Repairing our Fiberglass Rudder to Cross an Ocean - Episode 101
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 8 сен 2024
- Want to help support our video productions? Join our One Life Crew here:
/ sailingonelife
Big thanks to TotalBoat for all their amazing support!
Here are the TotalBoat products we used in this video:
High Performance 2:1 Epoxy
www.totalboat....
Fairing Compound
www.totalboat....
Did you enjoy this video? You can buy us a drink here:
svonelife.com/...
One Life Merchandise: svonelife.com/...
For more Sailing One Life Adventures and current updates follow us on:
Facebook - / sailingonelife
Instagram - / sv_one_life
Website - svonelife.com
When you tap out your fiberglass use a heavy coin like a Silver dollar coin or even a heavier washer equal in size. You will pick up the sound difference. A tip from a professional composite tech
True! From a home inspector, the coin works great for finding loose ceramic floor tiles, so it make sense it would work for fiberglass…
Thanks for the tip! We will try this next time!
Happy birthday Brooke. You guys are awesome. Love watching
Catching up from our cross-country Airstream trip. Hate watching you two dealing with adversity, but easier knowing what happens in the future... ;-)
Thanks, Thomas! Hope you and your family had an amazing trip!
Just my humble opinion, so don’t line me up for a kicking Gary please, but Brooke you are one of the very few ladies who does not need makeup to be enchanting. Your natural smile conveys a warmth and Beauty, both inner and visual , that no make up master could achieve. So please let me wish you both not only a happy birthday but a wonderful year. Please keep sharing your lives with us as we keep praying for your success and, above all , your happiness.
Aw, thank you! That is really sweet of you! Thanks for coming along with us on this journey! 💙
Happy Birthday sweetie 🍾🎂
Thank you! 🥰
You guys rock!
Ah, thank you! 💙
Brook, I (Ally), totally get your emotions. I remember when i bought my first house, and I remodeled it alone. I was on a time limit to get everything done, and on week 12 i ran into a major issue two weeks before I was to move in. The exhaustion and stress just hit me. Just like you. We are so proud of you guys! And you made it!!! 🎉
Thanks, Ally! Some days are a bit harder than others but somehow we seem to make it through! 💜 Sending big hugs!
Happy Birthday Kid 🎂😀
Thank you! 💙
happy birthday beautiful lady...awesome video as always
Thank you so much! 💙
Happy Birthday Brooke! I hope you had a wonderful day!🎉
Thank you, Tammy! I did! 🥰
Have a great Birthday!
Thank you!
I pray for strength and wisdom for you both! Happy Birthday Brooke!
Thank you, Laurie! 💙
@@SailingOneLife You need more WISDOM .......LOLOLO...That is nice to hear when you are about to cross the P Ocean........LOLOLOL......
Happy Birthday!
Thanks, William! 🍻
Looks like you can finally see the end of the rudder project. Glad it is working out. Happy birthday Brooke. Hope you guys get to splash soon. All the best...
Thanks, Steve! Sailing videos coming real soon!
Happy birthday young lady. Have a wonderful day. It's your day. ❤🎉😂
Thanks so much, Albert!
Rudder fiber glassing check, Brookes BD check (Happy Birthday Brooke) Out celebrating with good friends check, closer to splash day check. All looking good. Great video check!!
Thanks so much, Jonathan! Glad you enjoyed this one!
I subscribe to about ten sailing channels and you guys have the best one. Hope you guys meet up with Delos and Parley Revival in the South Pacific.
Ah thank you so much, Hans! We hope to catch up with Delos and Parlay real soon! They need to slow down a bit! 🤣
Happy Birthday... Giant Hugs
Thanks so much, Scott! 💙
HBTY.....the end is getting closer....be calm, take your time and do things right. Can't wait to see the next video
Thanks, Peter! Sailing videos are coming real soon!
Happy Birthday Brooke, Cheers from beautiful East Lansing Michigan!
Hi Donald! Thank you! Cheers! 🍻
I was sad that you are sad. You got this. You cant rush any of this not your refit not your trip none of it so just get this done right and see where that puts you and go to the next step. dont get anxious about tomorrow today. Tomorrow will have its own anxieties. You got this! BTW....Brooke....You are indeed beautiful inside and out. Very beautiful as in attractive and beautiful as in a lovely soul.
