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| Cockpit sole aft of helm: The rudder is held in place by a large circular threaded collar. Between the bottom of the collar and the thrust bearing bushing is a flat 1/8" thick thrust bearing made of Ultra-Wear-Resistant PTFE-Filled Delrin Acetal Resin. The collarhas two locking set screws. The top of the rudder stock protrudes for easy connection of an emergency rudder control arm. Also shown is an access port used to grease the rudder post. |
Steering System
This job started off small and grew into a major project. I noticed the steering seemed stiff and when the wheel was turn quickly the rudder would chatter and vibrate a bit. I was concerned that the rudder stock may have been bent, so I decided to drop the rudder to explore. After removing the steering cables, I noticed a few meat hooks so these had to be replaced. Next, the radial drive was to come off before the rudder could be dropped. That was good challenge. After dropping the rudder, I found lots of old dry-hard and crusty grease, this was cleaned out with Naphtha and upon installed lubed with SuperLube. The rudder movement now is nice and smooth. In the end, the whole steering system (including pedestal and idlers) was completely removed and renovated in the process.
Removing the Radial Drive Wheel
Four stainless steel bolts are threaded into the Aluminum radial drive holding the two halves of the radial drive onto the rudder stock. Normally, there is very little access to the steering system, but with the engine, fuel tank, and steering cables removed, there was somewhat easy access. The bolts holding the radial drive would not budge. I tried using a breaker bar. I tried PB Blaster. I tried Kroil. I tried heating with a Bernzomatic torch. I tried combinations of penetrating oil and heat. Nothing worked. I decided to cut the bolt heads off and separate the two halves of the radial drive. Using a Dremel, I cut the bolt heads off. I pounded. I got a bigger hammer and pounded. Still the radial drive would not budge! Finally, I used a sawzall and a thin metal cutting blade to cut along the two halves of the radial drive, cutting through the bolts, and at last, the radial drive was off.
This job started off small and grew into a major project. I noticed the steering seemed stiff and when the wheel was turn quickly the rudder would chatter and vibrate a bit. I was concerned that the rudder stock may have been bent, so I decided to drop the rudder to explore. After removing the steering cables, I noticed a few meat hooks so these had to be replaced. Next, the radial drive was to come off before the rudder could be dropped. That was good challenge. After dropping the rudder, I found lots of old dry-hard and crusty grease, this was cleaned out with Naphtha and upon installed lubed with SuperLube. The rudder movement now is nice and smooth. In the end, the whole steering system (including pedestal and idlers) was completely removed and renovated in the process.
Removing the Radial Drive Wheel
Four stainless steel bolts are threaded into the Aluminum radial drive holding the two halves of the radial drive onto the rudder stock. Normally, there is very little access to the steering system, but with the engine, fuel tank, and steering cables removed, there was somewhat easy access. The bolts holding the radial drive would not budge. I tried using a breaker bar. I tried PB Blaster. I tried Kroil. I tried heating with a Bernzomatic torch. I tried combinations of penetrating oil and heat. Nothing worked. I decided to cut the bolt heads off and separate the two halves of the radial drive. Using a Dremel, I cut the bolt heads off. I pounded. I got a bigger hammer and pounded. Still the radial drive would not budge! Finally, I used a sawzall and a thin metal cutting blade to cut along the two halves of the radial drive, cutting through the bolts, and at last, the radial drive was off.
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| radial drive with bolt heads cut off |
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| cutting the towards the bolts with a sawzall |
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| cutting the bolts with a sawzall |
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| rudder stock with radial drive removed, |
Dropping the Rudder
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| dropping and raising the rudder single-handed |
Rudder Tube and Thrust Bearing
The rudder shaft turned out, thankfully, to be fine. The problem with the steering was the result of old hardened grease in the rudder tube and on the rudder stock. The tube and stock were cleaned using Naphtha soaked rag, a rod, and rope in a manor like cleaning the barrel of a rifle. Super Lube synthetic grease was used for re-lubricating the rudder. The rudder thrust bearing backing plate was badly corroded and needed to be replaced. A new backing plate was made out of G10 structural fiberglass board. With the thrust bearing removed, the deck core material was reamed back at the hole in the cockpit sole, and the area filled with epoxy thickened with colloidal silica. The bearing and backing plates were sealed using Bostik 940FS sealant during reinstallation.
