Locking down the keel on a 26

[sailbob2]

Here's a thought starter - In heavy seas my keel tends to jerk up and down, in fact, I broke a keel pendant (cable) during a storm. Has anyone given any thought to locking down their keel on a 26' ? And if so how would you go about doing it? As my slip is shallow (4ft) it would have to be unlock able from the inside.

[amayotte]

I was wondering the exact same and I've never found a pin hole for it. I think a person would have to make one with a hole through the keel locker.

[sauerleigh]

My Ensenada 20 used a large nylon bolt passing through the top of the CB trunk, through a hole in the swing keel. As I recall, at rest, the location was above the waterline and while underway some water worked its way through the holes, but nothing alarming even in rough conditions. The only time I sheared the thing was when I forgot to remove it before raising the swing keel.
The c26 is a different animal though, the top of the keel will be well below the waterline when completely lowered. I'd given this situation a little thought but I've not come up with a reliable solution yet.

[hotdot]

I have put some thought into this same predicament although I have been in some "uncomfortable weather" I have never had the c/b jerk or slam vertical or horizontal in the c/b trunk. Some years ago I installed a 2" bronze threaded thru hull with cap in the top forward end of the c/b well as a way to hose and clean-out the upper part of the c/b trunk when the boat was on the trailer. Long story short, when the boat sits level in calm water the top of the c/b trunk is about 2-3 inches above the water level so I am able to remove the cap and flush or carefully push-scrape-remove debris from the top of the c/b and trunk while sitting at anchor if necessary. Although I had done the calculations and measured many times it still took quite a few alcoholic beverages before I was brave enough to remove the cap for the first time!
A possible method of securing the c/b in the down position is illustrated in the book "Best of sail Magazine's-Things That Work" pg 117. quote "Boat designer Roberto Hosmann of Buenos Aries, Argentina...sketches a centerboard pushing mechanism that can be retrofitted to many centerboard trunk designs." Basically he permanently installed a threaded tube into the top of the c/b well that a threaded push rod screws into. When the board is down I could envision screwing the threaded rod completely in to secure the c/b in the down position. The potential drawbacks to this idea are many, not the least of which serious damage to the mechanism and c/b well if you were to run aground and jam or bend the threaded rod inside the c/b well.
If you were VERY careful this would be one possible solution to the problem.

[LeatherneckPA]

Warning: Pure rookie about to ask a dumb question

Why would one want to lock the swing-keel down? What significant or highly probably danger does it pose in it's free-swinging state? What significant benefit can one expect from doing so?

[Mario G]

Mike the set up your C-22 has doesn't lock it down it just puts pressure on the port side of the keel from a nylon rod, that seem to works great on the C-22's. Why not have the same for the C-26's ?

I can post pictures of the assembly apart. (I have a complete spare) it if would help?

[tgentry]

Leatherneck,
First, let me say that there are thousands of swing keel boats operating without any mishaps, so this is not a major worry, but something all of us keep in the back of our mind.

When the boat porpoises on big waves the swing keel can... well... swing. Besides jerking the boat around it can, as mentioned, break the pendant (the cable that hauls it up).

In the unlikely event that the boat is rolled over by a wave, the keel would probably come smashing home, quite possibly holing the boat.

Since the swing keel is completely outside the hull in a C-26 I don't see any way to lock it down that wouldn't be at least semi-permanent, requiring diving to convert back to swing.

I believe in conditions that cause swing keel issues our best practice may be retract the keel and sail with just the stub keel.

[Windward]

On the C26 the swing keel is designed to wedge tightly against the back of the keel trunk. I've seen it do this so effectively that it snaps the pennant when one tries to retract it.

The advantage I can think of to being able to totally lock-down the C26 keel would be if you find yourself well beyond a a full knockdown. Having about 900 lbs of keel swing back into the boat with a vengeance would not be helpful, and it that did not hole your boat then having it swing the other way when you came back up almost surely remove the back of the keel housing, possibly snapping the keel pin and dropping the keel just afterward.

Whatever mechanism one would employ to lock the keel down, it would need to resist about 900 motivated pounds from the short end of the lever arm. In a collision with an obstruction I suppose it could result in bending the keel pin.

I've been knocked close to 90deg before, and the keel was the least of my concerns just then. Had the keel been retracted, though, I'm not sure I would not have gone further, or possibly been rolled on the face of the wave.

If anyone decides to remove the C26b keel shoes to inspect the pin, please please please take good pics and notes. I want to do this on Windward, but visions of the many bolts I snapped on my old XJ swim through my head, and thus far I've well enough alone.

[anotherfng]

I apologize up front if this is a stupid idea, but couldnt get it out of my head!! My redneck engineering mind is working over time. The idea of the swing keel is the only part of my c26 that really has me concerned, because of the inertia it will have if it does get bounced around, and i dont want to be limited to lakes, and windless days on the ocean. What if you were to design a moveable (or removeable) brace that came down from the back of the swing keel trunk at an angle approx. 45 degrees and butted up against the keel well below the pivot point and locked into place??? One could even probably design a way to attach some sort of mechanism to crank the support to and from the keel to lock it in place. I would think that a brace with some sort of shock absorbing capability would be best. Once again if this is a dumb idea i apologize. Tom

[Alanhod]

[tgentry]

First, let me reiterate that the chances of getting rolled completely over are a slim. This really isn't a deal breaker for the swing keel design. I think probably more trailer keel boats have been sold with this arrangement than any other.

