Removal of 1980
Center Cockpit Irwin 37
Rudder System
by Shawn Beightol
Beights@yahoo.com
Note: first post. Pix didn't upload but I'm trying to attach the pdf with pix
Yesterday's
rudder removal went so well, so smoothly, even in the absence of any instructions (the 1980
Irwin MKIII 37'
center cockpit has not built
boats in over 32 years and detailed support is getting sparser).
And so, I write this "how to," of sorts.
I expected that I was going to have to pay
Hurricane Cove to
lift the
boat again to remove the rudder ($400) and again to replace the rudder after
repairs ($400). I believed the rudder and shaft too long to clear the bottom of the
boat. Thankfully I was wrong!
I also expected any or all of the attaching
hardware to be frozen and rusted in place due to the harsh saltwater conditions and age of the boat. I expected to have to drill out or cut through various hardwares and pay for new fabrications.
Figures 1 & 2. A view of the rudder system. Looking from the bottom - the "stuffing box" is joined to the fiberglassed rudder tube that extends upward from the
hull about an inch. The old rubber hose is supposed to be clamped to this "lip"...but wasn't. It was completely loose when I touched it after the rudder had been removed. I guess this means its well above the
water line or I would have sunk.
Above this is the white nylon "packing gland" inside of which you coil a wax impregnated cord called flax packing. you then tighten the upper nylon nut down and this compresses the cord outward, sealing the space between the black hose and the rudder stock. it needs to be loose enough to let a drop of
water per second leak through for
cooling and lubrication purposes.
Above the nylon nut, there is what is called the "quadrant," the leverage to which the
steering cables are attached and pull against to cause rotation of the shaft.
Figure 1 The Irwin 37 Rudder System Figure 2 Another view of the Irwin 37 Rudder System
I knew the general procedure would be:
*spray EVERY attachment with PB Blaster 2x a day for a few days prior.
*remove the
steering quadrant - this required backing off the tensioning eye-bolts on the
cables since the bolts tightened blocked the quadrant attachment bolts. See figures 3 & 4.
Figure 3 The Irwin 37 steering quadrant. the right side of the picture faces forward
Figure 4 the rear/aft side of the quadrant so you can see how to unbolt. notice the key way on the shaft hole.
*supporting the rudder - I placed a free
halyard under the rudder from the starboard cleat down, under the post in the rudder, up through a block and a few turns around a
winch. I did not lock the line in the
winch. I then passed the line down and tied it off to a jack stand. I placed a wooden block under the rudder which had 16" to fall. See figure 5.
Figure 5 The irwin 37 rudder supported by a
halyard, ready to be lowered.
*remove the
emergency tiller through bolt from the top of the rudder post - this allows a pipe extension fitted tiller handle to fit over the post and lock onto the post in the case of loss of cable steering while at sea. its just a bolt through the post with a nylon lock nut holding it in place.
*remove the set screw(s) from the collar holding the post above the top bearings. the collar had two holes that each appeared to hold a set screw. typically set screws use allen heads and the first came out like butter! The second was a mystery. I took pictures inside the hole and was sure I saw a hex
head. but no allen or star key fit.
I then put a punch in the 2nd hole at an angle and tapped it with a hammer and the collar rotated! I did it again and I was sure I saw a slight change in vertical placement. I put a large screwdriver
head in between the top bearings (beneath the collar) and the collar and pried upward. the collar moved slightly. I continued doing this from different angles and suddenly the collar was free! there was only one set screw and the other hole was actually for the punch as I had used it (either that or someone started to install a 2nd set screw and gave up on the drilling process before it went through, but I'm sure its the former). See Figure 6.