Ah thank you so much! This is such a sweet comment. 💙
Well done! You deserve a few margaritas on your birthday after all this effort!
Thanks, Terry! It felt good to have a bit of fun!
Rudder should be solid for years to come, : )
That's what we are hoping for!
Happy Birthday!!!!!!!!
Thank you! 🍻
Thanks for another Great Video this week.
Looks like ya'll are almost ready to sail to the Islands of the pacific. Hope ya'll sail to the Big Island. If you do let us know and you have a place to stay.
Ok until next time, Aloha from the Big Island of Hawaii!
Thank you! We appreciate all the love and support from Hawaii! 🌺💙
It is a privilege to support you guys. I appreciate the content, the knowledge, and the entertainment.
Great job Gary and Brooke on the rudder - definitely looks Pacific worthy! And so nice to see Bill and Grace there too at your party.
Thank you, David! We think the rudder turned out well! And yes, so good that Grace and Bill could have some fun!
Wow that was awesome!! Happy Birthday Brooke !!!! Gary Rudder looks good!! Great job! Closer to splash!! Im with ya all cant wait! Gary my wife Miss Betty likes your smile says it stands out!! Ya all take care! Fair weather for projects!!
Thank you so much! Miss Betty is right, Gary has a great smile!
Hello. I just saw the problem you discovered with the rudder areas in Ep 101 vid. Later in the video I saw Brook was upset and crying. I don't understand exactly what happened there but I hope Brook is not getting blamed for it. I am sure she did her best when she was putting the green stuff on the rudder and I was very sorry to see her so upset. Ciao, geo
Hey Geo! Ah no way, Gary would never do that to me. We work as a team! I was upset because when I saw the cracking I knew it would set us back at least another week.......and we were running out of time to still be able to cross the Pacific during the right weather season. Cheers, Brooke
I didn’t realize how far out the videos are, so this was a few months ago. I surely hope you’re well on you way across the pacific safely!
Thanks, Kimmy! Looks like you are following us on FB now. 💙
Guys, great video, in fact an excellent video as usual. Just keep Nerding-Out as much as possible. The whole process is fascinating.
Thanks, Andy! We really appreciate that!
Great episode👍
Thank you!
First Happy Birthday Brooke. Guys you are an example of determination and bravery. Wishing you could finish on time and One Life goes to sea. Many blessings.
Hi Angel! Thank you for all the well wishes!
Happy belated birthday. You guys work so hard. Glad you had a chance to celebrate
Thanks for the birthday wishes! Our night out was a much needed break from the boatyard!
Happy Birthday Brook! I remember seeing your last birthday party on RUclips. You Guys are fantastic! each obstacle you come to you turn it into an opportunity to learn and show others. Next time splash? The Bimini looks great!
Thanks, Jay! Splash in one or two more videos!
The rudder looks great, I'm glad you got to spend the evening with all your boatyard buddies, nice way to celebrate your birthday (Happy belated Birthday Brooke) and it looks like that turned out great too.. also a good way to reward yourselves for all the hard work done and so much accomplished... looking forward to some Pacific passage videos soon!
Thank you, Bruce! It was a fun night! We are hoping to get through these boat yard videos and on to sailing videos really soon!
Hope Grace is doing okay. Brooke, you are a treasure.
Thank you, Robert! Grace is doing well, keep sending those good vibes her way! 💙
Huge ups and downs but so inspiring to see you take it in stride and keep your dream afloat. A tough four months but I'm sure all so so worth it!
Thanks for always rooting for us, Molly! 🥰
Aww….I miss all my friends from the yard! 🫶What an awesome night that was and great to see it again!! 🍻You guys worked so hard and congrats on where you are today! Thank you for the inspiration! Sending love from Mexico 🇲🇽!!
Miss you Big D! 🥰🫶
Great video! Happy Birthday! Fair winds.
Thanks for the birthday wishes!
Good job guys. Happy Birthday Brooke.
