2008 - 230 loose rudder steering vibration

[Indygreen]

Hello,
New to me is a 2008 - 230 with 350 hours. Boat runs and drives great but recently started surfing with it and last weekend was the first time I had all ballast tanks filled, plus sacks on rear stern and port and belly tank and belly sack filled plus 1100lbs of people in the boat and using a wake shaper. At 10.6 mph was running 3400 RPM, prop 13.25 x 16. Unloaded the boat runs smooth with no vibration but loaded as I said the steering wheel would vibrate and rattle some especial when pulling the surfer up. Was thinking it was because of the load. I then crawled under the boat and grabbed ahold of the rudder and there is some play left to right, front to back and up and down. I then saw 2 hairline cracks in the square casting with the 4 mounting screws. It doesn't look like the cracks are through the actual shaft housing/coupler but not sure.
Inside the boat i found the locking nut below the coupler loose a 1/2" below coupler nut and that the coupler nut was hand loose. I hand tighten the coupling nut and then went back and felt the rudder and it didn't seem to help.
If anyone can help my questions I would greatly appreciate it.

Is it normal for the square casting to have hairline cracks or can I assume the rudder has been hit. Note: absolutely no structural damage to rudder, it looks perfect?

Haven't been able to check the rudder packing in the water, loose I assume it's leaking but should it be tighter down pretty tight and if so will this effect ease of steering and would this help remove the play. I wouldn't think it would help remove the play?

Am I over reacting, should there be play in the rudder?

With this play, would this cause the steering wheel to vibrate or do I do I not have the correct prop to weight ratio?

Note: Also when I load the boat and have to give it some extra throttle to get to the bow stop the steering wheel will vibrate/rattle some.

Again, unloaded there is no vibration at all.

Thank you!

[charlesml3]

There should be NO cracks. Someone hit something with this boat. You're going to have to pull the rudder and replace that stuffing box. The rudder may need to be replaced as well if it's bent. Usually when someone hits something hard enough to crack the box it also bends the rudder shaft. Look at the gap between the rudder and the hull. Is it the same front to back?

-Charles

[Indygreen]

Thanks Charles,

Spacing looks even and rudder doesn't look bent nor is there a single nick in the rudder. The attached picture has a stamp on the rudder and not sure what company is says but is there a chance this is a replacement aftermarket rudder?
Thanks

[Indygreen]

Well I studied this rudder some more and started guessing the name stamped into the rudder and pretty much determined it is Marine Hardware which is a company specializing in duplicating marine parts including rudders, so with this said I'm thinking I have an aftermarket rudder installed into a factory stuffing box that is not of the same dimensions and is damaged to boot. Not a good day.

[beamons]

Lately, I have become somewhat of an expert in this space. I have replaced three in the last few months. Feel free to PM and we can discuss further.
First off, that is the OEM rudder, no worries there. Like Charles said it is likely bent but to be honest, if it isn't leaking and or not giving you trouble while using it, it really isn't going to hurt anything. I would continue to use it considering the 700 price tag. Someone might feel differently. I ran my severely bent rudder for many hours without issues besides difficult steering.
Also like Charles said, the stuffing box or rudder port sounds like the real issue. I can't even imagine how you could break that without damaging the rudder. It is usually the first thing to go. I would start with replacing the rudder port. https://www.nautiqueparts.com/product/rudder-port/
When you get the rudder out I would check for any abnormal wear. It is possible with the damage to the port the shaft could have worn and created the play. If the rudder looks good, I would get a new port then you can check, but there shouldn't be any play in the rudder. If this seems to solve the problem remove the old port and put it all back together.
Advice, I would remove any ballast tanks and anything that is in your way. You will be in the back of that for a while and it gets uncomfortable. Make sure you get the 3M 5200 underwater adhesive. http://a.co/eaUnbdp and rudder packing https://www.nautiqueparts.com/produc...-1-4-per-foot/. I used 1/4" and it seemed a little large at first until I packed it into the nut and slipped the shaft in. It was a nice fit.
As always, check each step that things are tight but not too tight, the rudder should be smooth and free when you get the retaining washer and bolt back on the top of the rudder.
This is a great article on how to replace the stuffing which is essentially the whole process minus the port replacement, which is really straightforward.
http://www.correctcraftfan.com/forum...rudder-packing
All said and done you could reasonably do it in about 3-4 hours. Still waiting to get the quote back from this last time(insurance and don't ask) but I can imagine it saves me a few dollars.
Don't forget the Nautique parts discount. pnd

[Indygreen]

Thank you so much for your reply, and all your advise. The fun of buying a boat without all the history!! I’ve had the tanks out before and understand the room needed to get back in there. I’ll start with the stuffing box and call Townsend tomorrow at Nautique Parts. I have a feeling the rudder is going to need replacing also.
Thanks

[Infinity]

Have you greased rudder? On inside of boat, there should be a grease fitting and every Spring I give a few squirts, that could play a part in why its loose...especially if it has not been done for a long time. If rudder looks perfect, that could be whole cause of the play?...I know you mentioned some hairline cracks where it mounts, probably good to check that out. Even without any "play", under load and especially with wheel turned a little bit, some boats have a slight shutter/shake at steering wheel, mine makes some noise and has since new and have driven and been in quite a few boats that do the same. I does that as water is rushing by the rudder. Not saying this is normal on every boat, saying a lot of boats do this (my personal experience as well as some threads on several forums) and its not always cause something has to be replaced.
Does sound like you may have something going on that is not normal....just putting out the info so you can decide and do some more research

[Indygreen]

Wanted to follow up and again thank everyone for their help. If you zoom in below you will see where the problems lies. Charles was correct that a previous owner hit something and either bent or cracked the rudder shaft. You can see that the shaft has been worked on and ground on with a grinder and in no way is the correct diameter towards the lower end of the shaft. Unfortunately I'm a $1000.00 bucks fixing this myself which hurts when you don't expect it. The good news I didn't see any structural damage to the hull. Should be up and running by this Friday. Also I used 3M 5200 sealant. I installed the new rudder port tonight and really want to use the boat Saturday morning. Directions say 48 hour set up time and 72 hours cure time. You think I'll be ok to run this weekend? Thanks

[charlesml3]

Yep. Get everything back in and you should be good to go. Ugh... that grinding job on the rudder shaft makes my skin crawl.

-Charles