S2 9.2 head door sticking - compression post issue?

[Johninerie]

I am looking at buying a 1983 S2 9.2A and I noticed the head door was sticking slightly in frame Is there an easy way to see if the support under compression is rotting. There are not outward signs of water infiltration on the post or sole local to post. I did see some stress cracks in mast step area and a crack in the corner adjacent to the anti skid that looks like a corner of an embedded plate in deck. I have attached a photo of this. Area seems solid. I’ll bring to back to look at boat again. Interior seems to be in very good shape with no obvious water damage on sole and woodwork. Is there a way to inspect the post support short of cutting an access hole in sole? Would the rot be visible from the transducer area? Any help would be appreciated.

Also an help on inspecting the bulkheads near chainplates. I don't see any water marking or darking on the material around the chain plates - what the best way to see if there is underlying rot?

John

58DB164A-45C2-4DEF-AD1F-6DC4C97141E8

• Johninerie
• Apr 25, 2019
• 5

Mast step area

 

[RitSim]

I am not totally familiar with this interior, but had a Catalina 30 with this issue. On that boat the mast compression post was just aft of the head door and the compression post support was forward of the bilge behind a layer of fiberglass. My surveyor drilled a small hole near the top of the bilge and pulled out wet wood on the drill. I think its fair to assume that the door frame and door matchup was proper when new. So if the door frame has dropped toward the compression post, then I think you need to look further. BTW - I used the condition as a negotiating point and replaced the compression post support in a long day. Good luck

 

[Mark Maulden]

You are not the first to raise this issue. The 9.2 seems to be problematic in this area. The stress cracks would give me some cause for concern. Also the deck penetration that the wiring goes through is also suspect to let water into the compression post wrap. I think there is an access area next to the post that has transducers. You could pick up a cheap borescope from Harbor Freight or online and probe around with that. Further aft centerline, is there an access hatch in the sole? You can put a camera down there and photograph looking fwd under the sole. I’m basing this on my 11.0a. Just some places to start...Another thought, is the boat on the hard or floating?

 

[Johninerie]

It’s on the hard currently. Is this something that would be fixable if it was floating? Having boat stay on the hard will not be easy if I buy at as the marina I would use does not have storage during the season as they use parking lots for winter storage that have to cleared of boats shortly. Willing to repair myself but not exactly sure if this is a difficult or straightforward - especially if the deck is involved.

 

[LeeandRick]

One way to check around the mast area is with a short straight edge (machinist ruler) . The plate will bow if you get much rot under the mast. Hairline cracks like those in the picture can occur after years of the jib (headstay) rocking the mast forward in a blow. If the problem is only under the mast it's not a hard repair if you can get the mast down.

You can "sort of" check for rot at the chainplates by pulling a bolt. If the hole has elongated in the wood/FRP there may be a problem. If the bolts could be tightened a full turn of the nut there may be a problem.

 

[Mark Maulden]

Is the door and frame scuffed up? Indicating this has been going on for some time. If no scuffing, its quite possible it will work correctly in the water. Sometimes on the hard, can distort things a bit...

 

[Johninerie]

Thanks for all the feedback

 

[Baytrek]

I am looking at a 1976 S2 9.2 that appears to have a compression post problem. How difficult was it to repair?

 

[jmf]

I have an 82 S2 9.2C. I thought I had a compression post issue and when I had the mast pulled and removed the compression post I found that the problem was the plywood floor that the post sat on was completely compressed. The stringer under the plywood on the S2 was made of 3 pieces of solid teak laminated together and they were in good condition. I laminated them with multiple coats of epoxy for extra protection and then had a piece of aluminum cut and drilled in the center, (for the wire to pass through), that was the thickness of the plywood floor. I drilled and tapped the aluminum plate to match the screw holes in the compression post. The compression post now sits directly on the stringer and not on the plywood floor and the door to the head no longer rubs. I made that repair in 2012 and it has been fine. This was not hard to do or an expensive fix.

The only other recommendation I can make is to replace the mast an antenna wires with home runs to the deck while you have everything open.

Jim

 

[jayk_s2]

I have an 82 S2 9.2C. I thought I had a compression post issue and when I had the mast pulled and removed the compression post I found that the problem was the plywood floor that the post sat on was completely compressed. The stringer under the plywood on the S2 was made of 3 pieces of solid teak laminated together and they were in good condition. I laminated them with multiple coats of epoxy for extra protection and then had a piece of aluminum cut and drilled in the center, (for the wire to pass through), that was the thickness of the plywood floor. I drilled and tapped the aluminum plate to match the screw holes in the compression post. The compression post now sits directly on the stringer and not on the plywood floor and the door to the head no longer rubs. I made that repair in 2012 and it has been fine. This was not hard to do or an expensive fix.

The only other recommendation I can make is to replace the mast an antenna wires with home runs to the deck while you have everything open.

Jim

Hi Jim, do you happen to have any pictures of the area under the compression post and sole? I have the same problem with the sole being compressed underneath the post, I haven't opened it up yet to see what is going on underneath the sole. But from feeling around with my fingers it seems that the stringer may be rotten. The piece I can feel near the front of the post doesn't seem like it could ever have been structurally significant. It has an arch cut into it for the wires to pass through. And I think the wood of the arch and the sole have rotted. I'm curious if there is a block aft of the stringer that may not be rotted (yet). I'm away from my boat for a couple weeks and can only remember/imagine until I get back to it and cut up the sole to see what's really underneath it.

 

[jmf]

I did not take any pictures. If the stringers have rotted once the floor is open I think they would be somewhat easy to replace. In my boat the stringer was 3 pieces of teak laminated together. You do not need to open the entire floor. Once the compression post is removed open an area maybe twice as wide as the base of the post and then you can inspect everything.