Rudder lifting effort

[Ron]

But I will cut either a hole on the vertical panel and install either a rond inspection hatch or even a removable Lid Locker hatch to access those troubelsome blocks and ropes! Any Commnents on this hatch?
Fred

Depends on where you put it. I'd stay well above the water line and away from any high stress areas, noting that the rudder supports are built into the rudder / gas tank compartment. Get the boat up to 16+ knots and much of the transom is under water. That would eliminate most of the places for an inspection port. Some of the guys have run thin tracer lines thru this maze which would allow them to pull something thru later if needed. Once you learn the path of the lines, it's not really that hard to replace them. But I have to agree that it's easier when the boat's on the trailer. The lower lines usually have more trouble than the upper control lines. That's why I used the AmSteel / Spectra dyneema based cordage down there.

[Ron]

Steve -

I had to enlarge the holes in the transom a drop, and I used thinner (but much stronger and nearly abrasion proof) lower lines. The turning blocks were mounted in a decent position. Lubricate everything down there as well (but not the upper control lines) with something like McLube Sailkote. Get everything lined up and it should work a lot better. I'd be surprised if mine requires more than 10 pounds of force to go up or down (in the water). I'm also using a notched half dowel where the lower down line goes thru and then back out of the stainless plate on the back of the rudder assembly. That keeps the line from chafing on the stainless bracket.

I'll try to post some pictures of this stuff in the next few days (the boat is up on the lift now).

[Ron]

The photo below shows the location of the lower dyneema rudder control lines and turning block on my boat. I had to enlarge some of the holes a drop, and nothing is rubbing now. These lines are also sprayed with McLube Sailkote perhaps twice a season. You can also see the rubber washer sandwiched between the two stainless washers on the quadrants pivet shaft. This minimizes some of the engine vibrations.

[Ron]

This photo shows the lower down rudder line going thru the stainless bracket at the back of the rudder assembly. Note the notched half wooden dowel that I used to run the line around the sharp edges of the bracket. The line is supposed to go thru one side and out the other, and the sharp edges would abraid most lines. I used dyneema which minimizes the abrasion as well. McLube Sailkote also helps.

[andrewm]

Raising and lowering the rudder also takes considerable effort for me. After reading this post I checked the control lines and find that my boat only has the lower blocks, i.e. is missing the blocks labeled 1 and 3 on the diagram. Having the 2nd block would certainly help, but it looks like it would be a pain to install them.
Andrewm

[Ron]

Andrew -

Block "2" is only used for the bungee cord. It keeps the lines fairly straight when not under load. It's also nearly hidden from view unless you stick your head into the locker and look up. Maybe they decided to use two separate bungees rather than one longer one with the turning block? Either way, I don't think it will change the effort if you don't have it.

The fix for most of these problems is to make sure that the various holes are large enough for the lines to go thru (and are correctly located), making sure that the lines are not rubbing against anything (such as the down line against the transom), using thinner but stronger lower lines (or stainless wire), and lubricating everything so that it moves easier. I spent about an hour with a Dremel tool 3 years ago to do this stuff, including rounding off the surface of the transom where the down line wraps around it. Dropping the rudder a few inches exposes most of these problems.

[Gene]

Ron,
Is your rudder lifting/lowering tackle the tiny Schaefer .75 inch blocks too, or did they upgrade them in the later boats? My pull has always been high as well.