Drascombe Lugger Rudder Chock

15 Oct 22:

The Drascombe Lugger ridder drops into a trunk from the top. For decades we  launched from a ramp and just completely removed the rudder and laid it on the cockpit sole. In our new area of operation there are times when the rudder needs to be "retracted" for beaching and launching from a beach. Other folks around the globe have developed different methods to hold the rudder vertical in the trunk. One method is to drill a hole through the weld between the rudder stock and the top cheek plates. The method we chose was to make a wooden chock that slips under the rudder cheeks, around the thinner rudder blade. 

One note about Lugger rudders, the early blades were fixed, 1967-1976ish, and also shorter. After that a longer swivel blade was available. Looking at the blade and the drop through trunk design, you can imagine why it might be a good idea to raise the rudder before going into a shallow beach area.

The chock was cut from 1x pine with a jigsaw.

We cut a little wider slot at the open end of the chock to facilitate easy insertion. Also added the little strip underneath so that the chock keeps the metal rudder from touching the teak top plate and prevents side to side movement. This strip would be helpful if the boat was left on a mooring for extended periods with wave action rocking the boat. 

We store the chock in the cubby when not in use, easy to reach. The edges were rounded because we round edges. Our mantra is No Sharp Edges in a small boat cockpit. 

We learned about these tips from the Drascombe Association Forum, found on the Drascombe Association (DA) website. The DA puts out a great quarterly newsletter called, you guessed it, the DAN, Drascombe Association Newsletter. We highly recommend that anyone interested in Drascombes, cruising and who likes to read about Rallies join the DA and join the conversation. See you there!

Cheers

Clark and Skipper

Drascombe Association