The board under my mast (inside the cabin) has the veneer delaminating. There is no moisture or water in the boat. Anybody ever seen this happen with age? I'm going to have to pull the veneer down to assess and it's going to be ugly. I hate to so that if it is a typical problem.
Drumbeater,
I saw your post today while I was searching for info on holding tanks in a P26. I know it's old, but just in case you didn't get any other info...
I noticed the same thing on my P26 AFTER purchasing it, unfortunately. It's a problem, and you should investigate it immediately. That board is a (THE?) major component in supporting your mast. Take a thin screwdriver and press it into areas around where the veneer is delaminating, especially around the two carriage bolts. On mine, the screwdriver sank right in up to the hilt with very little pressure; I had major rot in that beam. I immediately took the mast down and went to work on the repair. It's really NOT that bad.. I had a lot of help and encouragement via folks on various forums.
Once the mast is down, here's what you need to do..
1. Remove the bolts, nuts, and screws holding the compression posts in place (the posts on either side of that beam). Some are screwed into the plywood bulkheads. The bolts are accessed inside the lockers.
2. Remove the two posts. A rubber mallet is your friend. There should be some wedges around the base of the port post. If there aren't, that's another part of the problem. If they're there, knock'em out before trying to knock out the post. Of course, make sure you didn't miss any screws or bolts first.
3. Undo the two big nuts holding the mast step onto the two big carriage bolts. Depending upon who and how these were mounted, at this point the cross beam will loosen and fall off easily (have a helper inside the boat), or there'll be some sealant around the bolts holding the beam up. Scrape, dig a little... it'll come off.
4. Using your old crossbeam as a pattern, fabricate (or have fabricated) a new crossbeam. I was fortunate enough to have an experienced woodworker craft mine for me. Use laminated layers of solid white oak or marine plywood. If you use plywood, SEAL IT with epoxy. I sealed the top layer of mine, which was white oak, with epoxy, and put 10 coats of varnish on the visible surfaces.
5. If your compression posts are in good shape, you can reuse them. Mine were rotted around the bottom, so I put in new ones. Again, I used white oak, sealed the tops and bottoms with epoxy, and put on 10 coats of varnish. Probably overkill, but it looks great and should last longer than I will.
6. If your crossbeam was in as bad shape as mine was and/or you were missing the wedges, the hardware you removed is probably bent and ruined. I used all new stainless hardware to put everything back together.
7. Drill the holes for the carriage bolts in the crossbeam and the deck oversize. Fill them with thickened epoxy. Let'em cure over night. Put the beam in place with the posts, then redrill the holes with the correct size bit for your carriage bolts. THIS IS IMPORTANT. This'll prevent the situation from reoccurring.
8. You probably have another whole or two in your mast step and deck for wiring. Line that hole(s) with epoxy and redrill, too.
9. Run your wires through the holes, make sure the align with the carved out channels in your crossbeam (you'll see what I mean when you take the old one down). Fill the holes with your sealant of choice (NOT silicone. I used 4200). Put a layer of sealant on the maststep, and attach the crossbeam through the deck and maststep with the carriage bolts and nuts.
10. I attacked a "gooseneck" of about 16" of bicycle innertubing around the wires as they exited the deck and secured the bottom of the innertube around a short riser coming off my maststep. I then bend the wires and innertube back down upon itself and lightly ziptied it down. Now, it is impossible for ANY water to run along the wiring to the hole in the deck.
11. Put wedges at the bottom of the port compression post between the fiberglass tab it rests on and the keel plate, and between the post and the tab too if necessary. You do NOT want any play or unsupported weight there.
12. Redrill any holes necessary and put all of your screws and bolts in.
That's about it. To be honest, most of it was kind of fun and not that difficult. The hardest parts for me were getting the new plywood bulkheads I made to fit perfectly and getting the wiring lined up in the channel in the crossbeam so the beam would lie flat without crushing the wires.
Something like that. Hope that helps, if you haven't already solved the issue.
Best wishes,
Barry
