NC 33 Emergency Tiller setup

[Anonymous]

I’m working through a restoration of a 1987 NC 33 and wondering what the factory set up was for the emergency tiller. Seems as through the prior owner attempted a extension set up providing access/steering from the aft deck through the hatch but but is not really functional as modified. If anyone has any pictures it would be much appreciated of what the arrangement should look like.

Todd Schultz
Hull # 1032 lying Santa Cruz California USA

[David Babsky]

I believe that the ‘factory set up’ was to lift off the horizontal wooden cover in the rear cabin (..on our boat it’s just below the mirror which is below the two [clothes] cupboards right at the stern..) and to find the square top of the rudder stock in there.

The emergency tiller then goes straight onto that four-sided rudder stock.

That means that either (1) the skipper calls down to someone in the aft cabin to tell them which way to (blind) steer, or (b) lines are fastened to the emergency tiller arm, and are led out of the aft windows on either side and up to the after deck so that the boat can be steered by pulling on the port and starboard lines.

We’ve never tried it, but we imagine that that’s how we’ll steel if everything fails!

Yours,

David, “Nautilia”, UK.

[Author]

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