Broken Keel Bolts - Hunter

May 7, 2012
19
Hunter 30T 1 GA
@fconmass,

that looks very well done. How much work was done to the fiberglass in the keel stub? It looked like the keel pulled some of the glass apart when it was dropped.

And did the yard want the mast down when the keel was off?

On my to do list one of these layups…

Greg
 
May 7, 2012
19
Hunter 30T 1 GA
Yes, after the keel was removed, the bottom of the hull where the keel was, needed a little beefing up. The boat was demasted before it was raised up enough to drop keel. Multiple layers of glass and sealant applied to seal keel/hull joining.
Frank
 
May 7, 2012
19
Hunter 30T 1 GA
What did the broken off bolts look like? Corroded? Necked down?
the bolts had some rust on them, not bad, no different than any others I have seen on other boats. I did not expect bolts to snap when torqued. So just beware if you decide to investigate yours.
Frank
 

MitchM

.
Jan 20, 2005
1,011
Nauticat 321 pilothouse 32 Erie PA
Hinckley is a top quality yard so i d be interested to know the cost if op is comfortable disclosing it
? Wonder if a standard survey would consider putting a torque wrench on the keel bolts... likely not.! Wonder if a purchase contract for an old boat should require passing the torque wrench test as a condition of sale ?
 
May 7, 2012
19
Hunter 30T 1 GA
Hinckley is a top quality yard so i d be interested to know the cost if op is comfortable disclosing it
? Wonder if a standard survey would consider putting a torque wrench on the keel bolts... likely not.! Wonder if a purchase contract for an old boat should require passing the torque wrench test as a condition of sale ?
That is what started all this with the keel. Surveyor did not mention keel bolts at all. Hinckley checked torque on bolts and broke 2. The bolts, initially, did not look bad in my opinion but looked like they were rusted (weakened) inside? There is a couple of Utube videos, search, "JibSea", that shows issues with the last aft bolt. Any older boat that has this bolt on keel design should be looked at more seriously at survey time. The cost was about $7000.00.
 
May 7, 2012
19
Hunter 30T 1 GA
I have another question; After launching this boat, water began leaking from the last aft bolt on the keel. We are not 100% sure where the water is coming from yet, however, I did not realize that the ice box and , I think, the air conditioner condensation tray drains into the shower sump area. We suspect this shower sump area is right next to where the last bolt location is. Water is not only seeping up through the last bolt location but is backing up up through the shower drain as well. The sump pump has a manual switch in the head, and it is not automatic. The sump hole is not accessible. We are replacing the pump. Does anyone have any experience with how to keep this shower sump hole clear of water automatically?
 
Jun 15, 2012
694
BAVARIA C57 Greenport, NY
Hinckley Yacht Services sure sounds like a professional yard. Funny that they did not have the correct size deep socket needed to "check" the torque on the nuts. How does a full service yard fail to have a common tool? They did have a torque wrench, but nobody seems to know what the correct torque specification is. I question the need for a torque wrench when the specification is given as "about".
It is also my belief that it would be impossible to check the torque on nuts that have been tightened and subjected to bilge conditions for almost 30 years, without first removing the nuts, then cleaning and oiling the threads. Aside from the normal corrosion you would expect, there might also be some galling of the stainless steel. Any of these conditions would render a torque check useless, and I believe it is responsible for the snapping of the stainless threaded rod. Looking at the pictures of the "snapped" threaded rod, it is obvious that the rod failed exactly at the point of the contact with the nuts where the maximum force was applied.
I am neither an engineer or a metallurgist. I welcome any comments as to my assertions. It is also my belief that Hinckley is negligent and caused the owner a $7000.00 repair. I find it funny that there are no pictures provided of the original threaded rod, but there are pictures of the snapped threaded rod with nuts attached that conveniently do not show the condition of the threaded rod. I think it would be helpful to see what the actual condition of the original threaded rod was, and it would even be more useful to have a sample of the rod tested for strength.
 
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