I have broken my rudder blade at the halfway between the Scilly island and Cork. We were sailing with the third reef and the blade jib rolled two or three times ( a beam reach). The helm (tiller) was easy and we were sailing at 6 knots. The break was just under the blade head. The inside view shows just a little wooden part in the middle ( a white wood. What type?)with a non structural filling around the wood.And that doesn't look so solid! I had a crack 2 years ago and the shipyard put a large fibreglass strapping around the blade neck.But that was not enough!
We send a distress call with VHF (pan-pan)at 7 h PM and the St Mary lifeboat came at 3h AM and the towing was during 12 hours to return to St Mary. Thank very much to the lifeboat crew.
A new blade in marine plywood was made at St Mary and during 2 weeks we have visited all scilly
islands before the return to North Britanny.
I am not sure that the polywood ( with in second time, a stratified coat which will be put around) is so solid because you have the half woodfibres in a wrong direction in the polywood. I remember that all dinghy rudders and centerboards are not in polywood for this reason.Maybe I will keep this one for security (like Stewart!) and I will make another one with carbon fibres ( like racing boats). I can send photos of the broken blade .
So looks your rudder blade very often.
Has somebody broken the rudder?
Best regards.
Pascal Claeyssens. Maruli P325/27

Pascal
You are not the only 325 to break a rudder, there have been a few.
I recall seeing Tilicum's many yearsago, broken when crossing Lyme Bay in calm weather.
The core of the blade was a few strips of ramin, a wood normally seen in the mouldings rack in DIY stores, this was covered in a mass of filler to give the blade shape and a bit of glass and gell outer. It was rubbish, I am surprised that any of these blades have survived this long.
Sorry I can't help with any advice on a replacement, but I would use strips bonded together rather than ply as the core, or insert a piece of stainless steel plate in the top third.
Philip
Superseal 26 rascal

Hi Philip,
Very interesting! The ramin wood doesn't seem to be an hard wood and at the rudder neck, where it works more, there is a lot of filler. That is not solid for a rough sea. I can send a photo. On my old super seal, I had seen a long crack at this place and the shipyard had to put inside 3 long carbon rods and the rudder was solid afterward, but it is impossible to do that inside the wood. I will try to make a new rudder with honey-comb with carbon inside like the racing boat centerboards.I try to found a broken canterboard to have this honey-comb.And I will keep my emergengy rudder made in marine plywood on board.
Thank for your help.
Best regards.
Pascal
Maruli P325/27

Hi Pascal
http://www.milanesfoils.co.uk/index.html 
I am assured by a dinghy racer friend that the rudder will be considerably stronger than it's predecessor which was a combination of marine ply, filler, g.r.p. and metal rods.
Richard Harvey
EMOYENI

Hi Richard,
I am sure your rudder will be very stronger .In the marine plywood you have the half wooden fibres which are perpendicular and in the wrong way.All dinghies have centerboard and rudder in hard wood or in multi strips wood( but all the wood in the same way). For the same raison you will never see a diving board at a swimming pool in marine plywood. Looking the Milane's foils , I can see a very good work, and the all wooden fibres are in the same way. I supose he can do a NACA shape( a very good hydrodynamic shape). Could you ask to Phil Milane if he can make a rudder for a Parker 325/335 and how much that would cost? Can he have the rudder drawing for the Parker 325/335? I am looking for all possibilities.After breaking my rudder between Scilly islands and cork a new rudder was made at St Mary but in marine plywood and I am not sure that this rudder is enough strong.
Best regards.
Pascal Claeyssens
Maruli Parker 325/27

Hi Pascal,

Read your post with some trepidation!

I am glad you made it back to Brittany safely, your experience must have been very stressful. I would very much like to see your photos and esspecially your new carbon rudder?

I have slightly shortened my spare marine ply rudder so that it neatly fits the starboard locker below the berth in the aft cabin.

Best Regards,

Stuart

Pegasus
325/37

Hi Stuart,
I had seen your emergency rudder on the PSSA site, and I wanted to make the same!Too late!!!.The starboard locker is the good place for it.To take off the broken rudder blade head at the sea, is not impossible. I did that in night with a rough sea,laid down on my stomach in the cockpit with the helmsman seat off ( but it is more easy for me because I have a tiller helm). A wing nut with a little hole for a little string, another string for the other axis side, and another axis for security on board( I had!)because you can lose this pieces when you have a wave. To put an sea anchor would give the operation easier. When I put the pliwood emergency rudder in the shaking mooring ( at Hugh town St Mary Scilly), I had to put the blade vertically in the air by the mainsail halyard with a screw driver to find the blade hole inside the stainless steel head. .
The emergency rudder blade could be made in a thiner true wood, with only two pliwood pieces to enlarge the head inside the stainless steel part.
I have contacted Phil Milanes for a new blade. He cannot have the blade drawing from Fosdyke marine( which has the hull mouding and has never received rudder moulding).In the same time I am looking for a broken carbone centerboard ( from vendee globe racing boats or big trimarans).
The original rudder blade is too weak at the neck part (between the head and the body) Inside you have a ramin wood with a thick filler part around.The rudder area is important, and the Parker 325 is not a dinghy. The time also gives the rudder blade weaker.
That will be better, if the PSSA could have an address where the different Parker boat items could be found or made.
Best regards.
Pascal
Maruli 325/27
P.S: I don't know how i can send a photo with this mail

Hi Pascal,

Being able to replace the ruuder at sea is very reassuring. I had always thought I might deploy a sea anchor in such an emergency. Not easy, but do-able.

Please let me know if you need any dimentions or pictures?

Best Regards,

Stuart

Pegasus 325/37