The type of angled braces you describe would add drag. I'm not sure how significant it would be. If you faired it into a foil shape it might not be bad, but of course that would take more room. Perhaps a foil shaped brace that is manually put in place for ocean passages would be the best option if you feel you need it.

I'm not sure how long pneumatic or hydraulic rams would last under water, especially salt water.

[anotherfng]

Good points! I agree about the slim probability of rolling, but i know it can get really rough out there! I'm more concerned about the keel just bouncing up and down due to rough seas. I like the idea of the removeable foil shaped brace that could be installed for ocean passages. I agree that that would probably be the only time it might be needed. Im in the process of overhauling my boat so i might seriously try to figure something out while its on the hard, so ill take lots of pics if i do and ask you guys lots of questions!

[Jmckamey]

I too have given some thought about a keel lock. How about a pin thru the keel trunk and keel above the water line that can be accessed thru a water tight plug from the cabin. Then use a pin made of wood or a soft metal that would hold the keel in place yet sheer in case of a grounding.

[sailbob2]

Really great ideas guys some real possibilities. I'm thinking. The ability to lock the keel down is an issue for me because here on the Great Lakes storms come up real fast and can generate waves steep enough to cause my keel to bounce, again, I lost a keel pendant once due to this. I kinda like the idea of a keel (lock down) pin through the trunk. Don't know if it's practical yet but will research it. Also making it out of soft metal or something like that seems to have some merit. Thanks guys keep them coming.

[Windward]

A lot of this is hypothetically possible, but without impact there's just no way my C26 keel is going to bounce once it's in the full down position as long as the boat's at 90 degrees of heel or less. The keel is designed to wedge, hard, against the aft end of the keel trunk, and once it's there it is not easy to move.

Windward's been taken down to roughly horizontal on the face of a 9 footer, has spent time in short, nasty, steep 4-6 footers and has gotten bounced enough running an inlet that my 250 lb buddy who was rummaging in the cabin literally went airborne into the vberth, and the keel never budged. If your keel's unstable in conditions like that, there's something wrong. The ONLY time I'd be concerned about the keel going mobile once it's fully down is if I dipped the mast. It's not inconceivable, but not likely.

I'd worry about the barn-door companionway hatch, the hull-deck joint and the laughable interior bulkheads, along with the rigging, before I considered doing anything significant to reconfigure the keel. Those could all cause you grief in right-side-up conditions.

For extra insurance, grab a short-dated liferaft for $1200 or so at www.plastimousa.com... new and fully functional, just needs a repack in the next couple of years.

If you are still nervous about the potential, you could disassemble and seriously reinforce the swing keel trunk, upsize the pennant to at least 1/4" cable, and maybe upsize the pivot pin. Reinforcing the trunk and upsizing the pennant are actually a good bet in normal use, since it's fairly common to do damage when you force the keel up in a sudden grounding or impact with a submerged object, or if the keel pennant snaps while the keel's partially raised.

While you're at it, you could drill through the aft end of the keel trunk right into the swing keel, drop the keel, install some sort of threaded fitting in the aft end of the trunk and screw a big ol' stainless bolt in (lots of anti-seize, please). When you're in skinny water, yank the bolt quickly and thread in a plug. If you hit something hard while the bolt's in, though, it would very likely bend enough that you'll have a fixed keel.

Any spade rudder is vulnerable in truly sick conditions. If you are in serious "be prepared" mode, keep a big wooden plug near the rudder through hull. Mount a pair of gudgeons on the transom and set up an emergency rudder with the pintles pre-attached. Maybe rebuild the door to the head so it can serve double duty?

Dave and Jaja Martin (and eventually two of their kids) circumnavigated in a Cal 25. True, a fixed keel boat, and after his trip to the East Coast from California Dave dismantled the boat and rebuilt it, but no more seaworthy at the outset than the C26.

If you really want go bomb-resistant into big water, a fixed keel's the best route. Even then, bigger and sturdier fixed keel boats than the C26 get rolled and holed, and West Wight Potters make it to Hawaii. I'd love to reconstruct a fixed keel C26, using what little I've learned, but that would be a heart decision, not a head one. It would be faster, no more expensive and much less frustrating just to grab something like a Dana 24 and move on.

[sauerleigh]

I agree with Jeff, and in my opinion, the c26 has other issues more important then worrying about turning turtle and the possibility of the swing keel sliding back into the trunk. I admit, I haven't even put my boat in the water yet, the hull/deck joint, the mussy compression post and the afterthought chain plate setup concern me more. I have no plans to go offshore with my boat even when completed and the experiences Jeff mentioned are available to me right here on Erie.

[tgentry]

If Jeff can't break it, the rest of probably won't!

With all it's "problems" I still think the C-26 is one of the best trailer launchable boats out there.

[tgentry]

BTW, since Jeff mentioned a life raft...

I was just looking Defender, and they have brand new zodiac 4 man life rafts for $1239.

[Chrysler20%26]

Thanks Jeff, I will go with the More Wind Less Sail, Less Sail Less Keel. My 26 is a day sailer just the way it came. I think it will do me good to keep the keel up.

[Windward]

When motoring I usually pick up at least 1/4 knot with the keel up, but when my keel's full up it does shift around while underway. I upsized the pennant, so feel more secure about the moving about, but if/when I get around to dropping the keel I will think about shimming the interior of the trunk to quiet the keel.