Cosmetic or serious?

[sea_casper]

Has anyone had this happen?

While touching up bottom of my H26 I noticed cracking and missing fiberglass along the port mounting point of centerboard. One piece cracked off as I probed. See attached pictures.

Is this cosmetic damage, or something more serious?

What could have caused this deterioration?

 

[Charisma]

Either way I think it needs to be addressed, Since you have the boat out of the water why not just fix it now. Chris

 

[soling42]

Imagine the leverage at that very point each time the wind blows and then magnify it if the boat nicks the bottom while heeled over. I agree with Charisma, I'd think it'd be time to drop the CB bracket and inspect/repair the damage. Better replace the pin/ bushings and line while you have it up. I'm doing it to my '04 260 this summer while it's out too. You should find plenty of input from the knowledge base here or from a search.

I always say that the best place to breakdown before having an on-water calamity is in the shop. Glad you saw it when you did. M&K

 

[sea_casper]

I agree it should be fixed now, it's a bummer, the boat was to go in tomorrow, I'm already a month late due to other priorities. My dock looks lonely.

 

[sea_casper]

Expensive Fiberglass Repair

3K repair estimate is the result, the outer fiberglass seems thin in the centerboard well area, especially considering the side forces there. Searching the archives resulted in no information for this repair.

The repair guy wants to open hole in bottom of hull to access area inside in order to reinforce area so it won't happen again. He also wants to do the same on the other side. To do it from inside the boat would entail removing the sole, which would be messy.

Has anyone had this type of repair done?
Has anyone any other strategies for doing this repair?

 

[Charisma]

sea-casper, since the boat is a 98, why not just fix it from the Outside, reinforce it as best you can, paint it, and then go and enjoy the rest of the season. If it is still a problem at the end of the season, then address it then. it seems to me that attacking this from the inside seems a little excessive, and unless you keep the boat for an extended period of time, not worth the expense. Not to mention you will not get the money out when you do finally sell her. Just my 2cent worth

 

[kloudie1]

Charisma I think has a great idea.. I would pull the centerboard and look better at what ya got.. Are those shims between the board and the slot? What are they made of? Once ya get the board and shims out, it will be a lot easier to work it and ya may be able to work it all from the outside.. Good luck with it

 

[sea_casper]

Charisma I think has a great idea.. I would pull the centerboard and look better at what ya got.. Are those shims between the board and the slot? What are they made of? Once ya get the board and shims out, it will be a lot easier to work it and ya may be able to work it all from the outside.. Good luck with it

The centerboard has been pulled, it is difficult to cut out the damaged part because of the narrowness off the well. Further, you can't build it up from the outside or the centerboard saddle won't fit in the well.

 

[sea_casper]

sea-casper, since the boat is a 98, why not just fix it from the Outside, reinforce it as best you can, paint it, and then go and enjoy the rest of the season. If it is still a problem at the end of the season, then address it then. it seems to me that attacking this from the inside seems a little excessive, and unless you keep the boat for an extended period of time, not worth the expense. Not to mention you will not get the money out when you do finally sell her. Just my 2cent worth

True, you never get your money back, especially if you buy a boat new and don't keep it for a long time, I am fortunate that my annual dockage expenses are low compared to people who have to pay a marina annually. I have a personality flaw that prevents me from doing an half-a*** job, so in the near future if I sell the boat, it will be to the benefit of the buyer, but what goes around comes around.