Hi fellow sailers, Can anyone tell me any other handling differences other then the cavitation issue of the old rudder blades vs the new round tip blades? Is it worth spending the money for the new style rudders is what I’m trying to convince myself.
Thanks!!!
Check to see if the rudders are new (rounded tips) or old (square tips) (square bottom). The previous design is susceptible to ventilation. Not a deal breaker, but it should make a difference in price.
Been racing P-19s and modified 18-2 (FrankenKitty) since 1989. Had the original square rudders on the 19 and upgraded to the ellipticals and there is a huge difference. Unfortunately, I had given them away to a friend. To the point I'm considering building an elliptical set for FrankenKitty.
-- Scott
Prindle Fleet 2
TCDYC
Prindle 18-2 Mod "FrankenKitty"
Tornado Classic "Fast Furniture"
Prindle 19 "Mr. Wiggly"
Nacra 5.8 "De ja vu"
Nacra 5.0
Nacra 5.8
Tornadoes (Reg White) --
To get the full benefit of the newer rudder system you will also have to install the newer rudder gudgeons. They make the rudders further aft of the transoms.
Yes the new style rudders do offer benefits, but not at the price they are asking for them. I have used both on the 18-2. The new style were a more responsive when I added the square top mainsail, but they came with the boat I had plus the old style ones.
Thanks everyone lots of great input, I put a new square top main on and I’ve been taking my time getting the rudders dialed in and it’s much different feeling then the pin head main. Its insane how much this boat wants to go with the new glaser main. So I’ve been playing the mast rake and the rudders but it’s still a little much weather helm. Wondering if the eliptical rudders are the answer. But with each adjustment the helm is feeling better.
To get the full benefit of the newer rudder system you will also have to install the newer rudder gudgeons. They make the rudders further aft of the transoms.
Good point.. I had the 2" gudgeons with the old style and figured all boats had already done that.
Would anyone say there is a benefit to using the extended gudgeons with the older rudders?
Texastuma - I had a dickens of a time getting the helm right with the old-style rudders and the newer grudgeon on my 18-2 with a Glaser Square Top.... couldn't get the weather helm out. Went back to the standard ones, and presto, balanced helm
More of a curiosity question, how did you balance it out?
To get the full benefit of the newer rudder system you will also have to install the newer rudder gudgeons. They make the rudders further aft of the transoms.
Good point.. I had the 2" gudgeons with the old style and figured all boats had already done that.
Would anyone say there is a benefit to using the extended gudgeons with the older rudders?
Texastuma - I had a dickens of a time getting the helm right with the old-style rudders and the newer grudgeon on my 18-2 with a Glaser Square Top.... couldn't get the weather helm out. Went back to the standard ones, and presto, balanced helm
More of a curiosity question, how did you balance it out?
The square top moves some sail behind the center of resistance providing more weather helm. Take some rale out if need be. Evem a pin hole on the rigging does it
To get the full benefit of the newer rudder system you will also have to install the newer rudder gudgeons. They make the rudders further aft of the transoms.
Good point.. I had the 2" gudgeons with the old style and figured all boats had already done that.
Would anyone say there is a benefit to using the extended gudgeons with the older rudders?
Texastuma - I had a dickens of a time getting the helm right with the old-style rudders and the newer grudgeon on my 18-2 with a Glaser Square Top.... couldn't get the weather helm out. Went back to the standard ones, and presto, balanced helm
More of a curiosity question, how did you balance it out?
The square top moves some sail behind the center of resistance providing more weather helm. Take some rale out if need be. Evem a pin hole on the rigging does it
Hey guys thanks for all the input! Really!
So my fix was=
I had a shorter upper forstay made “shorter by 1.5 inches” and that put the measurement to more like 28’ 11” if you measure from the shackle on the main halyard to the center of the rear crossbeam. Then I adjusted my rudders fwd, so the intersecting line of the transom angle was more like 5/8 at the rudder tip instead of the recommended 1/2”. The boat is alot more balanced now , but still not as balanced feeling as the old pinhead main.
Aren't there two different lengths of prindle square bottoms through the years?
and the rounded ones even longer?
Yes. The P-16 and P-18 rudders are longer than the P-19 & P18-2 original rudders. I believe the elliptical rudders are a couple of inches deeper than the longer 16 & 18 rudders. Mainly, the ellipticals do not ventilate like the square tipped rudders. The boat responds a lot better and the point increases a couple of degrees.
-- Scott
Prindle Fleet 2
TCDYC
Prindle 18-2 Mod "FrankenKitty"
Tornado Classic "Fast Furniture"
Prindle 19 "Mr. Wiggly"
Nacra 5.8 "De ja vu"
Nacra 5.0
Nacra 5.8
Tornadoes (Reg White) --
Some mentions here with new Glaser sails on P18 & 19 . They definitely have a reputation of making great sails .Are they worth the higher cost on our older platform boats ? I have a quote from them and are saying that they do a newer shape more like a F18 style , rather than the larger MX cut . Better balance with the larger MX jib .
Looking for some feedback before placing an order .
Some mentions here with new Glaser sails on P18 & 19 . They definitely have a reputation of making great sails .Are they worth the higher cost on our older platform boats ? I have a quote from them and are saying that they do a newer shape more like a F18 style , rather than the larger MX cut . Better balance with the larger MX jib .
Looking for some feedback before placing an order .
Yes, highly recommend them.. Jay and Pease we're 18-2 champions, they know the boat well and build a great product.
Some mentions here with new Glaser sails on P18 & 19 . They definitely have a reputation of making great sails .Are they worth the higher cost on our older platform boats ? I have a quote from them and are saying that they do a newer shape more like a F18 style , rather than the larger MX cut . Better balance with the larger MX jib .
Looking for some feedback before placing an order .
Yes, highly recommend them.. Jay and Pease we're 18-2 champions, they know the boat well and build a great product.
Here is the one they built for me
Edited by JohnES on Jan 08, 2023 - 11:47 AM.
Very good to see. At the Prindle 50th Year North Americans, we had several P-19s with every combination you can think of. Chris had his full size C&C 19MX, Duly had a Smyth hybrid main and MX jib, Joey had a Smyth hybrid main and stock jib, Kevin had a stock C&C set of 19 sails, and my modified 18-2 I was running carbon Doyles (square top main and jib on bow foil). After 3 days of racing in every wind and type of course, the corrected times between everyone was very close. One could see the performance differences between the different mainsails where each had a particular range and wind they did best at.
-- Scott
Prindle Fleet 2
TCDYC
Prindle 18-2 Mod "FrankenKitty"
Tornado Classic "Fast Furniture"
Prindle 19 "Mr. Wiggly"
Nacra 5.8 "De ja vu"
Nacra 5.0
Nacra 5.8
Tornadoes (Reg White) --