Hello All,
I need to replace my rudders on my 26M, one is irreparably damaged (don't know how!) and, looking at the BWY site, they offer, in addition to the standard shape, a High performance version for approx $150 more per pair.
I would appreciate any comments from the more knowledgeable of our community on whether this looks like a worthwhile investment or just a marketing whim. Just google BWA/macgregor parts and you'll find your way.
Kind regards, John Richardson 'Sonny' 26M
The HDPE rudders offered by the likes of Rudder craft are going ot be a lot more resilient than the original fibreglass versions and are likely to be more efficient as they are a better aerofoil section.
https://store.ruddercraft.com/index.php?route=product/product&path=181 4...
The original rudders are hollow section fibreglass whereas the HDPE (high density polyethylene) is a lot more resistant to bumps and knocks. I see that they are supplied without the holes so you will need to drill those yourself - not that its a big job.
An alternative is to make rudders from aluminium aerofoil sections and fabricate the tops and blank of the base yourself. The aerofoil sections are a lot cheaper.
You can now buy a 1250mm rudder aerofoil section in anodized aluminium for £80 that is about the right size for a Mac rudder blade (Windknife Full foil section FF27 http://www.windknife.com/full-foil/full-foil.)
At £80 each ( see shop tab in link above) and a bit of work to make a top that fits the rudder stock you end up with a high quality aerofoil rudder without the need for a lot of fabrication time.
Hope this helps.
Mike C Tarka 26M
Good detailed answer Mike . I recall that we looked into making a mold like you did for the dagger board but you felt that it was not economically feasible nor advisable if simply to keep weight down. The more resilient rudders sound a good idea especially for those whose skill and equipment is not up to your standard.
If using a design which can't break I would ensure you have pop up cleats to release if strike underwater object.
NB...Rudders may get damaged by motoring above 6 k it's with rudders down...due to suction effect of prop.
Roly
Hi Roly - your point about pop up cleats is interesting - I still use the original cleats but when in shallow water we leave the down hauls with only a single turn on the cleat so they can knock up if hit. Once in deeper water I tie them off properly to stop them coming up. We have had a couple of instances where I forgot to tie them off fully and one has come up on its own but this has usually been whilst sailing and is obvious as the helm becomes unbalanced and less responsive. I always make a point of checking the rudders are both fully down and I have all the dagger board down when we get over the bar and into our marina as we need full responsiveness to get into our berth. The first time we ever used the boat I made the mistake of not having any dagger board down and it was a disaster in our tight marina! We regularly motor back home up the creek at 6 knots on the gps and a couple of knots of tide so 7 -8 knots speed through the water with the rudders fully down without a problem. I only pull the rudders and dagger board fully up when I'm dumping the water ballast and am getting the boat on the plane which in our case is about 12 knots for comfort.
We change the water ballast occasionally and use the boat speed and a bit of wave action to remove the slight fringe of weed we accumulate on the sunny side waterline from time to time. We don't get a lot of growth as we had the boat copper coated a couple years ago and that's all it seems to need to keep clean even though the growth on the stern fittings is a constant nuisance and needs clearing by hand. We also put a couple of Milton tablets in the water ballast tank vent to minimise the smell of the dead organisms in water ballast when its left in for months at a time.
Mike C Tarka 26M
Hello Mike & Roly,
Thanks so much for detailed answers.
Regards,
John Richardson 'Sonny' 26M
Hi Roly,
showing my lack of knowledge but I’ve googled pop up cleats and can only see those that close into the deck. From your description these automatically release on impact? Could you let me details of a supplier and if poss a part number.
thanks
keith
Star 26M
Hi Roly,
just found them by adding auto release to the search. Thanks for planting the suggestion.
Keith Star 26m
I have found these cleats very useful as warning of shallow water especially near river banks that slope in and also branches or debris in rivers/canals. I bolted them into place in suitable place near the line holes , accessing nut with a long arm through the inspection holes( after removing some foam) . I had to buy some slightly thinner line and rethread ( NB if doing this try to use old line as a guide). I just wind loose line one turn on cleat. It also helps to keep lines tidy when rudders uphauled so none soaking in the water to collect weed.
Roly
Re the new rudders from BWY that John Richardson mentioned ....I believe that they are longer and may perform better aswell as being stronger so if I had money and needed to replace both I might well choose them .
Roly