Thanks, John! 💙
Hang in guys everything will work out. Anything can be fixed accept death. Love you Guys all the best.
Hey Joseph! Valid point! 💙
Great video! Glad you had a happy birthday. Looking forward to your videos on passage. 😊⛵
Thanks, Lois! We are really looking forward to editing our passage videos too!
It is so great to see the rudder coming along. What a fun way to spend the day on your birthday. The video was done fantastic.
Hi Craig! Thank you! We are quite happy with how the rudder turned out.
Wonderful people both of you. HAPPY BIRTHDAY💐🥂
Thank you, Philippe!
Happy birthday girl
Thanks, Kent!
@@SailingOneLife You're absolutely welcome
🎉 happy birthday
Thanks, George!
I agree with you Brooke. I don’t want you to to be part of that statistic of rudder failure. That’s super scary. I’d rather have you guys safe and sound crossing that big ole body of water. Repair looks great. Happy birthday Brooke🥳🍾🥂
Thanks, Jenny! Really appreciate it. We are happy with how the rudder turned out. Next video you'll see the finished product! 💪⛵
That was lucky on the rudder that those spots weren't a major issue. Great work on the rudder. Awesome Birthday bash :) Love the vlog :)
Yes very thankful Gary was able to address those spots pretty quickly so we were able to keep moving forward!
Love u guys. You guys are pros! ❤💪🏻🙌🏼happy birthday
Ah, thanks so much Jorge! You have been following along with us from the beginning! 💙⛵
I don't know if I told you or not but "happy birthday to you Brooke!" Now for you Mr. Gary, that sucks about the rudder. I was wondering if there was something on the surface before you fiberglass it. Or maybe mixing epoxy over polyurithane. I don't know how to spell that, sorry I'm still hooked on phonics! But anyways there are so many variables when it comes to epoxies that if you tried to figure it all out you would feel like a dog chasing its tail.
I like the comment Brooke made about rudder failure. The first thought that came to my mind was, you don't want to be a statistic with rudder failure. Yes I would save that adventure for when you come in contact with Orcas by Spain and Portugal. I guess they just got another sailboat a couple of weeks ago. That makes 2 boats this year. Fiesty little devil's.
Ugh yeah we hope the orcas in South Pacific don't get any ideas! 😬 So horrible to hear of the recent incidents.
@@SailingOneLife yeah I think they're mad. But if it makes you feel any better, it's nothing you did, it's your boat. It resembles the one that probably hit the first Orca, and they have memory.
Happy - Happy birthday Brooke - well done guys - that rudder is looking tops..
Thanks, Dirk!! The rudder was a setback but we pulled through!
Happy birthday
Thanks, Brad!
Great Video Folks. =]
Thanks, Andrew!
Happy birthday mate! Thanks again for another great episode guy's! How's the rudder holding up now??? Thanks again guy's
Thanks, Danny! Really appreciate that! Well it's still attached so that's good news!
@@SailingOneLife good to hear guys!! Enjoy !!
wish you both the best
Thank you!
Hi guys!!
Hey you! 🙌
Happy Birthday Brooke! The rudder looks marvelous, 1708 & 6oz edges should be extremely durable.
Thanks, David! We think it will be!
I used to do glass work on the older Vettes that were made of traditional fiberglass back in the day (pre 1973), never met one that didn't have voids from the factory. As such wouldn't doubt your rudder had some of those voids from the factory. Happy "B" day.
Good point! Thank you!
seems like ive seen brookes bday on the other channels..happy bday again n hope u splash soon..
Hey Barbie! Thank you! I think we have one or two more videos before we get to our splash video.
A few more patches of Fibre glassing will been seen as the golden time by the time you finish maintaining a yacht for a round the world trip😅
Ha yeah seems that way!
Hbd 🎉🥂
Thanks, John!
Happy birthday beautiful
Thank you! ❤️
Keep the rudder out of the sun! Heat makes the foam delame from the glass!
Hey Kevin! Yep, we think the sun is what caused it to delam, not moisture!
Happy Birthday a couple months later🎂
Thanks, Scott! 🥳
God bless Grace
Yes, indeed! ❤️
Keep up the hard work!! It's really coming together! 👏👏
Thanks guys! You made it easy on us to get it done properly!
