S&S Defiance 30 steering pedestal

[oztayls]

Hi guys, as it turned out, the black plastic surround on top of the compass was the key. It prised off with a small screwdriver to reveal the screws to take the compass off and then the wooden surround which gave me access to the steering brake. The black plastic surround housed the LEDs. The brake was off and the shoes were free of the drum. I squirted oil on all the moving parts that I could see but unfortunately, that has not cured the stiff steering. The cable seems tight to me, tighter than it needs to be. To fix it, I think it will need to be hauled out. It's due for a paint and antifoul anyway. I'm suspect two things, either the tightness of the chain or the rudder pintle/bearings.

The compass is a Silva Type 125, so still available I think.

Here are the pics.

[Boatyarddog]

Originally Posted by Boatyarddog

In any case I think it's a chain to wire arrangement, like a classic Edson.
The top looks a bit different, but it's still traditional.
Should be some screws first on the compass.

Under it larger screws/bolts.
Under it bearings, gear, chain and wire.

I suggest you remove the wire at the quadrant and see if the rudder post is tight, or turns P to S easily.

It could be the Pedestal bearings, not as likely, worth checking out though.
Look for access under the Pedestal and you'll get a better idea what to do.
Boatyarddog

As I mentioned here, it's probably a tight rudder.
Now, why is a good question, post bent slightly? most are.

Be aware, when you slip this boat, be sure to have it blocked so you can pull the rudder all the way out!
Or be able to dig a hole under it.

They usually charge for extra time on the travel lift.
Can't wait to hear why so tight.

You'll want to be sure the wire is tightened properly when you put it back together, it should be quite snug.
Boatyarddog

[oztayls]

Well, last Sunday a highly experienced ocean racing friend of ours helped me sail Happy Hour up the NSW coast to Lake Macquarie. It was quite a trip as the weather blew up just after we left Pittwater. It was a cold trip with lashing rain, a big sea state and winds 25, gusting 30kts, so we were 2 reefs in. She handled the conditions wonderfully and we didn't hear a single creak or groan. The top speed we saw on the GPS was 11kts.

The steering is still stiff. I really think someone has messed with it and adjusted the chain too tight. Once on the hard, we will know more. For now, we are just happy to have her on the mooring at her new home on the Lake!

[oztayls]

Finally we got Happy Hour onto the hard stand for some needed work.

The stiff rudder is partly resolved. Upon investigation, when we dropped the rudder, we found that the bushing was turning with the tube. This was resolved by manufacturing a new fibreglass tube and new bushings turned from Ertalyte. We also took the opportunity to manufacture a new new lower rudder shoe from 8mm stainless steel. The rudder now swings freely, but upon reconnection to the quadrant, the steering is still stiff.

It turns out that I have a Yacht Specialties pedestal and YS is now defunct. As some of you may know, these units have some sort of nylon plastic bushing for bearings. I'll now pull the shaft from the pedestal and have the same guy who made our new rudder bushings turn us some new ones, probably from the same Ertalyte material, which is self lubricating and impervious to moisture.

I have attached photos showing the cutout to expose the lower rudder shoe and then the final repaired rudder. Apologies if the pics are rotated as the forum software seems to have a mind of its own in that regard!

[oztayls]

Further to this stiff steering issue, we were unable to remove the wheel shaft from the pedestal as the original plastic bearings were so degraded that they started to break into bits and kept jamming the keyway. I was lucky to find a very nice second hand Edson in great condition, so that is now installed and resolved the steering issue. So now we have a completely refurbished steering system and brake that also works!

Included with the Edson pedestal was an engine control module which I intend to install in the near future so that we can dispense with the engine control lever on the side of the cockpit.

As part of the swap to Edson, I had a new pedestal guard made from 316 1" stainless tube. The tubing is cheap and a local engineer only charged me AUD80 to have it bent at 9.5" centres and 58" high. I made a new wooden brace to support the guard and I made new feet from UHMWPE to replace the cast alloy ones. I still have to install the shelf I made for the B&G screen and then I will adjust the guard height.

I've attached pics of the "new" pedestal, wooden brace, new compass, new shelf for the B&G and the new feet for the guard. I'm not sure why the forum software chooses to rotate some of the pics, so sorry about that. There doesn't seem to be a way to fix that.