The rudder shaft turned out, thankfully, to be fine. The problem with the steering was the result of old hardened grease in the rudder tube and on the rudder stock. The tube and stock were cleaned using Naphtha soaked rag, a rod, and rope in a manor like cleaning the barrel of a rifle. Super Lube synthetic grease was used for re-lubricating the rudder. The rudder thrust bearing backing plate was badly corroded and needed to be replaced. A new backing plate was made out of G10 structural fiberglass board. With the thrust bearing removed, the deck core material was reamed back at the hole in the cockpit sole, and the area filled with epoxy thickened with colloidal silica. The bearing and backing plates were sealed using Bostik 940FS sealant during reinstallation.
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| old hardened grease in the rudder tube |
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| top of rudder tube |
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| new thrust bearing backing plate |
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| replacing the thrust bearing backing plate |
Thrust Bearing Bushing & Limber Holes
The thrust bearing bushing was replaced with new one made from 1/8" Ultra-Wear-Resistant PTFE-Filled Delrin Acetal Resin obtained from McMaster-Carr. The new bushing was cut out of the material using a sabre saw and then trimmed using a Dremel sanding drum. Only the planar surfaces are important for the thrust bearing.
Another of Wally Bryant's brilliant ideas is the PVC epoxied limber hole. I first installed these in my C&C 29 with great success, and I have now installed them in here by the rudder tube and forward of it in engine/fuel tank stringer.
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| epoxied limber holes around rudder tube |
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| new thrust bearing bushing |
Restoring the Radial Drive
The stainless steel bolts were galled solid in the Aluminum radial drive and the only way to remove them was by drilling them out. This meant over drilling the internal threads and using external stainless steel locking nuts with new stainless steel bolts (and plenty of Tef-Gel during the installation) . After stripping the surface clean of dirt and corrosion, the radial drive was painted with several coats of black VHT epoxy paint making the radial look like new.
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| drilling out galled stainless steel bolt from the Aluminum radial drive |
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| test fitting the radial drive without the fuel tank installed |
Steering Cables
New 1/4" 7x19 stainless steel aircraft cable was purchased from Web Rigging Supply online. At $1.10/ft it was a great price and much more than initially required was purchased, so one thought. A great deal was found on Ebay for a Swag-It #3 tool which covers swages from 1/8" to 1/4". After practice of using the swage, two beautifully swaged eyes were made onto the ends of the two 1/4" cables. It was later realized that the Edson chain-eye connector had a closed loop and should have been included in first set of eyes during swaging. After cutting off the ends and correctly swaging, the steering cable lengths were just the right amount.
When ordering I thought I was purchasing much more than I needed and almost reduced the amount. Next time, I'll add 25% to the already "much more than I need amount".
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| beautifully, but incorrect, swaged eyes on the ends of two 1/4" cables |
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| correctly swaged cable for Edson steering chain |
- See posts on steering idler replacement.
Really nice paint job on the radial drive. Does the radial drive have to be removed to drop the rudder? Or would it be possible to drop it just removing the top screw on rudder collar?
ReplyDeleteAnd what about that grease fitting on the rudder tube? Do you think it's of any use? Mine is all gummed up with old dried grease. No stiffness issues yet though.
The radial drive clamps onto the shaft, and unless it is loosened freed from the shaft, the rudder cannot be dropped. On the other hand, if the rudder collar loosens and comes off while sailing, the radial drive will save the rudder from dropping out.
DeleteMakes sense. So it seems like it might be possible to just substantially loosen the radial drive bolts and pull the halves apart a 1/2 inch or so? Presuming that the bolts aren't corroded in, as in your case - which sounds very unfun.
ReplyDeleteJust thinking about doing a quick rudder drop at spring haul-out and being able to leave the quadrant in would probably save some time - considering this area is very difficult to access with the engine in (no fuel tank under the quadrant though, mine got moved to the lazarette).
Yea, but I would take the opportunity to check out all of the steering components especially the cable.
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