I finally have my new (for me) 1973 E25. For safety I removed the rudder for transport on the trailer (lifting line was pretty weathered) and noticed the plastic bushings in the rudder rod gudgeons (1/2"SS rod) were cracked and brittle. Anyone know of a source of new bushings? As a last resort I can get oillite bronze hat bushings but will have to machine them to fit then friction fit in place.
E25 Rudder Gudgeon Plastic Bushing Replacement
- Thread starter Mblace
- Start date
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- e25 rudder bushings
E25 Rudder Gudgeon Bushing
Congrats on the new addition! I always remove the rudder when I tow mine; even over the short distances I haul I'd rather have it laying flat in the bed of the truck then bouncing around point-loaded on the gudgeons on the transom (or relying on the small block/lifting line/cleat). As for bushings, I don't have any and don't think there is enough room on mine (pretty sure my rod is larger than 1/2" and there is virtually no play).
Greg
1978 E25 #377
Congrats on the new addition! I always remove the rudder when I tow mine; even over the short distances I haul I'd rather have it laying flat in the bed of the truck then bouncing around point-loaded on the gudgeons on the transom (or relying on the small block/lifting line/cleat). As for bushings, I don't have any and don't think there is enough room on mine (pretty sure my rod is larger than 1/2" and there is virtually no play).
Greg
1978 E25 #377
Hi...Did you ever figure out what to do? I have an E25 with exactly the same issue although mine did not have plastic bushings when I bought it so the 1/2" rod bounces around in the gudgeons. One suggestion I got was to put in plastic pieces that will reduce an oarlock to 1/2 inch. I have not tried that yet.
Thanks
Mike
I found bronze oilite hat bushings at Aircraft Spruce. Had to grind them a bit to fit, then pressed in for a good friction fit in the gudgeons. Way better than plastic. Their website lists several sizes - best to measure and get slightly larger, then grind to fit. I also upsized the gudgeon attach hardware, all stainless.
+1 for Aircraft Spruce. I bought a good quality "Hobbs Meter" from them to keep better track of engine hours.
For most other materials, I use https://www.mcmaster.com.
For most other materials, I use https://www.mcmaster.com.
Interesting. I went to the site. Can I assume you got the flanged bushings? Thanks Mike