Compression post failure on H27
Harry: Sound very familiar. I noticed the same thing on my H27 this past summer when I finally decided to find out why the door to the head wasn't closing well. I have the same space between bulkhead and deck on the starboard side only . There is also about a 3/8 inch dip topside around the mast step. It appears that the compression post has crushed the plywood on the cabin sole that it appears to sit on. Although thats not the only reason for the bulkhead moving. Running my hand under the cabin sole in the area of the compression post doesn't reveal any gross defects. Anyway, its way too cold up here now to do anything about it. I expect that repairs are going to be rather involved. I also know that water has gotten into the balsa core under the mast step from all the holes drilled there by previous owners. I epoxied them over but I think the damage was already done. So, I have had to make the unfortunate decision to give up a summer sailing. I plan to have my mast unstepped in the spring and then remove the trim pieces and compression post, check the support structure under the cabin sole and repair as necessary. About the time everyone else is getting launched I will probably be removing and replacing the deck core around the mast step, and reassembling everything. I had been thinking about rewiring my mast (the slapping cables inside the mast drives me crazy at night) and replacing all the 20 year old electrical fixtures that always go dark at the worst time. Since my H27 is a 1979 I also think its time to take a real close look at all the standing rigging and replace at least a good portion of it. I suspect we have the same problem and so If you get anywhere with this before I do I would sure like to get an idea of what to expect. David dkrozier@ti.com
