Centerboard Pendant Replacement

HukilauMike · Mar 3, 2011

Robin: a great boat, congratulations! I have a '79 Oday 23, and I recently replaced the centerboard pendent. If the boat is out of the water and the old pendent line is still in place, its a piece of cake to do yourself; no special skills needed! You will need some duct tape and a screw driver.

First, unscrew the grommet on the bridge deck in the cockpit that surrounds the pendent line where it enters its tube to go into the centerboard trunk. Remove the grommet (you will probably have to untie the stopper knot on the end of your pendent line to do this). Once you get the grommet off, I would retie the stopper knot just to avoid a potential catastrophe.

Next, go to the other end of the existing pendent line where it pokes out from the centerboard trunk. Remove the shackle that attaches to the centerboard (it sounds like this has already happened to you). Butt the "cockpit" end of your new pendent line to the recently "unshakled" end of the old pendent line. Fasten the two ends together with duct tape. Don't overdo the tape; the tube is wider than you think, but it does have its limits. Attach the new shackle to the centerboard.

Go back into the cockpit, and pull the new pendent up thru the tube with the old pendent line. When the taped together ends appear, unfasten them, and put the grommet back on the new line. Pull the new line all the way thru, tie a new stopper knot on the end of the new pendent line, re-affix the grommet to the deck, and Bob's yer uncle.

There is absolutely no need to have a wire to line splice arrangement on the pendent line. That used to be common back when the material in the lines stretched. With the "new" inexpensive no-stretch lines, we can do away with the expensive, troublesome splices and the need for more metal to be constantly exposed to water.

Why did your shackle fail? Who knows? It's unclear from you post what actually failed: the line, the shackle, or the wire splice. In any case, corrosion is the most likely culprit.

And you are correct; the centerboard pivots down and stays down solely by gravity; water pressure does not force it up or back. As far as the pivot mechanism goes, my motto is if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Btw, Rudy at D and R Marine sells all the parts you will ever need to replace the pendent, or if madness has stricken and you want to replace the pivot pin. Here is the link:

http://www.drmarine.com/products.asp?cat=168

I shopped around when replacing my pendent, and Rudy's pre-made line and shackle might not have been the absolute cheapest way to go, but he was darn close; plus I got the comfort of knowing that the shackle would fit in the trunk without binding (finding a properly sized shackle was very difficult).

Good luck, enjoy the boat, and let us know how you make out!

Joe11688 · Mar 3, 2011

Robin,
Mike is right. Don't fix the pivot pin if it isn't broke. When I removed the centerboard on my 1986 O'Day 222 I found that the fiber pin was still in excellent condition. It wasn't a total waste of time for me because I wanted to clean the slot and apply two coats of bottom paint to it along with the centerboard.
I'm not too sure of the shackle configuration on your pendant line but if it's similar to mine, it's possible that the cotter pin broke and the small rigging pin on the shackle came out. I'm sure you'll find out when you get access to the bottom of your keel.
Mike has a system of attaching his new pendant line to the old line in replacing it with the new one, and I have my own system which involves tying a strong string to the end of the old pendant line and pulling it out through the bottom of the keel whereby pulling the string in to use as a tag line. I then re-tie the string to the end of the new pendant line and pull it up into the cockpit.
My centerboard pendant line, my halyards, and my boom control lines all have whipped ends, and when I need to tie a tag strong twine to any of them, I run a needle into the side of the whipping and use that to get my string through the rope close to the end. Then I tie a Bowline in the string and use a small piece of masking tape to center the string with the end of the pendant line so it doesn't get hung up in the pipe leading to the keel slot. Both systems seems to work for each of us, so as they say, "whatever floats your boat."
Also, my centerboard slot has a small single sheave up inside where the pendant line goes through. I'm not sure if your boat is set up this way. The 86 O'Day 25s and 26s have these sheaves. Look up inside your keel slot with a flash light and check it out for yourself. Chances are, if your pendant line pipe runs straight down to the centerboard, your boat won't have a sheave. If on the other hand, your pipe runs down and takes a 90 degree bend to a hump under the sole plate above the centerboard, there's a sheave inside the slot. Also, you may see the small metal strap on that hump with the two nuts on the U bolt that holds that sheave. I really don't know.
Probably the hardest part of the job is getting at the keel while the boat is on the hard, and yes, you can put on scuba gear and do this job in the water. If that is your choice, you could feed a long tag line from the cockpit that will allow you to tie the new pendant line on the end of it while sitting in the cockpit. That's what I would do. Then, all you'd have to do is go back in the water and attach the shackle to the centerboard and Voila! :dance:

Always keep your centerboard in the up position when the boat is either on the trailer, slip, at anchor, or on her mooring. Especially while it's on the trailer because you don't want the board to come down and hang up between the trailer's cross members, if that is possible on your trailer. I know that it's possible to do on my trailer because my keel board doesn't extend to the last cross member of my trailer.
Last year while my boat was on boat stands, I jacked her up and exposed the bottom of my keel to let my centerboard down for bottom painting. I discovered that the cotter pin on my centerboard shackle was broke and I had to replace the cotter pin. This spring I intend to check this again while she's sitting on the stands. Good luck with that.
Joe

Don-MT · Mar 3, 2011

Robin, All of the advice you have been given so far is good. I have a '80 23 O'Day and had a centerboard pendant failure on the trailer, much like yours. I was able to thread a web strap under the boat and toward the rear of the keel, cleated on either side, to hold the centerboard in the "up" position while I launched. I then anchored the boat in shallow water and was able to perform the repairs from there with the help of a diving friend of mine. Get your parts from Rudy and you will be sure to have everything you need. It seems like the wire-to-rope pendant was a weak point in the design, but the all rope pendant will last a long time. Joe is also right. Make it a habit to pull up your centerboard when anchored/moored or on the trailer. It keeps the board from slapping around, and prevents excess wear n the pivot pin.

