chain plates woes

[fred1diver]

hey everyone, just re-bedded my chain plates and one of them has some play in it, does that mean what I think it does? do I have to replace a bulkhead? or is there an easier solution, will take pics next time I'm at the boat, at the moment the sole is removed to let the bilge's need paint dry

 

[dlochner]

Describe the "play" in the chain plate?

Typically the slots in the deck where the chain plate passes through are a little larger than the chain plate. Boat building is not all that precise, especially in a production boat.

If you mean the holes in the bulkhead where the bolts pass through, that's a bit different. The holes could be elongated from age. If the wood is in good condition, I'd be inclined to fill the holes with thickened epoxy and then redial.

 

[MitchM]

when you applied the bedding compound , was it allowed to set up properly?. were you using bedding to fill voids between the deck and plates? nigel calder's has specific instructions on rebedding chain plates and how long the bedding comppound must cure before the chainplate is tightened down. . it's odd that only one plate openiing is displaying elongation. i guess i'd check all the chainplates just to be sure...

 

[fred1diver]

I used butyl tape to bed them, when I removed the cover plate there was nothing holding it in place but the screws, I guess whatever the po used was all dried up or non existent. But mind you the others were a real pain to remove

 

[dlochner]

I used butyl tape to bed them, when I removed the cover plate there was nothing holding it in place but the screws, I guess whatever the po used was all dried up or non existent. But mind you the others were a real pain to remove

The cover plate is mostly decorative to hide the over sized and roughly cut hole. A second function is to add a little compression to the bedding compound. If the chain plate is secure to solid wood on the bulkhead or knee, then don't worry about it so long as the deck opening is sealed well.