Can the centerboard/keel of a Hunter 260 be removed while on the water?

Apr 25, 2018
1
Hunter 260 Club Nautico La Parguera
I was wondering if I could do some repairs the the centerboard while the boat is on the water. Is the bolt holding the keel above the water line? Thanks!
 

Kermit

.
Jul 31, 2010
5,657
AquaCat 12.5 17342 Wateree Lake, SC
Good question. I suppose it would be possible with SCUBA gear. The water would need to be clear, too. And I would think you would need another diver with you and one in the cabin and potentially another on deck. You might could do it with just one person onboard but it could get challenging. I’m sure @Crazy Dave Condon will have his thoughts. I say we won’t know for sure until you report back to us. Just be safe about it for sure. And welcome aboard! Oh, and figure on some water splashing into the cabin while the bolt is out.
 

Bosman

.
Oct 24, 2010
346
Solina 27 Wabamun, Alberta
Are you able to lay the boat on its side in shallow waters, similarly to what is done on this video? Perhaps this method might be easier to remove the centreboard from the boat than hiring a team of scuba divers.
 

Kermit

.
Jul 31, 2010
5,657
AquaCat 12.5 17342 Wateree Lake, SC
Are you able to lay the boat on its side in shallow waters, similarly to what is done on this video? Perhaps this method might be easier to remove the centreboard from the boat than hiring a team of scuba divers.
I have my doubts since the centerboard has to be removed and not just reattached. But who am I to say? (Plus it would be easier in English.)
 

Bosman

.
Oct 24, 2010
346
Solina 27 Wabamun, Alberta
Just throwing ideas for the brainstorming . Couldn't find similar video in English, but in essence it is self explanatory. With the boat on its side the access to the centreboard is easier than from underneath it.
 

Kermit

.
Jul 31, 2010
5,657
AquaCat 12.5 17342 Wateree Lake, SC
...Couldn't find similar video in English, but in essence it is self explanatory...
Sometimes my sense of humor might be a little too dry. Sorry about that.
 
Aug 1, 2011
3,972
Catalina 270 255 Wabamun. Welcome to the marina
too dry
Time to switch to a nice lager. :)
We used to do this stunt with the Mac, set the anchor and use the main halyard to a tree to roll it over to clean the bottom. While it was entertaining, it really didn't work that well, and wouldn't have been suitable for keel removal.
 
Jun 8, 2004
10,024
-na -NA Anywhere USA
To do that alone is unsafe and foolish. Probably it could be done but I think three extra folks doing this in shallow water as the board and housing weigh about 125. One would need to be in doing bolt with 1 1/8 socket, one would need to be holding messenger line long enough to drop to bottom and another diver helping. Other factors include merky water, depth, current and so on. Frankly it is not worth the risk as anything could go wrong.

Generally the top is above the water line but with one heavy person on board, not sure. The question is the height of the top of the bolt at same height of wingnut below last step to allow water in boat? Just so many variables but I personally would not do this just to save a buck
 
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Kermit

.
Jul 31, 2010
5,657
AquaCat 12.5 17342 Wateree Lake, SC
You could always build scaffolding under the boat to stand on.
That was meant as a joke but it did make me start thinking about how you would steady yourself to hoist the centerboard back into position.
 
Jul 31, 2017
47
Hunter 26 TBD
I am the proud new owner of a Hunter 26, and haven't had to do this yet but it was one of a few critical factors to understand when buying the boat. It appears that you can successfully bring the boat out on a trailer, jack up the trailer, insert a cradle or boat stands (be very very careful) and then lower the trailer. I also saw some people mention you could almost get by with just taking the air out of the tires and taking them off after the boat is cradled.

I was looking into alternatives because where I live there are no large boat marinas or sail boat shops that have a boat lift. SO it's either DIY or drive a few hundred miles. I heard one guy had a really sturdy barn, and he used the rafters to hold straps and hoisted the boat up, not that barn rafters are meant to do this, nor that i recommend it.

A temporary cheat, is to have a line you can throw under the front of the boat while holding on to both ends, and have two people walk backwards on each side of the boat until you hit the centerboard and then you can pull the centerboard up with the line and tie it off.
 
Nov 6, 2017
76
Catalina 30 5611 Stratford, Ct
I would not even attempt doing this in the water. Never mind the difficulty removing a large heavy object such as this you might get trapped under it when the weight of it overwhelms you. Remember humans can’t breath under water. Secondly, you could lose the boat. Thirdly even if you are able to do it, my experience is if the job is very difficult often time thing do not get done the way the should be. So, this could kill you, your boat could sink, and the job may not turn out as well as it could if you did the job on the hard.
 
May 14, 2016
5
Hunter H260 Winter Park, FL
H260 Remove and Replace Centerboard While in Water

I changed my centerboard uphaul line by dropping the centerboard while the boat was in the water and then reinstalling it with the new CB uphaul line attached. It was actually a fairly easy process if you have an area to work in that has a shallow gently sloping bottom with relatively good visibility. Mine was done in a Florida lake with a sandy bottom.