When you went around after the Windstorm, and cranked on your Jacks to make sure they were all tight... I think I would have done a couple of boats beside me too, on both sides...Dont need a boat falling over onto your boat ... I would have checked few of them.. LOL
Exactly! Gary did but we didn't show it on the video.
@SailingOneLife I new he was smart enough to do that.... and tell him to grow his freaking beard back he's a sailor now dammit LOL
Well done. I am confused by you choosing to fair the rudder and then glass over it, as opposed to the other way around. Surely the latter would be more structural, bonding glass to glass.
The fairing compound was first used as filler to replace where the foam had been ground out. Just to create an even surface to lay glass over. Much easier to not have any voids under the new glass that way. And of course, after this fiberglass work we used the fairing compound again just to finalize and smooth out the shape.
Crossing the P Ocean. Lets see! 6000 km. If you have the speed of 5 kmp(ca 3 knots) fore 12 h and lay still fore 12 h(nott moving at all) and 5 kmp fore 12 h and lay still fore 12 h(nott moving) and all this in a straight line..........you will use 100 days to cross. I am looking foreward to this : ) Gooood Luck : )
Looking forward to sharing our crossing with you!
Ya better build that rudder sturdy enough so it's orca proof!
Hopefully the orcas in the South Pacific are a bit nicer to rudders!
It's interesting to see so many vloggers with Rudder issues. You guys are not alone.
Glad it got fixed. I look forward to seeing you guys sailing again.
How far behind are your videos?
It’s not surprising if you know something about how poorly (cheaply) many rudders were built 30+ years ago, and how mistaken designers and builders were when they thought that the metal encapsulated inside a foam cored fiberglass rudder would not see water intrusion and would, therefore, be free from corrosion. In fact, many rudders were built with inadequate materials and techniques, and may be dangerously close to failure from water intrusion into the core and resulting corrosion of the metal structure of the rudder. Fiberglass blistering or delamination may well be the least of the problems in an older fiberglass rudder, even though I have yet to see any RUclips sailors doing more than what may turn out to be superficial rudder repairs.
@@markhamstra1083 Yes, so many rudders have failed in recent years. All seem shoddy construction design.
I have to repair my rudder. I first have to find someone to drop my rudder. I can do tge fiberglass work but it needs a new bearing also. 😮
Where is your boat located?
Apart from many manufacturers using 2 pound foam instead of 20 pound foam, the real issue with rudders has been welding mild steel plates to the stainless shaft. Think about that for a second. If you have water intrusion into the rudder… that mild steel isn’t what you want in there. Idk if that’s how Nautical Development did it but most all of the usual suspect production boats rudders were made that way.
Hello, fellow AAC member! It’s scary, no?
There were zero signs of moisture inside. See my longer response to Mark's other comment.
@@SailingOneLife like I said, I don’t know how Nautical Development built their rudders. If the foam inside is dry then that’s definitely a good sign and you actually have the rudder right in front of you so you know what the real deal is. I didn’t see Mark’s post until you pointed it out and honestly, thought twice about responding at all since it’s hard (especially when it’s not my boat, lol!) not to sound like a know-it-all jackass on things like this… In either event, that rudder should be able to take a 12 gauge shotgun blast at this point with all the ‘glass you two have on it now, lol!! Best wishes for a great voyage (whenever it is that y’all do shove off) to the Marquesas and beyond!
@southernpaths2986 really appreciate your last comment here! Like you said, what shows up in a 20 minute video is a small fraction of the time spent hands on with the project, thoroughly investigating the problem and designing a repair.
Can't say for sure that Nautical Development didn't use mild steel tangs on the rudder, but they chose to use a solid stainless shaft for the stock. Based on everything else with the construction of this boat, I would confidently guess all the metal in the rudder is stainless. But of course that too can have its own problems in an oxygen deprived environment.
Our videos are a few months behind real-time, but (Spoiler Alert) the rudder has been solid for ~4,000 nm of sailing so far and it's not what we worry about when we're caught in a gale. 👍
🙏🏻...
