My 1966 50MY came from the original Hatteras Yacht Company with a folding emergency tiller. I have access to the steering gear via port and starboard lids in the shelf across the stern. The vertical tiller end fits over a notched fitting atop the starboard rudder shaft. Very early on I tried to trial fit this on only to find I had to cut a 2 inch notch in the forward edge of the starboard opening or it would not fit at all. But never tested further.
Forward about 40 years where my bride and I were departing offshore Egg Island, Eleuthera, a couple miles into the deep and rough off shore ocean. Were up on plane maybe 18 kts. when I punched the autopilot on to see if it could handle these seas. It promptly turned hard left jamming the rudders and blowing out its hydraulic lines and all steering. It did not take long for me to notice this. Cut to idle, put the Boss on the wheel, a short course on engine steering which wasn't working well with rudders jammed hard over. Grabbed a portable VHS radio so we could talk while I was below.(Sorry FCC, it was an emergency.) I ran for the emergency tiller which for its entire life has lived at the very bottom of a funny hinged opening locker at the port deck of the bow cabin. Aft, dumped 40 or so books in the book shelf I had installed on the stern shelf over the stbd steering compartment, shoved the tiller over the rudder shaft and ........Nothing! Wouldn't turn!!!! Why? THINK! Because the hydraulic steering ram is set to prevent rudder kick back if something hits a rudder. Or a tiller tries to move the rudders. Dump other bookshelf and books on other side, find tools to disconnect hydraulic ram from the cross bar which connects both rudders. Worked! Straightened rudders, but then.......
You can't see out of the aft cabin to steer! Fortunately I always kept a small 6-8 inch gimballed dinghy compass by my berth to see how we are heading at night when we are anchored. Using this I found I could hold a rough heading while my Admiral on the bridge called out course corrections to me by VHF.
Back to Spanish Wells. Once into sheltered waters of the bay I could steer by engines once I immobilized the rudders straight ahead by lashing the handle of the emergency tiller with some lines on each side (starboard line was short, port much longer because of width of boat) firmly tied to the wing nuts of the side port holes.
Later replaced the old original copper hydraulic lines with plastic hydraulic lines because I could feed from port engine room back to the stern around bends. I was dubious about plastic pressure lines but so far worked out fine and it has now been a long time. Used mil spec red hydraulic fluid to refill and pressurize the system. Works better even in freezing conditions without getting thick and red color helps to identify steering leaks.
I don't precisely recall the rest of that day but I believe my icemaker was hard pressed to keep up following our landing.
