This years project(S)!

[dennyzen]

The Lake God would let me put my boat in on April 1, but I have committed myself to a project by taking my mast down.

Primarily, I did this to remove a couple of small blocks and lines that I put on to have "faux" lazyjacks. Well, they worked "faux" as well--hanging up my halyards and otherwise not working. Didn't really need them, but thought they were cool. They were a bother, so now they are off.

Next, I will replace the spider web encrusted wind vane. Oh, and there is the antenna wire connecter where the truck watch swivel crimped it and . . . and . . .

As usual, the project becomes plural very quickly. However, I want to fix the things that I can while the mast is down, but I want to get on the water before summer is too far gone (Memorial Day? June 1? Certainly not as late as the 4th of July!

Not like last time--My first major project was a blister repair on the hull and bottom--18 months off the water in 2006-07--sanding down to gelcoat thru many layers (including a barrier coat), dremelling a very bad bondo 20 year old repair of blisters and a similar number of new ones (scores if not hundreds), applying epoxy paste and then reapplying an epoxy barrier and bottom paint--sanding between all tasks.
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Here is my project(S) list for real:
A. replace the lighting and the radio wire up inside the mast. (damn squirrels!)

B. Replace the standing rigging.
Can't tell if it has ever been done, one wire has a couple of "meathook" frays and the others have kinks or bends from how it caught in prior mast raisings or how was stored with the mast down at one time or another.

C. Replace (with proper rebedding) the shroud chainplates (and the midship stantions). Bent turnbucles and chainplate on the starboard side goes along with the kinks,

D. Repair the small crack in the shell liner immediately below the starboard bulkhead that the bent chainplate ties into that probably may be related to C, above.

E. If I am replacing the forestay, then if I ever want to have a furling jib, now is the time.

F. Fix some crazing and a small hole on the mast step (maybe not as much as ronc98 had last year) and add 69Shark's improvement of the mast step hinge.

G. Clean, polish/wax the mast itself.

Each item leads to several related questions that I'll throw in as separate topics as I go along.

So here's Question No. 1.

1. Are there any other mast improvements and maintenence items that I should be thinking of while I have the mast down?

(I don't plan on taking it down for another 3-5 years)?


AND for a practical matter---

2. Rebedding the chainplate and some stantions--not only are these likely through the core in the fiberglass of the deck, they are also thru the fiberglass liner.

QuestionNo. 2: If I overdrill and clean out the core a bit wider than the actual hole (per Casey), tape the bottom of the hole from inside AND then put a little resin to seal the area to drain it out and repack it with epoxy paste before the final drill--won't this resin run in the small gap between the deck and the liner to heaven knows where? Probably to under the toe rail and drip from the "ceiling" above the "shelves". I might test it with acetone this afternoon. This evening I will tape the top of the holes because of rain in the forecast.

Casey's other book suggests an elegant solution--to do cutout of the liner, use longer bolts with spacers and then add a backing plate to cover the cutout. It may the only good technique--more parts and time. The stantions had only washers and chainplates had the angle aluminum brace.

A Q & A at boatsUS from him suggested using a ball of epoxy paste to stop up the hole at the underskin of the deck, above the liner--but that doesn't sound like you drain it. --any one have any good ideas from actual experience?

Am I having fun yet?

[thepartydog]

For question 2:

There is a gap between the liner/core and the hull along the sides. You could have a little drippage, but I injected epoxy into the side decks, and didn't have any leak onto the shelves. I also re cored 4 sections of the side deck, two of them being at the base of the stanchions, and didn't have any dripping there either. If you are worried about having epoxy drain thru that gap and onto the shelves, use tape to cover the gap around where you are working.

Darin

[Gus]

the gap between the liner and the deck is honeycomb. It'll take a lot of epoxy to fill that area. One of my next repairs will be to cut the liner, remove the crushed honeycomb, and install a piece of marine plywood.

[ronc98]

I played around with injecting a few different things in my soft deck. I first used thinned epoxy to try and give some structure to what was damaged. After I did that I drilled a series of holes about 3 inch apart across the whole section and injected in caned foam. Not the window foam but the other stuff that expands more. You have to leave the holes open on the top while it expands because if you do not it will bow the top. It worked pretty good and eliminated the soft spots. For the chain plate sections I pulled the top off fixed it the correct way. The chain plates take ALL the abuse since they are not anchored down to anything other then the deck.

I had huge issues with inside deck junction. Be very careful or you will have a huge mess. I had a huge one.

[CaptainScott]

Hey dennyzen
Sounds like you will be busy this spring!

Scott

[sailbob]

Dennyzen;
What I did for my Chrysler 26 while working to fill the oversized holes for rebeding my stantions. I used epoxy thickeded to a paste and used a putty knife to push it into the holes that I had backed with tape. I also used tape around the topside hole so I wouldn't get thickend epoxy all over the deck. Seemed to work well for me. The epoxy was thick enough not run down the inner space very far and gave me a fair epoxyed area. Hope this helps
Bob