Flying Scot rudder modification to stop mainsheet hanging

Occasionally the mainsheet on the Flying Scot will hang on the rudderhead. This is not just a bother to reach back to unhang it, sometimes the mainsheet hangs so you cannot let out the sail. This has been known to cause the boat to lay down, so it is better for the sheet not to hang at all. I built this rudder block, and it works. I carved a piece from a 4X4 post with the skil saw, but left it attached while I drilled a hole, sanded the corners round with a strip of sandpaper, and rounded off the rest of the exposed corners with the belt sander. I wanted the back of the block to match the rear edge of the rudderhead, so I angled the back edge and cut a notch for the top rear bolt. Two stainless steel screws and washers hold it in place. The side plates on the rudderhead are made of very good metal, and most of my drill bits wouldn't cut holes for the screws. I found that expensive one I had bought long ago, and it cut just fine. The Sailboat Shop in Austin sold me a piece of shock cord about 4 feet long, which I tied to the stern rings and through the hole on the block. The shock cord really isn't very tight so it has no noticeable effect on the tiller. I also put a bungee on the mainsheet block, which pulls the block forward a little when the sheet goes slack. This keeps the block from falling down next to the rudderhead and hanging. I've seen pictures of another system, that looks like it would work even better for this, but I had a bungee and a screw. Alison and I took her out for a spin after putting this on, and the mainsheet did not hang up once. I like that. The sheet will still hook under the corner of the stern sometimes, but I don't mind that. This video was taken with the Panasonic PV-GS35 Sailing Video Index

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