Replacement keels

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R

Redemption

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Feb 9, 2011
21
Macgregor 24ft swing keel Inland Southern California
Before anyone starts in I did search this site and the mac site as well. I have come to an inevitable crossroads where it it time to assess the keel. Now I know that the pics etc etc mean less than nothing until I rip her open and see how badly the corrosion has affected the keel.

it is my strong belief and somewhat preparing myself for the worst case scenario that the ballast on this keel is going to be a loss. Im somewhat tempted to to do a number of things but above all else two things are very important to me.

1. I want the boat to be safe
2. I want to do this as right as is financially feasible

I do not want to Jerry rig a weird dagger board sort of band aid so that I can adapt in some weird and obscure part into the boat, we all know where our band aid lead these boats right into the situation my vessel is currently in

if it makes sense financially ill do the work and fab myself a keel but id rather not have to because that is a lot of work. What I would like to find is a replacement that a not crazy price I also do know that their hard to come by etc etc and if I hear one word about dumping her ill go insane. it isnt happening I love this boat and have very personal reasons for being attached to it.

so down to the meat and bones is there a company that sells one or does anyone know of a replacement? its a 1971 mac 24 footer swing keel or at least thats what we have narrowed her to. The pics are not the best bad angles and im positively beat after an entire day of shooting

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kenn

kenn

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Apr 18, 2009
1,271
CL Sandpiper 565 Toronto
Just a guess on my part, (cos our drop-keel is lead-filled fiberglass)... but if you can still extend the keel and it's not jammed in the trunk, then the chances are good that it can be removed , all rust blasted off then recoated or epoxied.

The hard part may be the space and hoisting gear required to get the keep out of the boat and support it for refinishing.
 
kloudie1

kloudie1

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Nov 6, 2006
10,095
Hunter 34 Mandeville Louisiana
Going to be tough to find a bolt-in replacement.. I agree with Ken.. it looks like some water has penetrated the fairing compound or glass around the keel and has caused the cast iron to corrode. The corrosiion product, rust, takes up a LOT more space than the metal it used to be .. so it swells up under the covering and breaks it apart. The iron is probably still in OK shape and as Ken says, can be removed, cleaned up and re-faired if desired.. If it freezes in your part of the world, it could have been freeze damage in addition to rust swelling..but probably all from a place where water got in and sat there for a long time before making its own drain place. Remove the keel, repair/replace the lifting cable and attachments.. clean the fairing material off the keel.. sandblast, repair as necessary, and coat with a good primer then re-fiberglass as desired.. Not too bad of a job.. Good Luck!
 
W

watercolors II

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Dec 23, 2008
771
Catalina 22 Central Penna.
Can the keel be removed?

The chances are that the metal keel is OK but the keel surface and finish needs to be redone.

The first question you’ll have to ask your self and then tell us, can the keel be removed?

The problem with many of the trailerable sailboats manufactured in the late 60’s and early 70’s was that the keel could not be removed or replaced, this was the downfall of many early production boats. The manufactures who realized their mistakes early on survived into the 80’s before production ceased for financial reasons. These early models, the keel pivot bolt was glassed into the hull so that the inside of the cabin had to be cut out to remove the bolt to drop the keel, which added to the cost and created interior cosmetic damage that could not be covered up.
 
E

Ed A

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Sep 27, 2008
333
Hunter 37c Tampa
I heard that mcgregger is still arround and does respond to this type thing. I think hes in california
 
R

Redemption

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Feb 9, 2011
21
Macgregor 24ft swing keel Inland Southern California
Thank you for your responses I am pretty certain that the keel is not jammed as the PO had the keel resting on the trailer support so its not been retracted all the way since long before I came into the picture. Early on I started taking out interior parts for repainting or reupholster and long ago found the keel bolt and lock area. those are luckily not hidden by fiberglass and the keel can be removed.

I had heard that such boats existed and was relieved to know that the bolts on mine are exposed. :dance: a replacement bolt kit was ordered fro BWYachts about 4 days ago and will be here soon. I have a lead on stands for the front of the boat for 150 ea from a boat disposal yard I know of but depending on what they look like I might have to knock around with the price some.

luckily I have ALL the equipment to do this job, including the sandblaster. but I do have a question regarding epoxy. I have read somewhere that is is better to use epoxy resin as opposed to the the current type because epoxy resin does not take on small amounts of water like the current does. Does anyone know anything about this?

yeah I am in California but Mac is closed until the end of spring break so tomorrow after classes I will be calling them. little chance of freeze damage but unlike most swing keels this boat has been all over. NY for one
 
Freedom77

Freedom77

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Jul 29, 2010
1,392
Macgregor 76 V-25 #928 Lake Mead, Nevada
My Venture 25 has a cast iron swing keel not covered in fiberglass. I had a V-222 which had the glass keel and over time the water got in and it split. Your V-24 hull is very similar to the V-25. Try contacting someone at the San Fernando Valley Yacht Club. I still have acquaintenances there, Dave Osborn or Steve Schiff in particular who are probably the resident experts on Ventures. All the swing keel Venture/Mac keels are removable by jacking up the boat, pulling out the trailer removing the pivot bolt and dropping the keel onto a cradle. Not as easy as I describe but I have done it twice to two different Ventures. Fair Winds and Full Sails...
 
R

Redemption

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Feb 9, 2011
21
Macgregor 24ft swing keel Inland Southern California
read your other post. I have no idea what the cost of cast iron is per pound. I have also been told they came both with and without fiberglass. would you say there is any benifit one way or another?
 
Freedom77

Freedom77

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Jul 29, 2010
1,392
Macgregor 76 V-25 #928 Lake Mead, Nevada
Redemption said:
read your other post. I have no idea what the cost of cast iron is per pound. I have also been told they came both with and without fiberglass. would you say there is any benifit one way or another?
Click to expand
You can paint cast iron with bottom paint and not worry about water getting into the glass and splitting it. My v-222 had the same problem and I had to drop the keel and reglass it. Wasn't suggesting you cast you own keel. As I mentioned contact Dave Osborn or Steve Schiff at the San Fernando Valley Yacht Club for some wisdom. Steve built his own boat and cast the keel out of lead. Lots of experience there.
 
R

Redemption

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Feb 9, 2011
21
Macgregor 24ft swing keel Inland Southern California
Ill do that, might be cool to cast my own keel, supposing the iron one is shot
 
MrUnix

MrUnix

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Mar 24, 2010
626
Hunter 23 Gainesville, FL
I did it on a little Venture 17 a long while back. Easiest way to drop the keel is to jack the boat up to get it off the trailer.. then winch the keel down until the bottom is resting on the ground (or a dolly). Once the cable is loose, you can just support the keel with some 2x4's and a floor jack, remove the pivot bolt and drop it down.

Mine looked just like yours, although a bit lighter :) I took it down to as bare metal as I could with a few wire brushes in a drill, getting rid of any rust or corrosion I could find. Then treated it multiple times with phosphoric acid to ensure all the rust was gone. By that point, it no longer resembled anything slightly aerodynamic, so I built it back up with epoxy until it did. After that, multiple coats of 2 part epoxy paint (color coordinated to match the baby blue hull :) ) and she was good to go. Looked better than brand new.

Even sailing exclusively in salt water, that keel was still in perfect shape (well, with a few dings here and there.. but no rust) 5 years later when it got trashed in Hurricane Andrew and I sold the boat for $100 as junk. Also, as suggested, it's a good idea to go ahead and get a new pivot bolt/bushings and cable hardware, and don't forget to inspect the cable to see if it needs replacing as well.

Cheers,
Brad
 
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