Hi,
I'm looking at a 1987 Beneteau First 405 that looks to have some of the typical issues of the Beneteaus of that vintage. One area that concerns me most are the keel bolts. The keel bolts on this boat are pretty badly rusted, and the very aft most bolt appears to be directly under the Perkins diesel engine. I've already done a bit of homework on the subject but after talking to the local Beneteau dealer I've gotten some conflicting opinions on how to handle the issues.
The advice I found on the internet recommends I clean up the rusty bolts and replace them one by one with galvanized, high tensile steel replacements available through Beneteau USA.
The local Beneteau dealer said what they do now is to drill new holes (though the floor and into the cast iron keel) and install new stainless steel bolts.
I'm not sure I like that idea for several reasons:
1 - I fear the use of dissimilar metals (cast iron + stainless steel) will cause bigger headaches down the road.
2 - Stainless is weaker than high tensile galvanized (what the original bolts were made of).
3 - When it comes time to sell the boat it's surely to get the scrutiny of the marine surveyor.
Opinions anyone? Are the original galvanized, high tensile bolts no longer available from Beneteau USA? Is what the local Beneteau dealer telling me in fact what Beneteau now recommends?
The real sticky issue will likely be that keel bolt that is directly under the engine. There's maybe 4 - 6 inches of clearance under the engine so it will be darn near impossible to pull the old bold out without first lifting the engine. I wasn't really able to see the condition of that bolt on my last visit, but when I poked my fingers in the hole it felt like it was in really bad shape.
Anyone else have a F405 and have any ideas how to handle this?
I'm looking at a 1987 Beneteau First 405 that looks to have some of the typical issues of the Beneteaus of that vintage. One area that concerns me most are the keel bolts. The keel bolts on this boat are pretty badly rusted, and the very aft most bolt appears to be directly under the Perkins diesel engine. I've already done a bit of homework on the subject but after talking to the local Beneteau dealer I've gotten some conflicting opinions on how to handle the issues.
The advice I found on the internet recommends I clean up the rusty bolts and replace them one by one with galvanized, high tensile steel replacements available through Beneteau USA.
The local Beneteau dealer said what they do now is to drill new holes (though the floor and into the cast iron keel) and install new stainless steel bolts.
I'm not sure I like that idea for several reasons:
1 - I fear the use of dissimilar metals (cast iron + stainless steel) will cause bigger headaches down the road.
2 - Stainless is weaker than high tensile galvanized (what the original bolts were made of).
3 - When it comes time to sell the boat it's surely to get the scrutiny of the marine surveyor.
Opinions anyone? Are the original galvanized, high tensile bolts no longer available from Beneteau USA? Is what the local Beneteau dealer telling me in fact what Beneteau now recommends?
The real sticky issue will likely be that keel bolt that is directly under the engine. There's maybe 4 - 6 inches of clearance under the engine so it will be darn near impossible to pull the old bold out without first lifting the engine. I wasn't really able to see the condition of that bolt on my last visit, but when I poked my fingers in the hole it felt like it was in really bad shape.
Anyone else have a F405 and have any ideas how to handle this?
