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 Post subject: The Skeg (again)
PostPosted: 14 Jul 2019 17:59 
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Skipper

Joined: 09 Aug 2017 15:35
Posts: 725
Location: Maine/USVI
So, Gorilla Tape. Love the stuff. Managed to suspend the skeg and get the best width fit forward. I cut 3" off the back end, as advised on here somewhere, but I'm going to cut 1.5" or so off the tip so it will fit and fair. I put a straightedge in the rudderstock fitting and measured down 22" and made sure I had 2" of clearance forward. The rudder measurements indicate it protrudes about 1.5" forward of the rudderstock at the pintle area. I know none of that makes any sense, and worse comes to worse, I'm going to dry fit everything and I can always cut a little more off the skeg. Skeg has been foamed and once all the dry fit is over, I'm going to close in the foam with glass. I had to whittle out the top to get the pintle bolts in. The foam there will get glassed in as well, all barrier coated, and loaded with Micron 66. Getting there, slowly. Oh yeah, the top of the skeg in 1/4" thicker than the old remnant that was there. This will require some sitting and staring, I'm sure.


 
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 Post subject: Re: The Skeg (again)
PostPosted: 16 Jul 2019 19:37 
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Midshipman

Joined: 30 Dec 2006 18:37
Posts: 66
Tell me more.

You say you cut 3 inches off the skeg. So you reduced the overlap of the aft edge of the skeg, below the pintle, both port and starboard? Above, the pintle (from top of rudder to bottom of tube), my stern hull has similar flaps as the skeg that extend just as far. Does your boat have the same, and did you cut those by 3"? Have you fit the rudder in place yet to see how well this fits together? What were you trying to accomplish?

My rudder is out and ready to go in when I get time, but I've tested it. It's a crazy tight fit and I'll likely break the flaps getting the rudder pushed forward and 'seated' within the aft extensions from both the upper section and the skeg. I wondered whether cutting them would make sense. I figured I could always glass them back in after the rudder is installed.

Doug
Kinsale T37 #22


 
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 Post subject: Re: The Skeg (again)
PostPosted: 17 Jul 2019 09:25 
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Skipper

Joined: 09 Aug 2017 15:35
Posts: 725
Location: Maine/USVI
First, any "flaps" that get applied to the skeg will get applied after everything is back together. My biggest concern right now is that the thickness of the TOP of the skeg compared to the skeg remnant that was under the pintle plate is 1/4" thicker. Just the opposite (as i recall) of the skeg instructions under "technical" on the T37 home page. This will push the rudder down 1/4" and I had (I believe) proper clearance to begin with. Or maybe the pintle bearing just won't be fully engaged within the rudderpost.

NOW, I cut 3" off the back of the skeg just because the "technical" instructions was all I had to go by. Clearly, something has to come off. I put a straightedge in the foremost portion of the rudder stock tube above and measured down 22" (same distance as about top of the rudder to the bottom of the rudderpost at the pintle plate) and made sure I had about 2" of clearance behind when I had the skeg mocked up in place. It looks to me the measurement on the rudder from the forward edge of the post taking in the curve of the rudder going forward is about 1.5" at roughly the same location. Once it's all dry fitted, rudder & skeg, I can cut more off the skeg if I have to. I have yet to cut back any further on the top of the skeg as shown in the tech resources, but I may do that just to eliminate the little "shelf."

Thing is, the skeg extends slightly aft (less than 2"?) of the near vertical line formed by the forward edge of those "flaps" on the hull above. I just sought the best mating surface between skeg and hull, noting that I have to lop off less than 2" of the forward point of the skeg at the mating surface. This makes the "best" width of the top of the skeg to the flat receiving surface of the hull where the bolts go through. Damned if I know what I'm doing, but a little West System (407?) and a little glass and I can smooth out the joint nicely. I'll fabricate some "flaps" for the skeg when the time comes. I think you may be thinking (as I did) that the skeg itself makes up the "flaps." But the width isn't right (narrower) to run fair to the rudder itself. Fabricating some add-on flaps with West System and biax will be a snap.

