Is this a good solution for the old style H18 rudders?

I have the old style rudder locks, not the new post-1987 cam design. I want a solution on how to get my rudders to release without having to hold my breath about breaking castings and steering by sail every time i land:

There are a number of recommendation on how to solve the stuck rudder problem
-$650 for the system upgrade
-loosen the springs and use bungee cord to hold the rudder down
-drill into the lock and attach a rope where you can manually release the lock when needed
-grease the hell out of the lock and leave the springs loose.
-buy dozens of castings and treat them as disposable

I'm not super excited about any of those options.

I need your feedback on the latest suggestion I have seen:
-Grind the front face of thee lock tab back so the pin does not have 'hook/shoulder' of aluminum to snap over
-tighten the spring so you have pressure on the pin
-the newly modified pocket for the pin essentially becomes U shaped and has tight lateral pressure to hold the rudder down


Has anyone tried this? What do you think about this recommendation? My only concern is that in big surf, bug wind, will the rudders 'pre-release' when I don't want them to? I am leaning towards doing this because it really does seem logical.

Thanks, fellow casting breakers!

I just keep the castings well greased, maybe I'm lucky as mine lock/unlock easily. I use white lithium grease.

Same here. I had all sorts of problems till I greased them and learned how to kick them up properly. Now they seem to work fine. I wouln't drill holes or upgrade mine.

_________________
Is the power of 2 hulls with you?
"Rainbow Flyer" - '86 Hobie Cat 18

I'll go with the white lithium grease option for a few weeks.

If it doesn't work, I may try grinding the cam and adding grease. If I do this I'll keep you all updated.

IMO, using these two options works very well. My boat is a 1985 that my family bought new. We had a lot of trouble early on with the rudder system- several broken castings and rudders. I eventually evolved to this system and haven't had an issue in many years (Knock on wood).

I use two full wraps of bungee around the rudder & rudder pin to hold the rudder down. Murrays sells special "washers" that go on the outside of the lower casting that hold the bungee in position (around $10). I also use the metal hooks on the end of the bungee so that the tension can be released when the boat is in storage (otherwise the bungee will stretch out very quickly).

Spring tension on the hook is very light - just enough so the upper casting 'clicks' down. You should be able to very easily un-latch the upper casting by hand.

Last, a LIGHT coating of grease (I use automotive grease) on the roller and the contact surfaces of the hook. Just a small dab applied with my index finger. If you go overboard with grease, you're likely to run into sand/dirt contamination issues. You may need clean out and/or re-apply grease periodically during the season depending on how much you sail. I keep a small tube of grease in my tool box just in case.

Check the action of the system with the boat on the trailer. One good whack with the palm of your hand towards the tip of the rudder and it should pop free.

sm