Shine On!

Don

Joe11688 · Mar 5, 2011

Robin,
I just wanted to add a final note to my comment on connecting the pendant line to the centerboard underwater with the aid of scuba gear. You'll probably need a coat hanger to reach up into the keel slot to try and retrieve the pendant line. That slot is probably about 14" deep and a cut, straightened out coat hanger with a small hook bent at the end should be able to retrieve it. allow enough string in the cockpit at the end of the old pendant line to swap pendant lines while sitting in the cockpit. Good luck!
Joe

Indysailor · Mar 5, 2011

If you're going to do this out of the water, I would say it is at least a good time to inspect the wedges. When I pulled my boat out at the end of last year and looked underneath, one of the wedges and the SS plate were missing. Of course, there's good news there- the board stays in with one wedge!

I ordered a new pin from Rudy, along with wedges, but the pin was not really in bad shape at all. And neither was the one wedge I had left.

OdayDave · Mar 8, 2011

Hi Robin -

I've replaced it on my 222 using a replacement from D&R Marine and it was an easy fix. One suggesting that I have followed is to reduce wear on the line while trailering, to uncleat the pendant line so that it doesn't wear from the vibration of the road. Just remember to recleat it before launching so the centerboard doesn't catch on the trailer when launching.

Concerning the single pivot point, the weight of the centerboard and the side pressure from the water should keep it in the down position when sailing. I typically inspect the plates keeping the CB in place at the beginning of each season to verify they are all secure.

Dave
O'Days 222 and 25

Indysailor · Mar 9, 2011

I had a friend tell me the rope replacement on his O25 also had the annoying hum, and I've been wondering about that. Any others notice it on theirs?

Joe11688 · Mar 10, 2011

I would just experiment with the pendant line tension to see if you can get rid of the hum. I haven't really noticed any hum on my boat. I usually just let the board drop all the way down and then take a few wraps around the cleat with the pendant line.

RichBone · Mar 10, 2011

I had some hum but it wasn't all that bad.

Rich

Joe11688 · Mar 10, 2011

RBone said:
I had some hum but it wasn't all that bad.

Rich

I probably have it and don't even pay that much attention to it. I love the sound of my rigging along with the sound of the water slapping up against the hull.
Years ago, when I was on call for the electric company where I worked, I was stuck at home for the whole week plus the weekend. I had my boat on the trailer with the mast raised next to the house. I ran a phone line from the house to a phone inside the cabin and I'd pop a cassette in my player that had these sound effects of a sailboat and the sea. I'd sprawl out on the V berth and read a book and pretend that I was out on the bay sailing to one of my favorite coves. I think I still have that tape somewhere at the house. It's like listening to the rain bounce off the cabin roof at night while anchored in a cove.

sPk · Mar 11, 2011

My c/b pendant on my O25 had frayed and jammed in the tube that runs into the cockpit. I tried a water repair with a snorkel but that didn't work (very cold water here in MN in October) so I had my marina put it into the sling while I worked on it. It was worth it because it allowed me time to tie on an all rope pendant, remove and repair the dinged and delaminating centerboard and then apply bottom paint to it. I have had any problems since with the pendant.

HukilauMike · Mar 11, 2011

Bikrman said:
Guys (and Girls?),

Thank you all so much for your responses. All on point and very encouraging. I do think I'm going to try an "in the water" repair. I realize I can, in fact, get a strap underneath the keel so as to prevent the centerboard from deploying on launching from the trailer. I can see that this is critical because if it falls and snags in the trailer, it would be a mess.

To clarify, the pendant separated at the shackle - though I haven't exposed it yet, the wire rope simply came free of the swaged end of the shackle.

I see recommendations against replacing the existing pendant with a wire-rope-spliced pendant (like the existing one). I have mixed feelings. Had a friend with a 22' Catalina with a rope pendant who complained that it would annoyingly vibrate u/w. I figured that was why O'Day went to the the wire rope. Any complaints about the all rope pendant? I'll discuss it with the marina owner mentioned.

And correction - mine is a 1983 vs. 1984. And BTW, I do have the original sails for it. Am using a set of North Sails (main, genoa, and furler jib) so am willing to part with the originals if anyone out there is interested.

Thanks again guys. If interested, I'll post pictures of all the teak I replaced (all nine pieces!) when finished. Using Sikkens Cetol vs. oil. Beautiful honey color. Hope it's more durable than simple teak oil.

Best, Robin

I have only had all rope pendant lines on my '79 Oday 23, and have never had a vibration. Remember, the Catalina 22 centerboard setup is completely different than the Oday; the Catalina is really a swing keel, with all of the ballast in the swinging "centerboard". This puts more tension on the pendent line, which might make it more susceptable to thrumming and vibration.

1977oday22 · Apr 1, 2011

I have to replace mine this year, Arrrrr!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!