Wednesday, April 06, 2011

Building ‘Sharpy’ Part 57









At last I got around to making something new - the rudder stock. That’s not absolutely true, because I started the stock last year. Today I made the yoke that comes in two parts, one either side of the stock. I glued all the parts together, but not before testing the rudder to make sure it would swing without hindrance. The rudder will be held down in the water with a length of line fixed to a loop of bungee that can be held in place by a hook on the aft deck. The bungee is necessary to ensure that the rudder will give way if it comes into contact with a solid underwater object such as rock.


Before I joined the two side pieces of the stock I drilled holes through them for bronze nails that locate and help secure the yoke pieces to the stock. These were joined to the stock not only with the bronze nails, but also with epoxy and epoxy fillets. I observed that the yoke pieces are set at right angles to the forward edge of the stock. This facilitates the movement of the rudder lines which pass through internal 15 mm plastic tubes. The aft ends of the tubes are attached to the inner surface of the transom by means of blocks of wood suitably shaped to receive them.

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