Rudder hinge . .
Posted: Fri Feb 10, 2012 1:15 pmPocketShip's rudder is hung on a hinge (kind of like a door). I think that is better than traditional gudgeons & pintles which may allow the rudder to become "unshipped" unless otherwise restrained. But PocketShip's rudder won't unship even if she's up-side-down. Also, the "wing" on the bottom of the rudder is strong enough to stand on. That provides a way to reboard PocketShip if you fall overboard. Or, go swimming.
I haven't tried it on the water, but I've done it in my driveway. The tiller should be fixed (I use a tiller "clutch") so that the rudder won't swing wildly when you step on the wing. The rudder wing gives you a good lift -- and by grabbing the transom skirt and a gallows support by hand, I was able to climb aboard.
My weight is about 200 lbs. And the timber I used at the end of the skeg was scrap pine. I should have used ash or oak. Also, as designed, all the weight of rudder (and man) is carried by one eye-bolt. That concerned me. So, I added a 5th eye-bolt to the hinge so that the weight is carried by two bolts, not just one. I spaced the 5th bolt a bit below the bolt already installed on the transom. I wanted each bolt on the rudder to be pressed against its (lower) partner bolt (on the transom and skeg) "just so." I made that happen by inserting a bronze bushing (1/2" ID) between the top of lower bolt (on the transom) and the bottom of the top bolt (on the rudder). That bolt (on the rudder) was just under the top bolt (on the transom). The bushing was trimmed by trial and error until the spacing was just right. On the photo showing the lower end of the rudder, notice that the eye-bolt that goes into the skeg is also supported by the placement of a 3/4" SS half-oval. More about the half-oval on another posting. Getting all the "eyes" to line up was a bit of trouble. But I managed and everything works without any binding.
I haven't tried it on the water, but I've done it in my driveway. The tiller should be fixed (I use a tiller "clutch") so that the rudder won't swing wildly when you step on the wing. The rudder wing gives you a good lift -- and by grabbing the transom skirt and a gallows support by hand, I was able to climb aboard.
My weight is about 200 lbs. And the timber I used at the end of the skeg was scrap pine. I should have used ash or oak. Also, as designed, all the weight of rudder (and man) is carried by one eye-bolt. That concerned me. So, I added a 5th eye-bolt to the hinge so that the weight is carried by two bolts, not just one. I spaced the 5th bolt a bit below the bolt already installed on the transom. I wanted each bolt on the rudder to be pressed against its (lower) partner bolt (on the transom and skeg) "just so." I made that happen by inserting a bronze bushing (1/2" ID) between the top of lower bolt (on the transom) and the bottom of the top bolt (on the rudder). That bolt (on the rudder) was just under the top bolt (on the transom). The bushing was trimmed by trial and error until the spacing was just right. On the photo showing the lower end of the rudder, notice that the eye-bolt that goes into the skeg is also supported by the placement of a 3/4" SS half-oval. More about the half-oval on another posting. Getting all the "eyes" to line up was a bit of trouble. But I managed and everything works without any binding.