Bungee cord for rudder lines?

[PatrickS]

I've got a 2001 X and I like the fact that the keel will swing
up out of the way if I inadvertently get into too shallow water,
but the rudders are held down with cleated lines and will snag
just as much as a fixed keel.

I'm planning a trip over the Holidays to the east coast of
Florida, around Canaveral, and the ICW in that area has its
good share of shallow water, sand bars, etc.

So I've been pondering whether I might replace the line with
some beefy 3/8" bungee, offering some peace of mind, just
in case.

My only question is about how much aftwards pull/drag there
is on the rudders, and whether the solid line is a necessity,
and bungee would allow the rudders to cant aftwards,
resulting in suboptmal steering.

Anyone have any experience or comments?

[PatrickS]

...

So I've been pondering whether I might replace the line with
some beefy 3/8" bungee, offering some peace of mind, just
in case.

...

Actually, that's probably 5/8" I'm thinking of. But in any case,
some seriously beefy bungee.

[Ivan Awfulitch]

So I've been pondering whether I might replace the line with
some beefy 3/8" bungee, offering some peace of mind, just
in case.

My only question is about how much aftwards pull/drag there
is on the rudders, and whether the solid line is a necessity,
and bungee would allow the rudders to cant aftwards,
resulting in suboptmal steering.

Anyone have any experience or comments?

You might want to try some cam cleats to hold the rudders down. I bought these for my 26X, but haven't gotten a chance to try them yet as traffic by the sand bars near the harbor were too busy late in the season. They do release with a sharp tug on the line.
http://www.apsltd.com/Tree/d273000/e270617.asp

[Craig LaForce]

The bungee works great, I have been doing it for years. Rudders kickup if you hit bottom, but are otherwise held down nicely. I put those cleats on the back rail that make the line zig and zag back and forth to hold the bungee.
Just buy about 10 feet of the heaviest bungee line available and it works great. Get some hog rings to secure it in a loop down at the rudder attachment point, then a short loop of regular rope to go through the rudder holes which are otherwise a tad too small for the bungee cord.

[Billy]

I did that mod after the first sail on my X in '01, right after ripping out the bullseye on the stern. I just took a standard bungee (about 30"-36"?), removed the hooks, tied to the end of the rudder line, followed the path back to the rudder and tied a figue 8. Bungee is long enough to hook the connecting knot under the horn of the cleat and still stretch when needed--no need to tie it off.


It's proven itself not only in the Carolinas but also the Keys and the Bahamas. Don't even want to think about going back to the original set-up.

[PatrickS]

Thanks folks. Bungee it is...

[USAF M26X sailor]

Any guesses on the lifespan of the bungees for this purpose? I can maybe get two seasons on smaller ones holding the tarp on for winter lay ups or keeping the PCV half pipe I use to keep the RF drum stable in trailer mode.

[balloonist]

Bungee is the way to go. I have had the same ones on for the past 7 years. A trick I learned from Sail mag article "Thing the Work" is to coat the cords with plain old sunscren. The UV in the sunlight deteriorates bungee very quickly without. Here at 5000ft altitude the UV is killer, but the sunscreen has made them last. I'll probebily replace them next spring just because the elastic is getting a little tired.

[johnnyonspot]

Wow, this would be a great solution for my Mac 25 too. One advantage the bungee would have over the releaseable jam cleat is that you would regain steering right after clearing the obstacle. I could use a cleat, jam or cam, as winding the line around the std. cleat on my ruddder assembly is a real pita, especially with the big spiders that like to hide in there.