Rudder broke, woops - And RUBRAILS

Z

z64dan

New Member
Yes my rudder broke (the wood snapped vertically and is now in two clean pieces). Hey the wind was only 25 knots or so, whadya gonna do? Obviously I'm a cheapo and don't want to spend 100-200 bucks for a rudder kit. Would it be possible to just drill metal reinforcements into the two pieces and epoxy them together and then fiberglass the whole rudder? Then maybe paint it?

Or do you guys think I should just buy a new one (or make one out of a fresh piece of wood). Having a "regulation/official size" rudder blade is not important to me for this boat. The rigging of the rudder is the same as this one: http://www.dinghyshop.com/sunfish/rudder.html .... So I guess that will tell something about the age of the boat possibly....

Also the metal rubrail is breaking/falling off from the front end of the boat (already missing 3 feet or so). I was curious about other peoples experiences with fixing that problem. I really like those rubber rubrails sold by taco marine but they all seem to be $130+...

Thanks
Danny
 
From the rudder blade design it looks like your boat is from between 1972 and 2006. Newer by Sunfish standards.

You can put the rudder back together with reinforcing rods or cut a new blade. Sunfish Bible outlines just that sort of repair and others. If you aren't racing Class sanctioned events nobody cares. All that really matters is that you can go sailing.

The flange protection can be as rigid or flexible as you like. It's just there to keep the flange from getting damaged and leaking. If you go soft just don't hit anything.

There's a trim repair guide at Sunfish Sailor http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sunfish_sailor
 
Have you thought of replacing the rudder with (God forgive me) marine plywood? With a water proof sealant, you will get many seasons of boating out of it. Personally I replaced my beat up rudder with an old dagger board cut to size using the original rudder as a template.

-Al
 
Lot's of attempts to use plywood, few are successful.
Brian Weeks did an article for the Windward Leg years ago on repairing rudders. IIRC he used 1/4" threaded stainless steel rod and epoxy.
Another "trick" we found when not using the boat for organized racing is to mount the rudder blade more vertically. A lot less strain on the blade and you even get quicker response and less weather helm.
 
If you aren't going to be racing you can buy "aftermarket" rudders. Bill Tosh does an excellent job and stands behind his work. He sells finished and unfinished rudders. He will even do special orders, I had him add a 2nd dowel in the rudder I just bought from him. You can contact him at [email protected] . As for the rub rail, I use a vinyl (white) clad stainless Q rub rail. It slides on the edge. It's clean and easy to install and remove,.no drilling, riviting etc.
 
I re-gel coated the hulls of both of my sunfish and the shop that did it showed me the Q trim. I bought a roll of 125' so I have some left over. It is simple stuff, I think that West Marine sells the same or similar product though I do recall it being pricey.
 
I just had the same problem with my rudder. I gave it a coat of fiberglass and a 2nd coat of resin and now it works fine! Just make sure you on't cover where the aluminum plates go. They won't fit if you do

-Dean
 
Z64Dan -

My son just had "an incident" beaching the sunfish in heavier surf - resulting in a snapped rudder... Snapped vertically down the aft side where the tiller and spring tension posts are.

We bought a piece of Mohagany, traced the old rudder and built a new one in less than 3 hours (to precise size, shape, and contour) - a couple of days to sand and apply 5 coats of spar urethane.

Tools required are a jig saw, belt sander, finish sander and time... though a table saw will help take some time out of the process when tapering the leading and lagging edges.

If you are interested - eMail me at [email protected] I'll send you photos - old and new - or a quick video of the two rudders. Total cost $50 (with wood and urethane to spare).
 
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