26S Centerboard uphaul

Jan 8, 2015
360
MacGregor 26S, Goman Express 30 Kerr Reservoir
I managed to pull the cable with the bolt still attached out through the back of my centerboard.
Centerboard Cable.jpg
The boat has been out of the water for over a year. Can I just cram the cable back through the separation, fill the split with epoxy and clamp it together until it dries? What I am wondering is if I should reseal anywhere to prevent water intrusion into the interior of the board. I vagely recall reading that this board is solid fiberglass so if that is true, would water be a concern? I am somewhat confuesed as to why it split so cleanly if it was solid fiberglass.
 

MccNeo

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May 11, 2014
55
MacGregor 26S Evans
What I understand you to describe is the cable pulled through the trailing edge of the center board. I do not believe a simple fiberglass patch would be enough. However, embedding a piece of stainless steel rod several lunches long buried beneath the fiberglass should provide adequate reinforcement. You could easily make a suitable rod from a bolt cut to length.

There are a couple of good posts about replacing the center boards up haul wire/line elsewhere in the forum. Some have good narrations and pictures of the wire attachment at the trailing edge of the centerboard. Take a look.

The center board control line penetrates the hull through what I would refer to as a volcano tube that is fiberglassed into the hull to a height of about a foot under the galley sink. Should the volcano tube become cracked or broken, you have an in-isolable through-hull leak. The afformentioned previous replacement threads should also show images of the volcano tube.
 
Jan 8, 2015
360
MacGregor 26S, Goman Express 30 Kerr Reservoir
What I understand you to describe is the cable pulled through the trailing edge of the center board. I do not believe a simple fiberglass patch would be enough. However, embedding a piece of stainless steel rod several lunches long buried beneath the fiberglass should provide adequate reinforcement. You could easily make a suitable rod from a bolt cut to length.
MccNeo, I'm not quite sure I understand how you are describing to embed the piece of SS rod into the centerboard. I have been contemplating inserting a short section of 1 1/4" diameter SS tubing into the hole that would more securly hold the bolt on the end of the uphaul line.

 
May 18, 2017
52
MacGregor 26S Piscataqua
We encountered the same problem on Eclipse. However for us the cable never came completely out. I was able to pull it back down and into it’s proper place. Then we jammed water-cured epoxy in the slot, and put four stainless bolts with large washers through. It ain’t the prettiest repair, but it’s still working after more than two months of sailing/motoring this summer.
Eclipses-odyssey.blogspot.com
 
Jan 8, 2015
360
MacGregor 26S, Goman Express 30 Kerr Reservoir
I sailed the boat for several months after the incident before I put it back on the trailer. I am wondering if I should try to clean the surfaces with a file or sand paper before I apply the epoxy? Also, could the epoxy adhere to the fiber glass enough without adding the bolts?
 
May 18, 2017
52
MacGregor 26S Piscataqua
I would not trust only the adhesion of epoxy to old fiberglass. Instead of bolts you could set rivets (real rivets, not ‘pop rivets).