Any gaps, cracks or bubbles were cleaned out, sanded and got a few more pieces of glass, then skim coated with epoxy and filler, sanded again until (generally) fair.
@!%%$#&*! Chainplate rant...
Of all the projects so far, the placement of the chainplates has been the biggest challenge. Not that it was difficult to remove the old set up and build the knees but it was really hard to decide what the best design was (for this boat). Initially when I got the boat, the chainplates were hung inside long tubes built into the lay-up of the hull. They were then bolted from the inside and had backing plates on the outside. Something I don't think you see too much. They seem to be fairly stout and have held up for the last 30 years. There was some hairline cracks noticeable outside the boat in the gel coat suggesting some hard spots and that the pressure of the rigging was not spread evenly throughout the hull. I don’t think that there ever a chance of failure but there were some small cracks just the same.
To remove and inspect the plates I had to cut them free from the glass. The Stainless plates looked questionable. There was clearly some water in there over the years because the bolts were wasted and the plates them selves were discolored and had small marks of corrosion where water had sat. After reading about the shoddy metal smithing skills of Cheoy Lee early years, I decided to just replace the plates. But I couldn't figure out what the best way to reinstall them. This for some reason more than most projects was a real hang up. I couldn't’t decide to put them on knees which is the popular method now or to lay them on the outside of the hull which is a more traditional way to do it. The standard arguments seem to be that you cant sheet your head sail in as far with chainplates on the outside of your hull and therefore cant head up as close to the wind. Also they can leak when heeled over. Placing them on knees which I see on a lot of boats seemed right except that while the majority of the stress is on the hull because of the glass tabbing, there is also the possibility of some stress being carried by the hull to deck joint area. This is fine on a boat that is an all plastic boat and the hull and deck are glassed together such as the Flyers made from 1967 on. This boat is a real transition between all wood and the all glass version of the boat. On the 65’s are basically a wood cabin house and deck just sitting on a glass hull with a joint that is questionable at best. On my boat, there's no glass connecting the top of the boat to the bottom and parts of the deck to hull joint were rotted so bad I had to replace them. My worry was that some of the stress carried by the knees would be transferred to the underside of the deck and lift it up.
Because of this I wondered if the best thing was to just tear out the knees I already started putting in with thickened epoxy. More than once I decided that the safest thing to do would be to admit I made a mistake by using the knees and just stick the chainplates outside the boat where I could be sure they would be fine. Who cares about losing a couple degrees into the wind as long as you can be sure the rig wont fail?
These were my thoughts until I glassed the knees in. Now looking at them they look as strong as anything else I could have done. I also glassed in the inside deck to hull joint which adds even more additional security/strength.
To remove and inspect the plates I had to cut them free from the glass. The Stainless plates looked questionable. There was clearly some water in there over the years because the bolts were wasted and the plates them selves were discolored and had small marks of corrosion where water had sat. After reading about the shoddy metal smithing skills of Cheoy Lee early years, I decided to just replace the plates. But I couldn't figure out what the best way to reinstall them. This for some reason more than most projects was a real hang up. I couldn't’t decide to put them on knees which is the popular method now or to lay them on the outside of the hull which is a more traditional way to do it. The standard arguments seem to be that you cant sheet your head sail in as far with chainplates on the outside of your hull and therefore cant head up as close to the wind. Also they can leak when heeled over. Placing them on knees which I see on a lot of boats seemed right except that while the majority of the stress is on the hull because of the glass tabbing, there is also the possibility of some stress being carried by the hull to deck joint area. This is fine on a boat that is an all plastic boat and the hull and deck are glassed together such as the Flyers made from 1967 on. This boat is a real transition between all wood and the all glass version of the boat. On the 65’s are basically a wood cabin house and deck just sitting on a glass hull with a joint that is questionable at best. On my boat, there's no glass connecting the top of the boat to the bottom and parts of the deck to hull joint were rotted so bad I had to replace them. My worry was that some of the stress carried by the knees would be transferred to the underside of the deck and lift it up.
Because of this I wondered if the best thing was to just tear out the knees I already started putting in with thickened epoxy. More than once I decided that the safest thing to do would be to admit I made a mistake by using the knees and just stick the chainplates outside the boat where I could be sure they would be fine. Who cares about losing a couple degrees into the wind as long as you can be sure the rig wont fail?
These were my thoughts until I glassed the knees in. Now looking at them they look as strong as anything else I could have done. I also glassed in the inside deck to hull joint which adds even more additional security/strength.
The deciding factor was thinking ahead to the finishing of the deck and realizing that when I take off the rub rail, add another 1/2 inch thick layer of marine ply covered by two layers of glass and cloth (three were the hardware will go) and that this glass will be carried down and over the deck to hull joint on the outside, essentially making the outside hull and the topside deck one large continuous piece. This took away any concerns I had regarding the strength of the chainplates set up.
On to painting and sanding...
No comments:
Post a Comment