MacGregorSailors.com

So I know there is a lot of post regarding the early 26x rudders and repairing them but I am done with repairing them and would like to rip out the old crappy setup that was on the early 26x and put in something better. I am having trouble find where to buy the parts to do a complete replacement to a better design. So this being said will the 26m rudder linkage work with the early style 26x or should I try to move up to the newer version of the 26x with the bigger bars? Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

So what are ytou going to do with your old stuff?

makieo wrote:So I know there is a lot of post regarding the early 26x rudders and repairing them but I am done with repairing them and would like to rip out the old crappy setup that was on the early 26x and put in something better. I am having trouble find where to buy the parts to do a complete replacement to a better design. So this being said will the 26m rudder linkage work with the early style 26x or should I try to move up to the newer version of the 26x with the bigger bars? Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

I would look at the newer X bracket system (from BWY) but buy the Idasailor rudders. A little more money but I think worth it in the long run.
Sea Wind

Thanks for the help on this. I really don't know what to do with the old stuff, haven't thought that far ahead. I do know that I really wanted the Idasailor rudders but I will have to have the newer style brackets to fit them. I will check with BWY for the brackets. Does anyone have any experience converting from the early style to the new SS Brackets? Anything I should think about before diving into this?

The old style Mac 26X rudder brackets are made of soft aluminum and are prone to cracking. BWY sells the new brackets made of steel, but you will have to change the whole setup: not only the brackets, but the hardware that keeps the brackets in place as well. They have specialized terms for those, too, and they will tell you what needs to be changed on top of the brackets themselves.
If you decide to go that route, I would be interested in purchasing your old aluminum brackets. Have a friend who does aluminum welding, but I don't want to let him experiment with the only pair of brackets that I currently have.
Good luck and keep us posted.

Hi
the old bracket hangers are rubbish, just need a plate welded between them like the later xs to make good.
I welded 10 pieces onto each bracket to sort out the breakages. There's a whole pile of steering mods here:
http://www.ironengineer.com/mac/steering/steering.html

Not had any headaches since, though there is not much original mac components left