Play in the tiller
Posted: Thu Nov 28, 2013 7:15 am
Hi to all:
If you have a bit of play in your tiller (and, God forbid, it's not the rudder stock tangs that have come loose) the culprit may be the bronze head which joins the tiller with the rudder stock. This is kept tight with a key inserted from the top and a pair of allen-headed screws on the starboard side. Inherently, it's a rather week arrangement. My friend Mats Wik, who sailed his Ballad to Greece several years ago and now has a berth on my pontoon in Athens, came up with an interesting solution--and having been a machinist for three decades--executed in great detail. The photos below are from my installation but I copied his exactly. Essentially, the idea is to split the back of the bronze head with a 1.5-2mm disc to create a slit and then drill through both sides so that a tightening bolt can be inserted. Obviously,the head of the bolt has to be flush with the surface so that the tiller can later be inserted. Also, we chose to make a clear hole on one side and a threaded one on the other, so that the bolt could be tightened well. It is a very solid arrangement which renders the small allen screws on the side unnecessary. However, if you wish, you could also drill int the rudder stock a few millimetres and use the screws (originally, they were just tightened against the round surface on the stock and were, effectively, useless).
Nicholas Koligiannis
Moments of Clarity, hull no.334
If you have a bit of play in your tiller (and, God forbid, it's not the rudder stock tangs that have come loose) the culprit may be the bronze head which joins the tiller with the rudder stock. This is kept tight with a key inserted from the top and a pair of allen-headed screws on the starboard side. Inherently, it's a rather week arrangement. My friend Mats Wik, who sailed his Ballad to Greece several years ago and now has a berth on my pontoon in Athens, came up with an interesting solution--and having been a machinist for three decades--executed in great detail. The photos below are from my installation but I copied his exactly. Essentially, the idea is to split the back of the bronze head with a 1.5-2mm disc to create a slit and then drill through both sides so that a tightening bolt can be inserted. Obviously,the head of the bolt has to be flush with the surface so that the tiller can later be inserted. Also, we chose to make a clear hole on one side and a threaded one on the other, so that the bolt could be tightened well. It is a very solid arrangement which renders the small allen screws on the side unnecessary. However, if you wish, you could also drill int the rudder stock a few millimetres and use the screws (originally, they were just tightened against the round surface on the stock and were, effectively, useless).
Nicholas Koligiannis
Moments of Clarity, hull no.334