I have a delrin washer at the top of the rudder to prevent "floating up," and need to take apart (remove pin) the bushing at the pintle and get a 3/16" washer under the bushing. I put in a 1/8" delrin washer, which was clearly too thin, but I'm going back to stainless. I don't think that washer ever did anything, and I don't think there is any weight bearing on the pintle plate.

When all this is done and goes back together for good, I'll load the rudderpost with water pump grease. I had to do a little filling on some voids in the rudderpost shaft log and I need to smooth those out as well as the area in the rudder where the bushing inserts. Finally filling the "gap" in the rudder with soft West System filler.

I foamed inside the skeg and I'll be sealing it off with glass and West System after dryfit and any further surgery. Barrier coat, Micron 66 in that living ecosystem forward of the rudder, and i should be all done. A squirt bottle full of Micron 66 should reach everything for the last hit with bottom paint.

I'm in the V.I. right now and the boat is in Maine, but I've got photos and when I get a minute I'll throw some up. I think dryfit and steering check on all this is key before hardening up.


 
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 Post subject: Re: The Skeg (again)
PostPosted: 18 Jul 2019 16:04 
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Skipper

Joined: 09 Aug 2017 15:35
Posts: 725
Location: Maine/USVI
Doug: See the photos under "More general towards refit" or whatever I wrote. They show the skeg sides short of the flaps above. I'm dancing around this a little just because when I harden it up I want it done, period. The skeg is too narrow for the bottom of the rudder to consider the sides of the skeg as "flaps." I suppose it could be cut back as far as the leading edge of the "flaps" above, but I measured and don't think it needed to go back that far. 3" seems to work, but a complete dryfit will tell the tale, and whether I need to take any more off the sides of the skeg. I will cut that little shelf pictured at the top of the skeg out just for the fun of it.

Again, in order for the "best fit/mating" forward, I'm going to lop off around 1.5 to 1.75" from that "point" at the top of the skeg. Then spooge it up with 407 (I think), a little 17 oz. biax, a little more fairing and Bob's your uncle. I'm still concerned that the top of the skeg is 1/4" thicker than the remnant fiberglass that came out when I removed the pintle plate from the hull. There's some fairly close tolerances in this whole thing.


 
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 Post subject: Re: The Skeg (again)
PostPosted: 20 Jul 2019 09:01 
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Midshipman

Joined: 30 Dec 2006 18:37
Posts: 66
My skeg is intact and extends further aft than yours. Getting the wide leading edge of the rudder to fit inside the skeg is, well, a very tight fit. I guess once it's in place the aft panels of the skeg fit better since the rudder narrows from fore to aft. The top of my skeg, is much thicker than the rest of it, as is yours. I assume that's to provide strength since it's the bolt-through to the hull.

The cutaways on the side of the skeg are to give me clearance for installing the pintle. I'll reglass the cutout sections when done.

Doug
Kinsale T37 #22


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 Post subject: Re: The Skeg (again)
PostPosted: 20 Jul 2019 09:25 
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Skipper

Joined: 09 Aug 2017 15:35
Posts: 725
Location: Maine/USVI
Ahhh! A work-around. Well, I cut the back off the skeg simply because it's easier to fit everything together "new" and fabricate fiberglass strips out of biax that will attach to the trailing edge of the skeg and give me exactly the hydrodynamics I want around the rudder. But there's your issue. It all goes up at once, rudder, pintle bearing into rudder carrying the skeg, move it into place, bolt it, apply fairing strips. Trying to do it without the skeg going up at the same time as the rudder must be a bitch, since the radius of the rudder leading edge is considerably larger at the top than at the bottom. I think the typical way to do what you're doing is to cut the skeg off carefully at the hull/skeg joint, and put it all back together . . . together. But I ain't no expert.


 
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 Post subject: Re: The Skeg (again)
PostPosted: 21 Jul 2019 09:17 
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Skipper

Joined: 29 Dec 2006 09:38
Posts: 656
Maineiac: I have had the skeg off a couple times and I recall the process to be as you described. I do not recall it being very difficult. Just required some patience and being willing to cobble up temporary solutions to get everything in place for glassing.
Ray Durkee
T37 #373


 
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