Straightening a bent rudder post.

[Kokomo]

We are looking for someone along the east coat to straighten our slightly bent rudder post on our PDQ36. Can anyone recommend someone convenient to the coastal waters between VA and Mass? The rudder will be off the boat since we have a spare. Thanks!!!

[Cat Tales]

Depending on the bend, it may be impossible to perfectly re-straighten the post. It can be likened to straightening a paperclip; it will never loose its crease. But, any metal fabricator should have the right gear to bend or attempt to straighten it. Good luck!

Chris

[Kokomo]

As luck would have it, a cruiser in the Marina here at Lucaya had access to equipment and experience. It's straight and the cost was more than reasonable.

[MagicDragon]

Magic Dragon (hull #54) just hit a tree in the Erie Canal about 1/4 mile east of Lock 19. We had enough clearance to steer through two more locks and tied up at Riverside Marina owned by Sam Campanaro. Sam opened up at 8:30 pm to help us tie up and told us he'd be able to help out first thing in the morning. He lifted the stern out of the water using his large back hoe and straightened out the rudder post quickly. We were back under way by 2:30. Kudos to Sam - his approach to our problems was innovative and we really appreciated his helpfulness and creativity.

[Dan White]

As luck would have it, almost immediately after reading these posts, I hit a submerged object at about 3 knots. The impact bent the rudder back so that it was pushed hard against the underside of the hull. As a consequence I was barely able to move the wheel.

After anchoring and groping around in the water, there was no way I could fix it. We limped home using the engines to steer.

Any advice on what to do next greatly appreciated.

[Tanah-Keeta]

I bent my starboard rudder in Daytona. After haul out, it was apparent that the locals could not straighten it. The solution was to remove the rudder and drill a new set screw hole about 1 inch higher which, when reinstalled, lowered the rudder. I reinstalled the rudder and it cleared the hull and worked fine all the way to North Carolina and would have probably worked a lot longer. I did replace it though.

[amytom]

As luck would have it, almost immediately after reading these posts, I hit a submerged object at about 3 knots. The impact bent the rudder back so that it was pushed hard against the underside of the hull. As a consequence I was barely able to move the wheel.

After anchoring and groping around in the water, there was no way I could fix it. We limped home using the engines to steer.

Any advice on what to do next greatly appreciated.

For a limp home fix, could you have seperated the rudders at the cross link and used a tiller handle to steer the good rudder? I have the 32, don't know if the 36 is setup the same way.

Tom

[Bob]

I had the same problem on my ill fated previous PDQ. I cut a small piece of the rudder out around the post about 4-5" square. I then had the machine shop cut the post, insert a sleeve and then welded a new piece of 316 sch 40 pipe. Following this I epoxied,glassed and faired the piece back in sealing the post/rudder joint with 3M 5200. The problem with trying to straighten the post is that you would have to cut considerably more of the rudder in order to put it in a press and if you get a dent in the wall it is a weak point.

[Ed Ellis]

A very simple solution to the rudder post bend (when the rudder is touching the hull and thus won't steer) is to lower the rudder post down about an inch. Just loosen the quadrant bolts and tap the top of the post with a hammer. The post itself is plenty long for this. This works for the older model PDQs. I've tried this and it worked great.

I've heard that once the post is bent, re-bending it to straighten it weakens the metal further.

Cheers, Ed

[Kokomo]

Ed is correct! If you hit something hard enough, like a submerged deadhead or railroad tie, the rudder will bend back and jam against the hull - there is less than a inch clearance. You can loosen the bolts and move the rudder down, Three suggestions, these bolts are prone to corrosion due to dissimilar metals. It's a good idea to get to these before you need them and coat them with "Tef-gel" or something similar. Also, put a hose clamp around the tube and slid it down as far as it will go. Then move it up an inch at a time so you can control the amount of distance the rudder will drop. Before moving it, mark the post and the quadrant with match-marks so you can re-align the rudder. There is a bolt that does this now, which will have to be removed, but the quadrant will hold it in alignment without the bolt (which wil no longer fit once the shaft is lowered).

[36041]

For what it's worth....

I actually saw a man affiliated with St. Francis Catamarans (S.Africa) straighten a rudder much like our PDQ's by digging a hole, burying the rudder to the top of the fiberglass, backfilling and then use a backhoe to straighten what had been a 40 degree, multi dimensional twist. It was pretty amazing to watch.

Anyhow, this thread makes me glad I have skegs in front of our rudders.

Tom
36041
www.tendervittles.net

[Page 83]

Amazing! how did it come out?

[36041]

They sailed the rest of the season in the Bahamas and hauled out in St. Augustine where they had a new rudder assembly brought in from the factory.

[Allezcat]

I considered renaming Allezcat "Bent Rudder" after the third time. Disconnecting the tie rod and using the emergency tiller on the port rudder works great to "get home" if the jammed rudder is the starboard and is close to midships. If its the port you can just disconnect and steer with the wheel. Dropping and reclamping the bent rudder a 1/2" also works great. Be sure to tie off the rudder at the top end so you don't drop it to the bottom! I straighten the bent stock by fastening the blade to a block wall using 2X4's and concrete screws. Then cover the stock with a galvanized water pipe down to the bend and use a hydraulic jack at the top end. There is some "spring" to the rudder stock so you have to go slightly past straight.

Chet
Allezcat 36010

[Cat Tales]

With our own bent rudder problems behind us, I'd like to prevent this hiccup in the future.

Does anyone have detailed pictures of their rudder skegs?

My original thought was to extend our keel lines to the rudder with a piece of epoxied stainless steel. Although this would prevent anything from snagging, my biggest concern is the distance to be joined and if the SS cross-beam would not bend with any significant impacts. The ideas are still developing and I'd like to see detailed pics of what PDQ already did with the skegs.

Thanks,
Chris