Figure 6 Using a punch to break the supporting collar free after removal of the 1 set screw to the left (clockwise) of punch hole
* Next was to remove the lower bearing and support - this is where I believe the problem of rudder "play" occurred. My initial impression was that constant wave action against the rudder developed internal play of the internal "ribs" from the rudder post against the foam filling and allowed the rudder to swing free transferring force to the lower bearings and wearing them out. When I removed the 3 bolts holding the lower u-strap containing the lower "bearings" and the supporting the lower portion of the shaft and rudder, I noticed the u-strap was made in two halves intended to be held together by yet another bolt...that was missing. On removal of the strap and inspecting the halves, I noticed there was no "bearing" or plastic bushing, rather, a sort of
bronze cutless bearing that also came in halves (so could be changed in the future without having to remove the rudder!). These halves were in perfect shape. So now I think the play was being transferred to the other 3 bolts that went through the
fiberglass lower skeg and produced a
compression that opened up the u-strap around the shaft and that was where the latera motion was developing from. I will add a layer of glass to that skeg to thicken and reinforce it and have a bolt fitted to hold the u-strap together. See Figures 7 & 8.
Figure 7 The other side of the u-strap showing the nylon lock nuts...that...btw, were pretty much shot so that I could almost turn them by hand. this system was on the verge of catastrophic failure!
Figure 8 The lower bearing/u-bolt assembly. on the right side you see the 3 bolts going through the
fiberglass skeg and are tightened with nuts on the other side (next pic). You can see the missing bolt to the left where this bolt tightens the 2 halves
*Now to lower the "freed" rudder. I climbed down the ladder, freed the halyard and slacked it a bit. Nothing. I then tensioned the line and walked over to the rudder and gave it a rotation. It suddenly sagged into the supporting halyard. I lowered the rudder to the block then kicked the block out from under. the post was still inside the stern tube so I wasn't sure it would lower enough for removal. I loosened the halyard a bit more and suddenly the top of the rudder stock/post cleared the
hull and she leaned over and fell to the ground. She's a heavy one, so the fall gained attention from nearby workers to whom I flashed a smile and thumbs up! See figure 9.
Figure 9 Rudder down! the wetness of the asphalt comes from the water dripping out of the drainholes I drilled in the base of the rudder the day before
*Finally, I went back inside and removed the packing gland/stuffing box and a nylon bushing that fit inside the stern tube. See Figure 10.
Figure 10 I removed the
packing gland without touching the hose clamps...she fell off practically. not good...but good we caught it and will address it
Figures 11- show other aspects of the system:
Figure 11 a view of the stuffing box and rudder post after removing the quadrant.
Figure 12 this is the key that fits in the post and locks the quadrant in place.
Figure 13 The removed retaining collar. the hole to the right is a "punch" hole, to the left is the set screw.
Figure 14 underside of the collar. I suppose the depression is for an o-ring? Maybe a nylon bushing?
Figure 15 rudder on the left is free above (supporting collar removed) and below (U-strap removed). Skeg to the right.
Figure 17 top view of U-strap and bushings/cutless bearing.
Figure 18 Looking down at the I-beam and the upper bearings with securing nuts removed. you can also see below the rudder tube.
Figure 19 with the upper bearings removed, a view of the ibeam.
Figure 20 This is a nylon insert that came out of the rudder tube to reduce lateral play in the rudder stock through the rudder tube, the lip of which you can see at the base of the nylon insert.
Figure 21
hardware on the upper rudder stock for reference. from the bottom, the halyard supporting the rudder, above that you see the nylon sleeve/insert, above that the
packing gland. above that the upper bearings. above the collar.
Figure 22 another perspective of the re-assembled rudder system out of the boat.
I had a friend help me load the rudder and hardware into the jeep then we went to @F&J Propellors (
https://fjprop.com/page/Miami/46/16/ ) on the
Miami River. They knew exactly what to do as they built rudder systems for all kinds of
boats from tugs down to sailboats. They gave me an excellent
price for a total
rebuild, 1/3 of what I expected to pay...and told me it would be ready by 2 PM Friday (less than 24 hours turn-around!). There are still competent people/companies in the world, thank you very much, John Galt.
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