Fiberglass rudder post

[justonemoreproject]

Olson 30s use fiberglass rudder posts. I am considering putting one on my boat. Does anyone have experience or feedback on using fiberglass instead of stainless for a rudder post?

Thanks - Larry

[121Guy]

Larry,

Is your boat an Olson 30? If not, please let us know what kind of boat, it's size, age and how you plan on using it and I'm sure you will get some comments.

Good luck!

121 Guy

[justonemoreproject]

My boat is a Hawkfarm. I need a new rudder and discovered that occasionally Olson 30 owners that upgrade to the newer elliptical rudder decide they don't need them because they don't have as much helm sensitivity as the stock rudder. I spoke with Ron Moore who makes them and he said that it could be adapted adapted to fit my boat.

I interested to know about any problems with fiber glass posts.

Thanks agarin,

Larry

[sailingdog]

The one problem I see with composite rudder posts is that they tend to be fairly brittle...and will snap if the rudder hits something solid, where a steel or aluminum rudder post might bend instead. On many boats, if you lose the rudder post, you have a hole that lets a lot of water into the boat...and that is something you may want to avoid.