I’ve always felt that my tiller was too long and I’m finally getting
around to chopping it. I’ve harked where I’d like to cut it, but I’d
be interested in hearing what the current standard length is - or
more appropriately, how far into the cockpit does it extend?
My tiller is so long that I cannot stand in the cockpit (except for
the forward corners) and swing it through it’s full arc.
I’m also interested in how you access your cockpit locker. My tiller
does not have much (any!) upward clearance in the taff rail - which
means that I can’t swing my tiller up far (at all!). I removed the
cover hinges a long time ago to allow the cover to be slided out. It
looks unfinished so I’m thinking about “finishing” that project. I
think I might use hinges with a removeable pin, so that I can still
slide the cover out.
Are you able to get into your locker while under way? If so, how?
do you swing the tiller up and simply lift the cover on its hinges or
do you have some way of sliding the cover?
Jeremy,
I made my own tiller orginlly and lived with its
length until I figured out about where I was griping
it most of the time and cut it off. It now extends 44
inches from the rudder head which means it sweaps
through an arc that doesn’t quite reach the center of
the footwell.
The tiller is attached to the rudder head with a one
inch diameter stainless ‘fast-pin’ allowing simple
removal with the extraction of the pin. This removal
of the tiller when underway allows access to the
lazerette. The hatch can also be lifted when the
tiller is swung hard over when at anchor and the
tiller is tied off in that position.
Like yourself, swinging the tiller ‘up’ only allows
opening the hatch about 1/4 of the way. At the same
time we usually only keep ‘in port’ gear in the
locker, such as paint, varnish, spare rode and dock
lines.
Jeremy:
My boat was owner finished so I don’t know who made
the tiller. It extends to about the mid-point of the
cockpit, which has worked out OK. I understand your
frustration with opening the lazarette hatch underway.
The best solution I’ve seen is to hinge the tiller, a
little forward of the taff rail. This allows you to
fold the tiller up out of the way of the hatch without
removing the tiller. Roger Olson made this
improvement to his boat. I’ve used it on his boat and
it works well. I’ll ask him if he has plans or
dimensions for you.
Lokke Patrick
Resolute #55