The kick-up mechanism was a little tight on my castings, so it took off a chunk of the notch on the top of the rudders. I also need to repair some ships.
What are the rudders made of--what should I use to patch them?? Are they polyester/gel or resin?
Rudder repair question
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Matt Haberman
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- Posts: 610
- Joined: November 10th, 2003, 8:22 pm
- Location: Minnesota
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Re: Rudder repair question
Dan,
Depending on the vintage of the rudder the construction of them could be slightly different. Generally speaking they are all Foam core with fiberglass on the outside. Older rudders used polyester resin while the newer ones use epoxy. The finish on the outside is either polyester gelcoat or paint depending on age.
I would guess that the rudders you have are polyester resin with gelcoat finish, unless you have purchased them in recent years.
If this is the case, the chips can be repaired with gelcoat. To fix the other damage you will need to use fiberglass & resin to rebuild the shape of the cam notch. I would suggest using your good rudder as a template to follow to get the shape correct. Be careful to get the correct shape so the cam will move easily out of the rudder when kicking up.
Depending on the vintage of the rudder the construction of them could be slightly different. Generally speaking they are all Foam core with fiberglass on the outside. Older rudders used polyester resin while the newer ones use epoxy. The finish on the outside is either polyester gelcoat or paint depending on age.
I would guess that the rudders you have are polyester resin with gelcoat finish, unless you have purchased them in recent years.
If this is the case, the chips can be repaired with gelcoat. To fix the other damage you will need to use fiberglass & resin to rebuild the shape of the cam notch. I would suggest using your good rudder as a template to follow to get the shape correct. Be careful to get the correct shape so the cam will move easily out of the rudder when kicking up.
-
Matt Haberman
- Administrator
- Posts: 610
- Joined: November 10th, 2003, 8:22 pm
- Location: Minnesota
- Contact:
Re: Rudder repair question
Dan,
Depending on the vintage of the rudder the construction of them could be slightly different. Generally speaking they are all Foam core with fiberglass on the outside. Older rudders used polyester resin while the newer ones use epoxy. The finish on the outside is either polyester gelcoat or paint depending on age.
I would guess that the rudders you have are polyester resin with gelcoat finish, unless you have purchased them in recent years.
If this is the case, the chips can be repaired with gelcoat. To fix the other damage you will need to use fiberglass & resin to rebuild the shape of the cam notch. I would suggest using your good rudder as a template to follow to get the shape correct. Be careful to get the correct shape so the cam will move easily out of the rudder when kicking up.
Depending on the vintage of the rudder the construction of them could be slightly different. Generally speaking they are all Foam core with fiberglass on the outside. Older rudders used polyester resin while the newer ones use epoxy. The finish on the outside is either polyester gelcoat or paint depending on age.
I would guess that the rudders you have are polyester resin with gelcoat finish, unless you have purchased them in recent years.
If this is the case, the chips can be repaired with gelcoat. To fix the other damage you will need to use fiberglass & resin to rebuild the shape of the cam notch. I would suggest using your good rudder as a template to follow to get the shape correct. Be careful to get the correct shape so the cam will move easily out of the rudder when kicking up.