Can we talk about jury rigging an emergency rudder

[Marathon1150]

This thread reminded me of an article from a few years back. They test several emergency steering options and provide some conclusions and recommendations regarding what worked best.

https://www.yachtingmonthly.com/sail...steering-30065

I've also seen a video of someone testing the "bucket" system but can't find it at the moment.

[David B]

Originally Posted by thinwater

I believe drogue steering is the practical answer for most of us. It works. If you don't have a drogue you can rig it using fenders and anchors. You safely can rig it in foul weather. A solid spare rudder is better, but that's an undertaking. A jury oar in bad weather is usually wishful thinking.


Practice is the key.

Agreed - not as efficient, but very quickly deployed, stabilising, and durable. Also non-destructive of the boat or its fittings.

At the very least, it buys time to rig something more effective if the passage is a long one.

While I never hope to put it to the test, our rudder stock is a very heavy-walled composite tube. I am thinking/hoping, that would prove more resilient to impact than aluminium or stainless stocks. Wonder if anyone has experience/information in that regard?

[Don C L]

As mentioned earlier, it is possible to sail a boat without a rudder. Also as mentioned earlier, if the boat is pitching too much in weather it is way too dangerous to try to rig a rudder on a spinnaker pole. Both of which we discovered when the Frers 65 I was crewing on lost its rudder. In our case we were lucky. After hauling 3 or four headsails out on the foredeck (on a 65 foot boat, those are heavy!) and trying different combos we finally got a sweet spot and had her sailing one of two directions pretty well. Alas, one was toward some islands whose ownership is still under dispute, the other toward some shoals a hundred miles away. We decided to kick back (well there was more to it than that) and a British RFA ship came along and ended up giving us a tow. It helps to be in a shipping lane. My own thought is that if you have a spade rudder it is not a bad idea to have a spare rudder, such as in a cassette, or a spare rudder with pintles/gudgeons, ready to go before you leave.

[ilenart]

For years I have carried one of these. Never used, but that’s the plan if I lose the main rudder.

https://www.whitworths.com.au/burke-seabrake-drogue

Last year I did have the rudder dropped and inspected.

[thinwater]

Originally Posted by ilenart

For years I have carried one of these. Never used, but that’s the plan if I lose the main rudder.

https://www.whitworths.com.au/burke-seabrake-drogue

Last year I did have the rudder dropped and inspected.

Practice with it. There is a learning curve, both rigging and use.

[thinwater]

Originally Posted by David B

Agreed - not as efficient, but very quickly deployed, stabilising, and durable. Also non-destructive of the boat or its fittings.

At the very least, it buys time to rig something more effective if the passage is a long one....

The stabilizing factor is often overlooked. Even if you plan on rigging a rudder, a drogue steering system will stop the beam-on rolling and make it easier to work.


A bucket is a terrible drogue. Unstable. Hang anchors under fenders (it he combination that creates consistent drag).

[Breaking Waves]

Originally Posted by David B

I am thinking/hoping, that would prove more resilient to impact than aluminium or stainless stocks. Wonder if anyone has experience/information in that regard?

aluminum and stainless will both be more resilient to hard impact than carbon. If hit hard enough (over yield limit) They both will bend. Carbon is brittle and will crack. With aluminum and steel then typically the blade jams against the hull but you can get it working again by dropping it down a couple of cm. Carbon tends to shatter or just break off. (I have had some personal experience with all these failure modes). All these three materials can be built strong like brick **** houses and take near full speed impact without catastrophic failure but carbon shafts do tend to be built with more of an eye on weight rather than brick **** house strength.

On emergency steering: most cruisers will not think it a practical solution but a cassette with a rudder blade is by far the best solution. It is really the only thing which will allow you to sail anywhere near to 'normal' speed. But the blade is a storage issue (it needs to be near as big as your regular rudder) and the system is a significant project to construct.

For other approaches really the keys to success are patience and tenacity and sail balance. We had friends who broke off their rudder 1500 miles from nearest land down in the southern ocean - they tried a wide variety of options (skipper was a boat builder with skills and tools) - their final most successful option was a steering oar but it took several iterations before they got one that worked at all well. Drogues tend to be the most reliable solution for those with less building/mechanical chops - we have another friend who sailed 1000 miles in the Pacific using one - was slow but steady. You may need to use a couple options because some work better than other on different points of sail. Upwind you may be able to do it just on sail balance (depending on the boat), downwind the drogue is pretty reliable, reaching in gusty conditions is hardest and you may just have to accept not much vmg.

[GreenHeaven]

Originally Posted by Breaking Waves

a cassette with a rudder blade

What is that exactly... photos?

[Breaking Waves]

Originally Posted by GreenHeaven

What is that exactly... photos?

It is three pieces - some pintle mounts usually permanently attached to the transom.

Then a cassette you attach to the pintle - is a photo of an example. This can be mounted when you go to sea, but I think more usually when you want the emergency rudder in action.



Then you slide a rudder blade down into that cassette. This all will depend quite a bit on your transom shape and how you want to control the emergency rudder - but here is an example.



this spare rudder blade is often stowed under a bunk - it is usually pretty long like +2m

[Don C L]

Yeah, if you are thinking about it now, I'd spring for the equipment. Once you are out there you can't run back to get it. It is so much superior to anything you can rig up on the fly that you'll be ecstatic you planned for it ahead of time. To pack a drogue now to use in case of future rudder loss seems a little foolish to me. Some self steering vanes can double as emergency rudders too.
BTW, if you have nothing other than a drogue, it may work better to rig the spinnaker pole amidships, lashed to bow and stern and also to the mast, with blocks at the ends for the control line to the drogue, to give a better angle and more purchase for steering. That was another idea we were getting ready to try before we got picked up, but we didn't get a chance to try it.

[David B]

Originally Posted by Breaking Waves

aluminum and stainless will both be more resilient to hard impact than carbon. If hit hard enough (over yield limit) They both will bend. Carbon is brittle and will crack.

Yes, ours is normal composite - no carbon. And weight was not a consideration, so it looks very tough.

[Breaking Waves]

Originally Posted by David B

Yes, ours is normal composite - no carbon. And weight was not a consideration, so it looks very tough.

Yea, e-glass with resin injection. Can be quite good. The ones I have seen break were 'Monday faults' (bubble or similar in the injection probably because someone was not paying attention). They would be better if they used S-glass, but that is the sort of extra cost that Beneteau does not indulge in, and generally, they are more than fit for purpose as they are. There was one of the 50's which had its rudder hit by a whale (in the Pacific), and the hull cracked around the tube while the rudder held (boat sunk, unfortunately).

[Deep Blue Water]

Never used self steering, but per Don's comment, doesn't the little rudder hanging off the stern act control the boat when you're using it? Assuming the normal rudder isn't jammed at a 45° angle it seems like it would work.


Given all the Orcas munching on people's rudders, I like the rudder cassette thingie.

[Don C L]

Originally Posted by Deep Blue Water

Never used self steering, but per Don's comment, doesn't the little rudder hanging off the stern act control the boat when you're using it? Assuming the normal rudder isn't jammed at a 45° angle it seems like it would work.


Given all the Orcas munching on people's rudders, I like the rudder cassette thingie.

Here's a couple links to get a look at a few options:
https://www.bwsailing.com/self-steering-matters-3/
https://www.yachtingmonthly.com/sail...ed-yacht-52945

[Nauticus]

A long heavy oar tied off is my back up plan. I have a suspect rudder and put thought into a solution. It's also the only thing I could get to work reasonably fast during drills. And for the record this idea was shown to me as my plans never worked reliably. I wonder what the Manatee Crew would do?