Same problem on a 27 Mk III. What we do is have rain holes, one near the top of 
the rudder , one low down on the leading edge, one on the bottom. In sailing 
season we insert threaded plugs sealed with Vaseline to keep the rudder dry. 
They come out in the fall, a few drops leak out and the rudder dries out over 
the winter. (On the hard in Ontario). Has been successful for over 10 years so 
far.
________________________________
From: CnC-List <cnc-list-boun...@cnc-list.com> on behalf of Matthew L. Wolford 
via CnC-List <cnc-list@cnc-list.com>
Sent: Monday, June 4, 2018 9:17 AM
To: cnc-list@cnc-list.com
Cc: Matthew L. Wolford
Subject: Re: Stus-List C&C 34 1981 Wet rudder - necessary to rebuild/replace?

The rudder on my 1976 C&C 42 Custom was also wet when I bought the boat.  My 
repair guru drilled a bunch of holes in a pattern, put the rudder in a plywood 
box that he made for this purpose, and “baked” it at about 150 degrees for two 
or three weeks.  He then filled all the holes with West System and put several 
layers of barrier coat on the surface.  He also did something to seal the area 
where the rudder post enters at the top (which, like your boat, is normally out 
of the water).  We checked the rudder with a moisture meter for a couple years 
after the fix, and it stayed dry.  I haven’t checked it lately and am not 
concerned.  I don’t know if salt water creates an additional issue (I’m on 
freshwater).

From: Nathan Post via CnC-List<mailto:cnc-list@cnc-list.com>
Sent: Monday, June 04, 2018 8:03 AM
To: cnc-list@cnc-list.com<mailto:cnc-list@cnc-list.com>
Cc: Nathan Post<mailto:nathan8...@gmail.com>
Subject: Stus-List C&C 34 1981 Wet rudder - necessary to rebuild/replace?

Hello all,

I'm new to this list - my wife and I just purchased a 1981 C&C 34 center board 
version.  The boat has been on the hard for about 1.5 years after being a salt 
water boat here in the Boston area.  The surveyor assessed that the rudder was 
"saturated and delaminating" and he recommended rebuilding or replacing it due 
to concern about corrosion of the stainless rudder post in the low-oxygen 
environment inside the rudder.  (My surveyor wasn't specifically familiar with 
the C&C boats from this vintage).  I called South Shore Yachts last week to 
inquire about getting a new rudder built - but they suggested that it likely 
wasn't necessary and that they had never seen one fail due to corrosion of the 
stainless steel rudder post (which is my main concern) and that while most 
likely the welded carbon steel plate inside the rudder would have surface rust 
it wasn't likely to be a structural issue.

Following the recommendation from them and on some of the forums, I drilled 
several 1/4" holes in the rudder to investigate further.  The hole in the 
bottom drilled upwards just hit fiberglass for the length of the drill bit ~2.5 
inches as did a side hole about 3 inches up.  In the side about 5 inches up 
from the bottom, I did hit water that drained out and another hole about 12 
inches from the top in the middle of the side also hit water and saturated soft 
foam.  I did not hit a metal plate in either location.  The hole in the top 
went through a layer of fiber glass in the middle and then into foam in the 
other side.  Combined both holes drained about 3 cups of water from the rudder 
in the first hour or so and maybe a little more over night.  The water that 
drained out was not rust colored but rather tinted black.  So the surveyor was 
correct that the rudder is full of water and the foam inside is pretty soft.  
However, it also seems like the fiberglass is thick and pretty solid and there 
is no sign of cracking from it freezing during the winter.

Obviously, I would prefer to avoid the cost of rebuilding/replacing the rudder 
if it isn't necessary, but also don't want to take on too high a risk of having 
a catastrophic failure of the rudder while under way. Once the rudder dries out 
a bit, I could just fill the holes I drilled with epoxy and perhaps try to seal 
around where the rudder post comes out of the top which is where I assume the 
water got in the first place since it didn't drain out with the boat on the 
hard for over a year.

Any experience out there investigating potential corrosion of similar vintage 
and design C&C rudders or other recommendations?

Thanks in advance!

Nathan

~~~

Nathan Post
S/V Wisper
C&C 34
Malden, MA USA


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