Thanks, Smee! 💙
❤❤
💙💙
Yall
You just have to work all night long and get it done ✔️!
I'm just kidding. I'm a boater myself so it matters.
❤
-Cliff
Battleship Marine Supply
Fairhope, Alabama
Ha we put in quite a few late nights.
Spend a year in Polynesia. You will still only just be scratching the surface. Stop "rushing" through the world. Repeat: spend a year in Polynesia, you will never regret that and you will always be looking back over your shoulder if you don't. Then plan on Thailand and Malaysia. You could sail around there for 10 years and truly find your soul.
Thanks for your input, Charlie! There are so many places to go and see. Thailand and Malaysia are on our list!
@@SailingOneLife It looks to me like you both have a good forty years left in you. You have time, you don't have to chase the seasons like every other "sailing tourist." Savor every moment, get into the rhythm a "sailboat" is supposed to give you.
You could test the rudder by clamping the rudder shaft and place or hang weight on edge. But you are a engineer so you probably figured that out already. I wonder how much torque the rudder to shaft connection needs to withstand
Hi Joseph, interesting question. We actually don't know exactly how much torque it needs...and Gary doesn't want to spend the time to figure it out. 😂
Remember God has your path, trust in Jesus everything happens for a reason.
Thank you, Shirley! 💙
Amen to that
why on earth would jesus care if you are sailing when there are people starving? CLOWN!
sail to hawaii and stay?
We would love to visit Hawaii some day! Most likely it will be by air. We've heard Hawaii is difficult cruising because of few anchorages and limited slips at marinas.
Yall
Need that rudder to be Orca proof in case Aliens 👽 have possessed the Orcas!
Just kidding again I love ❤️ boats! 😂
-Cliff
Battleship Marine Supply
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Hopefully Orcas are a bit nicer to rudders in the South Pacific.
You are in Rocky Point,?? Punta Penasco??
Hi Paula! Yes, we were there but back to sailing again.
It is a nightmare for your Boat to be on the hard in high winds.
No doubt about that.
Yes, quite scary to feel it shake!
So, when do you splash.
We have one or two more boat yard videos until splash video.
Happy Birthday, Brooke! :) The rudder looks great, Gary. If you go to New Zealand, I have family and friends there, mostly in the North Island. Just let me know, if you need help, or a local in a particular area. I am from NZ myself, but I live in Queensland, Australia, as you may/may not recall from previous comments. Same applies if you get to S E Queensland in the future, give me a hoy. :) I can give you my email or mobile number, if you like. I will leave it up to you. :)
Thank you! We really appreciate it! We are planning on going to NZ! Shoot us an email with your contact info if you don't mind! sailingonelife@gmail.com
@@SailingOneLife awesome, I will do that. :)
French Polynesia's loss
Don't give up on us yet! 😉
Why did one afternoon put you back a whole week?
Hi Terry! Good question. The steps required to get the additional delaminated areas ready to be fiberglassed include multiple coats of penetrating epoxy and numerous layers of fairing along with sanding and drying time in between each one. This becomes a four - five day process.
🧿👍
It takes 5 to 7 days to get to New Zealand from Bora Bora it’s not that big of a deal I’ve done it twice.
5-7 days? Whoa! What kind of boat were you on? One Life goes much slower. 2000 miles will take us 14-20 days.
@@SailingOneLife 155 foot sloop
@@jamieblack9349 Well that explains it. No comparison.
I hate to tell you, but there is a significant possibility that all of your work on the rudder came nowhere close to fixing deeper issues. Many foam core and fiberglass rudders of about the age of yours have serious structural issues that you can’t see without doing some invasive inspection, and most or all of what you were seeing on the surface may just have been symptoms of deeper issues. The underlying issues are that 1) it is nearly impossible to eliminate water intrusion around the rudder stock, so many older fiberglass rudders have water deep inside them; 2) many rudders were built with low-density foam that was marginal when new and may now be grossly structurally deficient after years falling apart inside a wet rudder core; 3) a very high percentage of fiberglass rudders built before 2000 used mild steel, not stainless, for the structural plates welded to the shaft. While it is possible that even an all-stainless rudder will have deteriorated significantly in a wet rudder core with little oxygen exposure, rudders with mild steel plates and of the age of yours will almost certainly have experienced significant corrosion and structural weakening if there is any water intrusion around the shaft (and, again, there very likely is.) If a fiberglass rudder was built with mild steel plates and low-density foam, then there is a very real chance 40 years on that catastrophic structural failure is imminent. With a spade rudder, that can mean the rudder falling right out of the boat, leaving the shaft hole behind taking on a lot of water.
