I have just had the bearings in our rudder replaced,and thought I would record for others the clearance required to remove the rudder from the hull.
After the Konan was removed from the water, she was suspended in travellator slings whilst the shipwright battled to drop the rudder as the rudder shaft was seized on the roller bearings (even though it could still turn port/stbd). After more than an hour suspended in the slings, and the yard crew getting anxious with the hold up (their schedule was now over an hour behind), Konan was setup in a cradle resigned to the fact that we would have to pay for another travellator pick, to remove the rudder.
Our local shipyard set up Konan on blocks inside a cradle, with 340mm of clearance under the keel to the ground.
After a further hour of wrestling with the bearings, the rudder shaft came free, and the rudder was able to be dropped down and with the cradle setup, the shipwrights were able to easily remove the rudder.
here is a photo of the setup, for future reference. Hope this is helpful.
cheers
Steven
Konan the Bavarian