Another tiller question

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imeche

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I've been advised to carry a spare tiller "just in case". Being new to the sailing game, I do pay heed to advice, most of the time.
My existing tiller is a teak like wood and my first choice of a spare would be similar, but I'm having difficulty in sourcing a suitable piece of teak. I've been checking the strengths of various types of wood and have been considering oak.
Does the team think that oak would be a good choice for a replacement tiller?
 
I like iroko. Some old-timers call it the poor man's teak. It is available in large sizes and I believe the sap is naturally poisonous to marine life.
 
You need a piece of wood with nice straight grain so that it doesn't warp in the sun (and it's easier to work with). The traditional wood for tillers is ash, but iroko or mahogany would be good. All would need varnishing, though. I expect oak would do, too!

Neil
 
Most Dutch traditional boats have -rather broad-oak tillers, and they work substantial rudder blades. That said, if you can build it up from laminated parts, it might be a stronger construction.
 
Most wheel steered yachts carry a metal emergency tiller. Consider what's likely to get broken. Its a good idea if the emergency tiller attaches in a different way to the normal one.
I once steered a sonata quite a long way with a metal bar through the hole in the top of the rudder, ie across the boat, because the stainless yoke on the tiller had failed. The spare tiller does not have to look nice, or be the most comfortable to use, it just has to work ok quickly when (if) you need it (oh, and satisfy a safety tick box on a wheel steered racing boat!).
Cheers,
Chris
 
Any durable wood will do. Unless your tiller has been designed to be ultra-lightweight (i.e. with very slender sections) it will not be operating anywhere near the breaking strength of the majority of hardwoods. Have a go at bending your existing tiller, and consider how much force would be required to break it. Now think about the sort of conditions that would generate such forces. I doubt that the tiller will be giving up before the crew.

Oak would be a fine choice - strong, durable, readily available, not out of some virgin tropical forest.
 
As just an emergency tiller that you will hopefully never need why not seek out a "Mecanical Engineer" who could make a metal one
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I had one break. Deck scrubber in the hole did the job. New one is ash. Ash is not durable - must be coated with varnish or the like. (Ash spreaders lasted about 40 years with some neglect - so not a major problem.) I wouldn't get too bent out of shape about this. Your emergency tiller will not be constantly exposed, and only needs to work for a short period. Any of the woods under discussion will last months not days. Do something pragmatic but strong, and spend your safety money where it can really make a difference.
 
Agree with Vic. A metal pipe or scaffolding pipe may do. Chances are you will never need it. Try and find something that may have another use in the mean time, ie can be used as strong lever.
 
Provided the tiller head does not trap water you don't need durable timber, wood only rots when it stays wet which is unlikely in a tiller unless the boat has sunk! Laminated is the way to go, it's stonger, allows a shep to be bent in round a former and gets rid of any potential flaw or tendency to twist (saw wood into 3 and reverse centre section). A word of caution on ash or oak, if water gets through the varnish they go black and can be difficult to clean up.
 
G'day Cam,

You need to consider a spare tiller-and emergency steering. Critical for wheel steering vessels.

A spare tiller can be just that, made of any material that will do the job and stow out or your way.

However having a spare tiller, pretty or crap but functional is of no use if the rudder has failed.

You need an alternative method of steering other than the tiller, even a storm board or lump of ply 'U' bolted to your spinnaker pole will do the job.

Avagoodweekend......
 
Ask why the original broke - ie it's probably going to be in heavy conditions, so a 'pretty' spare may not be up to the job at the time. Better, as already mentioned, a sturdy metal one complete with stock fitting if neccessary,which could well be a towel rail/galley crash bar/ anchor winch handle,etc. until it is needed
 
Beware of tiller extensions. My laminated tiller had been drilled to take the fixed end of a tiller extension and broke at that point when someone fell heavily against it. Examining the damage showed that the hole was about half the diameter of the tiller at that point. I made a replacement out of some spare teak but didn't taper it so much this time.
 
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