Privilege Cats

[privileged]

Greg , I am sure the bearings are the same top and bottom , It is the shaft that has a built up area where the bearings seat, only by a millimeter.

[svcattales]

Originally Posted by privileged

Greg , I am sure the bearings are the same top and bottom , It is the shaft that has a built up area where the bearings seat, only by a millimeter.

Thanks to Keith and Mick for the excellent tips on how to do this project. Your help reduced the stress factor for removing the rudder in the water to replace the bushings.

Today, we got the rudder out without too much trouble. I had difficulty removing the bolt that goes through the rudder post and holds the delrin retainer in place. The bolt was slightly bent and I had to hammer a drift pin to force the bolt out. I rigged a crane out of two by fours with a block above the rudder post to support the weight of the rudder (see pic). Unlike Mick, I didn't have two strong divers ready to man-handle the heavy rudder. Once the retainer was removed, the rudder was ready to drop. My bride tailed the line to the rudder post while I held the rudder under water. She lowered it gently until clear of the hull and she just let it hang there. Next I attached another line to the rudder post routed thru a block mounted on my radar arch. She switched the new line to a sheet winch and cranked the rudder out of the water. I put our dinghy under it and she lowered into the dink. From the dink we manhandled the rudder to the dock. It was seriously heavy...I'm guessing 80lbs.

I also had trouble getting out the top rudder bushing. It was a tight fit and had lots of crud around it in the housing. I worked it back and forth and sprayed WD-40 into it to lubricate it. After about 2hrs of playing with it, it finally came out. The top bushing is in good shape so I suspect the lower bushing is the "guilty party" making the noise. I gave a short try at removing the lower bushing in the water, but it felt tighter than the top one. I will need a full SCUBA tank and a bar the same diameter as the inside of the bushing so I can stick it inside the bushing and work it back and forth. I'm anticipating a tough job on that one based on Keith's & Mick's experience on the lower bearing.

After I get the lower bushing out, I'll send them both out to a company to duplicate them (see earlier post for details). I'll do a follow-up when I get the new bushings back and installed.

Overall, I think this job is doable in the water and removing the rudder was the easiest part. If I was in the yard, I'd be digging holes to allow the rudder post to clear the bottom of the hull. See pics below.