What is under this unusual fiberglass in my P-42?

[Paul Cossman]

Hi Sean,
I notice that everyone who is talking about ballast and design are not Passage 42 owners. I have a 1991 model Hunter Passage 42, Hull #65. I would be shocked if your design and construction differed from mine. The bulb-wing keel is solid lead and weighs about 8,000 lbs. (7,900 if I remember correctly). I can't imagine that additional ballast is required, and I know of no P42 owners who have added any (other than the prior owner of your boat). It certainly is perplexing.

Before we started cruising with our P42, she was pretty light at just slightly over the design displacement of 24,000 lbs. Last time we hauled out she weighed 30,000 lbs. She has handled well at both weights, although she was faster when lighter. My feeling is that additional ballast isn't required, and certainly once you start adding things to the boat it makes up the difference.
With 4 tons at the keel, she's plenty steady with a good center of gravity.
Take care,
Paul

 

[Capt jgw]

Weight added to one side or end is called trimming ballast and is sometimes used in commercial vessels to get them to float at their marks. If this boats floats at her marks with the added lead in place, she must list somewhat without it. Somehow weight outside of what the designer intended has been added to the other side, and the trimming ballast has been added to even it out.

 

[Calif. Ted]

Sean, I'd screw that seat board back and think about it over the summer, it's the middle of June already. It's probably been there 20+ years without problem, how often do you get boarded or searched ?

 

[SG]

Make sure that the "trimming ballast" is tied down. Assume the boat was upside down and you don't wan to be banging the seat off. The fiberglass (as I recall) has been cut away. It apparently functioned as a line of defense if the ballast moved in some extreme knocking around?

 

[ice breaker]

If my boat went upside down, the loose lead would be that least of my worries!

 

[SG]

Have you ever dropped off the top of a wave and "shivered your timbers"?

You don't need to turned over to worry about loose stuff in the bilge that can hammer about. I remember Lake Superior sailing fondly, myself. (We used to drink the water out the lake. Takonite talings were farther north and west ;^))) ).

I remember on squall in the Apostle Islands in Lake Superior in a Morgan 38 which was the first "big" boat I sailed on. I recall falling off of waves that seemed about 6' tall (probably really not that big ;^))) ). If we had loose blocks of lead below the floor boards, it wouldn't have been good.

You can strap it down -- or simply block them in so they stay where they are supposed to.

 

[Zaya]

That's strange, we don't have this thing on our HP42. I would remove this and have boat original as it was made by Hunter. Unless you'll find out what was the reason PO made it. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

 

[Sean5306]

I want to thank everyone that contributed to this conversation. It was all very helpful and I seriously considered everyone's perspective/input. I'm planning to use a clear, heat moldable, plastic to "temporarily seal" the opening I created so it stays dry. Eventually I'd like to recover that space and replace the weight positioned there with a useful system of some sort.
I did take a more critical look for any "list" as she (my boat is named New Horizons) sits in the water. My wife and I did remove the washer/dryer that was previously in a closet also on the port side (long ago). We were living aboard and closet space was FAR more valuable than the washer/dryer. So, with removal of that weight I wondered if New Horizon leaned at all. Since I had just replaced the port water tank (the task that initiated this ENTIRE adventure), the tank was empty. So, with an empty port water tank there was perhaps a VERY slight list. It is not obvious from the helm, but if you view it from in front of the boat, it is subtle. I'm not sure if the water tank (though 700 lb of water) is off center enough to have much of an effect on the listing (at rest). I couldn't see a difference after I filled it. However, this all gave me pause to take out any trimming ballast on that same side.
It is RIDICULOUS how they secured this trimming ballast. I haven't called Hunter (yet) to inquire if this would have been completed by them. However, as I said before, given the quality of the fiberglassing, I can't imagine it being done by them. Regardless, it's in JUST the right place as trimming ballast. I just wish they would have just strapped it in. I'm inclined to believe they (whoever they were) didn't want some unknowing future owner (like me) to just remove it.
So, at some point I'll readjust what is providing that trim. For now, I'm leaving it secure and making it possible to easily observe (in case I'm boarded - because I plan to do much more cross-border sailing).
Thanks again!!!

 

[Sean5306]

In case anyone's curious. Here's my temporary solution. Used clear 1/8" acrylic sheet, dremel, heat gun and some caulk to re-waterproof it. These pictures show a little more clearly where this trim ballast "lives". It's a little easier to understand with the floors back in and (in the last picture) with the bench in place.

 

[pateco]

IIt's a little easier to understand with the floors back in and (in the last picture) with the bench in place.

I love seeing how much the sole faded compared to the spot under the table base. I wonder what mine looks like under the base.