the set screws and back it out of the housing to see what's up.

I don't think I'm going to get lucky on the alignment of the prop shaft.

https://imgur.com/JNlHjrC

It may get by after I drop it to the point the prop shaft only has to get by the rudder shaft.

The good news is that I think its high enough in the cradle that I may not need to dig a hole.

The boat is is at 1st Choice in South Haven. Its going to get cold. I'm going to get one of those ceramic electric heaters when I'm working inside the boat. If I have to work outside maybe I'll build a 2 x 4 tent and bring my propane heater.

[billknny]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

Like he said, it would be unusual to have to drop the rudder out to remove the shaft. All boats I've ever been around had a slightly angled shaft to allow it to be pulled out around the rudder. You will have to remove the propeller, but that is vastly simpler than dropping out the rudder.

It’s not that unusual, unfortunately. Walk any boat yard, you’ll see lots of boats with this very basic design flaw. I have seen a few boats where the only way to remove the shaft was to move the engine, and two boats where the only way to remove the prop was to move the engine!

Remember, half of all boat builders are below average.

[a64pilot]

Don’t get one of the ceramic heaters, they get hot enough to cause a fire.
Instead get one of the oil filled ones that look like an old fashioned radiator, the put out the same heat, but because of their huge surface area they don’t have to get hot enough to cause a fire.