makeshift rudder blade repair

P

PBA

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A friend of mine broke his rudder blade one Saturday a few years back, and was back on the water on that following Sunday using this makeshift blade repair. He used Guerrilla Glue and two hose camps from the local hardware store. It worked, and this repair has somehow lasted for 5 years now. Anyway, a possible quick and easy solution to others who have found themselves in a similar situation. Like in many situations, the blade broke when the boat was being beached.
 

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PBA said:
A friend of mine broke his rudder blade one Saturday a few years back, and was back on the water on that following Sunday using this makeshift blade repair. He used Guerrilla Glue and two hose camps from the local hardware store. It worked, and this repair has somehow lasted for 5 years now. Anyway, a possible quick and easy solution to others who have found themselves in a similar situation. Like in many situations, the blade broke when the boat was being beached.
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Why not get a doweling jig and glue it together properly?

I'd be proud of it if it got me back on the water the day it broke. I'd be embarrassed beyond belief it I left it like this for 5 years.
 
Way too ambitious for me. I'd stick with the hose clamps - dowels would never hold up to a beaching. Plus this material is extremely thin to begin with.
 
PBA said:
Way too ambitious for me. I'd stick with the hose clamps - dowels would never hold up to a beaching. Plus this material is extremely thin to begin with.
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Dowels would work. You would need a jig to line things up perfectly. The size and number of dowels would determine the strength. Also the type of glue.

Finally, it would not be difficult to add a thin layer of fiberglass cloth to the outside to beef it up.

It would be an interested project.
 
There have been many threads on rudder blade repairs on this forum (use the Search function, if interested). Several of them advocate the dowel method, although there is no universal agreement. The Gorilla glue/hose clamp method described by PBA does appear to break a dogma. Note though that whether a repair will hold up will depend on the strains put on the rudder. These strains can be considerable and will depend on the conditions (gentle breeze on a lake or ocean sailing in 20+ mph) and the way the boat is sailed (keeping it flat lowers the need to adjust the helm). 'Rowing' the boat with the rudder obviously isn't going to extend the life of the blade. Beach landings without lifting the rudder :eek: are another cause of breakage.

This issue is an important one because it relates to safety. A broken rudder blade makes it hard to get back; less so, if you have practiced rudderless sailing. A word to the wise....
 
Humm, I always take a small canoe paddle and extra rope with me. Might give me the option of lashing the canoe paddle to the broken part of the rudder. Guess if you did not have a paddle you could lower the sail and use the daggerboard as a paddle.:D
 
Gorilla glue is no good. I prefer maple syrup. ( It may actually be syrup.) The hose clamps work though.
 
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Took my repaired rudder out just last weekend in 25mph winds. Held up fine. I have six 3" dowels glued from the top end down through the crack that's probably 10" long. It is only cracked, not broken clear through. I don't know if it will continue to hold up under those conditions but it made it through about an hour and half of intense sailing. For the repair I used basic wood glue, then coated with a couple coats of marine polyurethane.
 
That ache to get back sailing will get the creative juices flowing for sure and I am glad it is still holding but I must agree with wavedancer's assessment time for a permanent fix. When my rudder broke I could of re-doweled but a lot of work and it would still be weak so that is why I went with 3/4 fir plywood covered with 3 layers heat cured epoxy.
If you intend to leave the band clamps on at least you could cover them with duct tape!;)

Minas man
 
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