Given sufficient force, anything fails - but the steering gear is typically fine even after the rudder has fallen off; replace bearings, new rudder stock, new r

Given sufficient force, anything fails - but the steering gear is typically fine even after the rudder has fallen off; replace bearings, new rudder stock, new rudder, off you go. (Or, as the C/E on a vessel I attended once put it - there are two machines on this vessel which CAN NOT FAIL. The steering gear and this one. (As he poured me a coffee from the engine control room Moccamaster...)