Rudder work has begun.

[gregcrawford]

I purchased two pieces of 11 gauge stainless from Cut2Size metals and cut them to a plywood pattern with a friend's plasma cutter. After much thought, I elected to use a bronze through hull I had laying around in lieu of the OEM plastic. This required machining a Delrin bushing to accommodate the difference in the 1.5" rudder stock and the 1.625" through hull. There is about .005" clearance on the rudder stock and a tap in fit for the through hull which will prevent the bushing from turning.
My next step is to install the new through hull using the rudder stock to align all of the pieces, then start welding up the rudder assembly.
My rudder blade pivot hole was wallowed out and egg shaped, which seems to be typical. My plan is to bore a hole 2.250" in diameter and epoxy in a Delrin puck with the pivot hole bored in it. This will distribute the load in the rudder blade and get rid of all of the slop.
For you gearheads, the lathe I use is a 1949 South Bend 9" Model C. It's a little loose, but works well for my use. Pictures below. More later.

http://sports.webshots.com/album/575918556pvEVVg