Hey guys, I have a 72 Cat 22 Tall rig,, I usually sail the Barnegat Bay in NJ,, She's out of the water this season for maintainence, Biggest problem is the keel,, seems to have some good size cracks and scaling deteration,,ths scale will chip loose,, I've checked out the video series on the keel repair,, and building it back up with filler,, Is this really the best fix?? Or should I lok to find another keel?? She's in the water spring till fall then out for the winter, I don't trailer her... any help would be greatly appreciated,, also to state she's an early hull,, no keel lock down,, and the winch, cable and hose are only 3 seasons old.. and no water leaks @ the pivots,, but when it's all the way down under way I will get some rocking noise ....
cast iron swing keel deterioration
- Thread starter DAVID5519
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Repair the keel. I've just repaired mine. I bought a boat that had a neglected keel in saltwater.
Knock everything that will come off with a hammer. Then grind everything else that looks like rusty, brittle crap. Then paint keel with rust neutralizer. I used one from Lowe's, Extend by Loctite. Next, fill and fair with a marine quality filler. When its the shape you think it should be, epoxy a strip of fiberglass cloth on the leading edge. Then paint the whole thing with a marine epoxy. I used West Systems from west marine.
Finally, finish with bottom paint and primer of your choice. My keel pin hole was gouged out, so I epoxied in a new $8 bushing from Catalina Direct.
It sounds a lot harder than it is. I used a 2 ton lift I bought from harbor freight to manhandle the keel.
Knock everything that will come off with a hammer. Then grind everything else that looks like rusty, brittle crap. Then paint keel with rust neutralizer. I used one from Lowe's, Extend by Loctite. Next, fill and fair with a marine quality filler. When its the shape you think it should be, epoxy a strip of fiberglass cloth on the leading edge. Then paint the whole thing with a marine epoxy. I used West Systems from west marine.
Finally, finish with bottom paint and primer of your choice. My keel pin hole was gouged out, so I epoxied in a new $8 bushing from Catalina Direct.
It sounds a lot harder than it is. I used a 2 ton lift I bought from harbor freight to manhandle the keel.
I think you're going to find that fairing the keel will be many times cheaper than replacing it. The one you find is likely to look just as bad. Either way you need to remove it, and unless yours has been drug through the rock pile for a while, there's little reason to chuck it.
And that new hanger and pin that you probably end up buying may help the clunk. Along with the shim kit for the keel. That's another thing that I would make out of FRP on the yard, but for most people I think the kit would be less painless.
And that new hanger and pin that you probably end up buying may help the clunk. Along with the shim kit for the keel. That's another thing that I would make out of FRP on the yard, but for most people I think the kit would be less painless.
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