terry_thatcher
Terence Thatcher
So, for years I knew my rudder packing gland would leak some. I repacked it and it reduced the leakage. A week ago I launched my 382 after 8 months on the hard. I again had the gland repacked with the high tech packing. And much to my dismay, I discover I have a leak, but not from the packing gland. No, the leak is coming through the boat where the metal collar for the rudder post meets the boats glass. Inside the boat, the collar is threaded to accept the big gland nut. My leak is right where the threaded collar disappears into the glass of the stern of the boat. Has anyone else noticed such a leak? If so, how did you repair it? Is the collar an extension of the bronze fittin on the outside of the boat where the rudder shaft enters? I know this before we launched, of course, I would have had the yard do a repair. The rudder was out so I could install a new rudder. Now I will have to haul the boat again, drop the rudder again , and have a repair accomplished. I will monitor the leak until then. It is a slight seapage, not a major leak, but still concerning.