Materials:
12" long 3/4" diameter threaded rod (home depot). Weld a strong steel eye carefully on to one end so that you can still slide a 3/4" nut past the eye on to the threaded rod. (see Photo)
Cradle for the centerboard (see photo) Mine was constructed with 2 by 4's and 2 by 12's.
15' to 20' of line. We'll call it CB removal line (attaches to the eye on the threaded rod). I used a spare piece of Sta-set double braid.


This narrative only addresses removing and reinstalling the CB. If replacing the uphaul line follow the widely discussed process on the forums.....tracer line, etc.

To Remove
Need to be in roughly 4' to 4.5' of water at the CB for it to drop to the bottom and clear the hull. Less if you pump out the ballast tank. Wooden cradle isn't needed for this step.


The dinette table was lifted out of the way by cutting a short piece of 2" schedule 40 PVC in half lengthwise and clamping it to the compression post with hose clamps. (see photo)

Run a ratchet strap or straps around the boat at the aft end of the CB trunk to hold the CB firmly in place. I also stretched a tarp under the boat to catch the CB bracket pins if they fell out during the CB removal (they did).

Remove the CB trunk cover plate to reveal the factory bolt in the CB bracket. Cut away sealant, remove factory bolt, and install the threaded rod about 3/4" into the CB bracket. If the ratchet strap is tight then everything should be in alignment. Your clue will be as you loosen the factory bolt. If it spins freely after a few turns, then alignment shouldn't be an issue. If it is tight or binding, you can visually determine if the bolt is centered in the trunk and shift the CB bracket slightly to free any binding. If misalignment can't be achieved at this point, don't attempt to force the threaded rod and risk cross-threading the CB bracket. Just release the ratchet strap and hopefully the CB will fall to the lake bottom on the tarp.

Assuming you have the threaded rod in place, attach the CB removal line to the eye with a simple bowline knot. I did this alone, so I ran a 3/4" nut finger tight on the threaded rod to hold the CB bracket in position, then loosened the ratchet strap and let the CB swing down to rest on the bottom. While holding the line, spin the 3/4" nut off the threaded rod and gently lower the remaining centerboard, CB bracket and threaded rod to the lake bottom on the tarp. Mine took a little wiggling but dropped right out. At this stage you don't really feel the true weight of the CB due to the buoyancy of the water.

Float the boat out of the way and you can simply walk right up to the whole assembly lying there on the lake bottom. Unscrew the threaded rod with the CB removal line still tied off inside the boat for later use. Lifting it out of the water at this stage is when you feel the full weight. I had some fiberglass repairs to do so it had to come out.

To Re-Install
Note - During reassembly I used the zip tie trick to keep the centerboard pins in place (thanks to others on this forum). New uphaul line was in place, ready to be pulled thru with tracer line.


Put the cradle in place and drop the CB in position (see photos). CB bracket should be in roughly 4.5' to 5' of water depth.....yours may vary.

Screw the threaded rod back into the CB bracket. Remember that the CB removal line runs from the eye on the threaded rod back up thru the CB trunk thru the factory bolt hole and is tied off inside the boat.

You really need a second person for this step. Float the boat over the CB sitting in the cradle while trying to align everything as much as possible. Pull the slack out of the CB removal line and the tracer for the new uphaul line. As you pull on the CB removal line it will naturally pull the threaded rod and CB bracket toward the trunk in the bottom of the boat and virtually guides the threaded rod directly through the factory bolt hole. Make sure your partner is simultaneously pulling the new uphaul line into place. Spin a 3/4" nut over the threaded rod and slowly pull and tighten until the CB bracket is tight and bottomed out in the trunk.

Re-attach the ratchet strap(s) and firmly swing and snug the CB to the fully up position. A ratchet strap should be close to the CB bracket trunk to prevent the CB bracket from shifting.

Back inside, loosen the temporary nut on the threaded rod and re-position the CB bracket as needed until the threaded rod spins freely in and out. You can use the threaded rod as a lever to make slight adjustments to the alignment. Remove the threaded rod, apply 5200 to the factory bolt, insert, tighten and that's it.

I studied all of the jack up the trailer, blocking, cradle and sling approaches to making this repair and concluded this was the safest alternative for me with minimal investment. Fair winds to all.
 

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Oct 22, 2014
20,993
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
Jason. Not sure that the thread spec is unique. More important is the diameter of the bolt or pin you use. Is the boat on a trailer or in the water? You might try a PM to Crazy Dave on this sight. He is the guru of your Hunter.
 
Oct 31, 2012
464
Hunter 2008 H25 Lake Wabamun
For what it’s worth, I’ve been there, done that. This was on my Mac222. The cable snapped off so it was just a matter of pulling her over, tying off to the dock and do the minor surgery. Not sure if your keel is weighted ( mine was) so I dared not pull it out any more than needed.
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