SS pinltes and gudgeons

BCC Forum
1

I just pulled my 1985 FC and was pleased to see that she still doesn’t have a single pimple on her bottom. My big question is how do I know the condition of my 25 year old SS pintles and gugeons, they are way oversize and look like new on the outside. Should I be worried about them? Each year a venture a bit further away from my home waters so if They need attention the time is now.

2

I am also facing this question, on a 1986 BCC with all stainless rudder hardware. The harware is not cast - tubes of the gudgeons and the pintles of the pins are welded to the plates. In some ways it looks to be more stoutly built than the bronze hardware, as the plates are much thicker, but the pintles and tubes are thinner.

So, any opinions? Replace with PTF bronze hardware? Any tips for lining the rudder up properly when installing new hardware?

3

Sam used bronze for the gudgeons and pintles and it is certainly more appropriate below the water line than welded or cast ss. Sam told me they were naval bronze, which may not be the best choice, as it’s not really a true bronze. However, ours have lasted 34 yrs without any problems.

If I were you I’d make use of the Port Townsend Foundry’s experience with BCC parts. They have an excellent reputation. Also the folks at Cape George Marine Works might offer you some tips on installation.

I think lining up the gudgeons and pintles has been discussed on the forum. Have you done a search? I seem to remember that a very straight 1" rod is run through the gudgeons to make sure they are all lined up. I guess if they come with bushings, you could use an appropriately smaller diameter rod. You definitely should use shoulder bushings, delrin or ??? Maybe PTF supplies them standard?

Good luck, Dan Shaula BCC 1981

4

This is the search you want:

http://samlmorse.com/forum/search.php?5,search=gudgeons+and+pintles+,page=1,match_type=ALL,match_dates=0,match_forum=ALL,body=1,author=1,subject=1,category_id=,like_category=

5

Dye Penetrant can be used to check for fatigue in metal. Shipyards use it on shafts and propellers

6

Thanks for the tips so far.

Ken: my impression was that dye penetration testing would only detect cracks and would not help in detecting corrosion problems. Or would crevice corrosion show as a tell-tale pitting on the surface? I don’t think I could tell the difference between pitting that suggests advanced corrosion and simply poor finishing and polishing at the time of fabrication (particularly since these are welded pieces that were not finished very professionally)

Dan: Thank you for the tip with the pipe - Pete from Port Townsend confirms that gudgeons should be installed first, and aligned with a pipe, then pintles and rudder are installed to fit.

John: Thank for you for the search. Unfortunately there does not seem to be very specific information in the archives.