In other words, fixing delamination and refairing your rudder may all have been similar to applying a band-aid when your rudder is suffering from cancer. In order to truly know what is going on inside an older fiberglass rudder, some pretty invasive exploratory surgery is necessary, starting with a 2.5”-3” hole drilled just aft of the shaft about 5” down from the top of the rudder. If the results of that inspection bore are ambiguous, then one or two more inspection holes may be needed further down on the rudder. If everything is okay, then it’s not too much of a job to fill the hole with foam and epoxy putty before glassing it over, then fairing, barrier coat and paint. If things are not okay, then buying a new rudder with all new metal is probably the best option since repairing the existing rudder adequately and so that you can be confident that the fix is durable is very time consuming and beyond the skills of most DIYers.
I know that it is hard to accept that this is the reality of older fiberglass rudders, and that the temptation or pressure to not do the necessary inspection work is great. In fact, I’m currently looking at a 36 year-old boat and am in the process of negotiating with the current owner and his broker whether they are going to do adequate, invasive inspection of the rudder, or if they are going to knock a significant amount off the asking price to cover the cost of a new rudder, or if I’m going to walk away from this boat. I’d encourage you to be similarly serious about the state of your older fiberglass rudder. Rudder failure is the number one cause of cruising boat abandonment.
I ground down into the foam core in well over half of the surface area of the rudder including all three areas where the stock exits. Went in close to half of the thickness of the rudder in some areas. There were ZERO signs of moisture inside anywhere. No discoloration, no dampness, no disintegrating foam. There was really no need to dig any further.
We are entirely aware of the construction methods and potential issues that you've lectured on. It was all taken into consideration in our choice of repair method.
Does this mean there is zero percent chance of failure? Or course not. But that wouldn't be the case with a brand new rudder either.
If you buy that boat and a new rudder for it, are you going to have the welds x-ray inspected? Going to ensure the stainless used is certified and traceable? Going to take samples of the stainless and put them through ISO or ASTM salt fog and strength tests? The line has to be drawn somewhere, and in sailing everyone gets to choose where they want to place that line for themselves.
@@SailingOneLife Visually inspecting at least some of the metal structure of an older rudder when such rudders are well-known for frequently having significant structural issues is a prudential line quite some distance removed from insisting on the kind of testing you hypothesize on a new rudder from a reputable builder. Draw lines where you want (and I obviously can’t force you to do otherwise), but I’m evidently far less willing than you to trust in the state of the unseen in an old rudder.
maybe a dumb question---why not just buy a new rudder.....sounds simple
Somewhat simple, but also time-consuming and not cheap. For example (and using numbers from two years ago, so make adjustments for recent inflation and supply chain issues), to have one of the few good replacement rudder builders, Foss Foam Products of Florida, make you a new rudder would entail shipping your old rudder to Foss so that they can make a new mold from it, then constructing the new rudder and shipping it back to you. For a 40-foot boat, figure at least a couple of months before you get your new rudder (probably more), and at a cost of about $5000 to $6000. If you have a popular enough boat that Foss already has the correct mold, or if you are lucky enough that the rudder from a boat for which they already have a mold would be an adequate fit for your boat, then you can avoid shipping the old rudder and the building of a new mold, and save about $1200.
HI Carl, good question and we did consider this option. Unfortunately, Foss Foam does not have a rudder mold for One Life which makes the process of buying a new rudder much more difficult. Shipping our rudder from Mexico would be quite the fiasco and like Mark said, have a pretty long lead time and be extremely pricey. After inspecting the rudder, we opted for the rebuild option instead.
Happy Birthday!
Thanks, Sam!
❤❤
💙💙