Guest
03-19-2004, 07:02 PM
I am searching for a schematic of how wood-spoke wheel sailing yacht steering is rigged. How do you run line through sheeves to rudder (or tiller attached to rudder) and how does it conventionally, or traditionally, work at the wheel? Doesn't line or rope wrap in opposing directions on a spindle through center of wheel? Pics available? Many thanks! Wooden Snipe owner, ggronberg@att.net
Guest20100203
03-19-2004, 08:34 PM
It can be quite simple to rig rope or cable steering and many very large vessels were rig as such, like the USS Constitution in Boston right now.
Simply put, a drum, mounted on the back of the wheel (usually covered with a pretty box) and several cheek or deck blocks attached from the tiller (sometimes with a sliding connection) or quadrant/yoke fitted to the rudder or rudder shaft. Line, or more commonly cable is run through the blocks attached to both the rudder fitting and the drum. When turned, the drum winds up one line and pays out the other forcing the rudder fitting (quadrant, yoke or tiller) to move towards the shortening line, turning the boat.
Sometimes folks run cable through bent pipe to serve as the blocks, but I think there's too much friction and other problems with this setup.
I hope your not going to butcher your Snipe with this sort of thing . . . Nothing, absolutely nothing gives the feel of a tiller. Every other steering system available has less feel and weights much more!
