Rudder Noise

[John Reizian]

Last season (my first as a Cape Dory owner) the rudder on my 1974 CD25 swung silently, both in and out of the water. This year, as I trundled about the cockpit, I realized that each time I moved the tiller out the way, the rudder creaked (a little bit like a shed door). The noise appears to be "below", that is, not just at the point the rudder post passes through the deck in the cockpit. There's no play that I can tell of and, if this was a door in my house, I'd be looking to squirt some lubricant somewhere. What's the standard operating procedure in a case such as this? Your guidance would be appreciated.

John, s/v "Star (CD25)



jlreizian@snet.net

[brian]

Last season (my first as a Cape Dory owner) the rudder on my 1974 CD25 swung silently, both in and out of the water. This year, as I trundled about the cockpit, I realized that each time I moved the tiller out the way, the rudder creaked (a little bit like a shed door). The noise appears to be "below", that is, not just at the point the rudder post passes through the deck in the cockpit. There's no play that I can tell of and, if this was a door in my house, I'd be looking to squirt some lubricant somewhere. What's the standard operating procedure in a case such as this? Your guidance would be appreciated.

I pack a waterproof grease around the top of the rudder tube/post. We had the same problem and that stopped the noise. It also stops some of the water that will sometimes push up through. I believe they actually recommend it in the owners manual.

John, s/v "Star (CD25)

pedbed@aol.com

[Larry DeMers]

If this is the same design as we have on the CD30's then maybe this will help. We did this job on Saturday past.
The top of the rudder has a packing gland in it which, from the factory is suplied with flax packing. This packing stays dry most of the time because the cockpit is high enough so that this point is out of the water normally. When powering or sailing hard..or with a cockpit full of bears (!), the water will try to come over the top of that fitting, wetting it. This occasional wetting is not enough to keep the flax from rotting out and blowing away over time.

We used a teflon soaked flax product, and since this product does not depend on water for lubrication, our boat should not squeak occasionally, while turning the wheel.

Larry DeMers
s/v DeLaMer
Cape Dory 30

Last season (my first as a Cape Dory owner) the rudder on my 1974 CD25 swung silently, both in and out of the water. This year, as I trundled about the cockpit, I realized that each time I moved the tiller out the way, the rudder creaked (a little bit like a shed door). The noise appears to be "below", that is, not just at the point the rudder post passes through the deck in the cockpit. There's no play that I can tell of and, if this was a door in my house, I'd be looking to squirt some lubricant somewhere. What's the standard operating procedure in a case such as this? Your guidance would be appreciated.

I pack a waterproof grease around the top of the rudder tube/post. We had the same problem and that stopped the noise. It also stops some of the water that will sometimes push up through. I believe they actually recommend it in the owners manual.

John, s/v "Star (CD25)

demers@sgi.com