Pulled the post today. Good thing. Bottom was rotting and support was being provided by trim. What type of wood should I use? Thanks! Rob
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Compression Post
I used a heavy wall stainless steel tube and covered it with the original wood trim. Aluminum has been used by othere. Before the wood rotted the design was bad. Much of the bottom was carved up so the Hunter craftsmen could route the wires.
I used a heavy wall stainless steel tube and covered it with the original wood trim. Aluminum has been used by othere. Before the wood rotted the design was bad. Much of the bottom was carved up so the Hunter craftsmen could route the wires.
Is the bulkhead OKAY?
When our compress post rotted water had also gotten into the bulkhead. We had the entire bulkhead replaced and used a stainless steel post fabricated. This takes care of the post problem but does NOT take of potential problem with the cross member. This is also wood. I would suggest that you check this out to be sure that it is also intact. There are some photos that were posted on this site of the repair on a H'34 (basically the same setup). This is a big job. Make sure that the entire unit is properly sealed so this does not happen again. Be sure that it looks as good as the original in case you ever want to sell the boat.
When our compress post rotted water had also gotten into the bulkhead. We had the entire bulkhead replaced and used a stainless steel post fabricated. This takes care of the post problem but does NOT take of potential problem with the cross member. This is also wood. I would suggest that you check this out to be sure that it is also intact. There are some photos that were posted on this site of the repair on a H'34 (basically the same setup). This is a big job. Make sure that the entire unit is properly sealed so this does not happen again. Be sure that it looks as good as the original in case you ever want to sell the boat.
did you see it
did you see it rotting, just curious I have the same post on this topic and inspected my post and it looks ok ,so I havent looked any futher for potential problems?
did you see it rotting, just curious I have the same post on this topic and inspected my post and it looks ok ,so I havent looked any futher for potential problems?
Rotting on the inside.
Jeff: The rotting is on the inside! The teak usually does not rot that quick. The post is pine (or fir) as is the cross memeber (which you cannot see). You really need to remove the bung and inspect the post. You probably only need to do one panel and covers the post. Ours was so obvious that no inspection was required.
Jeff: The rotting is on the inside! The teak usually does not rot that quick. The post is pine (or fir) as is the cross memeber (which you cannot see). You really need to remove the bung and inspect the post. You probably only need to do one panel and covers the post. Ours was so obvious that no inspection was required.
Here's what I did. (on my H34)
I'll post the picture from my web site and also the text. First the text: This is the port view of the compression post with the wire cover removed. The reason these boats suffer damage to the athwart ship beam is because the factory screwed up on quality control. They didn't insure that the space between the deck and contact patch for the compression post was completely full of suitable wood. This is what I did to repair the factory work; You will have to remove the mast. When you unscrew the molding at the top of the post, draw a line with a ink marker around the top of the post on the glass of the beam. Then remove the post. You will have to jack the beam up. Cut the beam with a dremel or similar cut-off tool, just INSIDE the ink line. The idea is to make sure the compression post will fit INSIDE the cutout. That way NO weight from the mast will be on the beam. It becomes a decorative/wire chase beam only. You will have to chisel out the old wood. Good riddance. Make sure the wood you remove is about the same size as the OD of the compression post cutout. Then measure the void and find a suitable piece of wood that will fit snugly in your hole but loose enough so you can trial fit it and remove it for drilling. I used teak but I think most wood will work. The factory used fur. You will then drill the required holes in the wood for cabling. Then again lift the beam with a jack, enough to re-install the compression post. When you release the jack, make sure the compression post fits inside the cutout you made with the dremel. It should fit so the glass of the beam drops around the post about an 1/8 inch. If you made your new insert so that you are SURE it is tight against the deck and small enough so that it can be trial fit and drilled with a hole saw, the end result will be that the load of the mast is now transferred via the insert, directly to the compression post and the beam does nothing but HOLD THE COMPRESSION POST IN PLACE and that is MORE than the factory did. Any cosmetic damage remaining to the beam can be dealt with as desired but don't spend a lot of money on glass work, just cover it with some kind of wood matching your decor. Not counting mast removal, the cost of this work if you do it yourself, is next to nothing. I did it myself because everything I was seeing on-line was too complex or expensive. The top molding is ready to reinstall but I thought I would wait until we launch and do sea trials. That way the work will settle into place and the molding won't get crunched. (11/14/3) Sea trials prove the repair to be perfect. The beam didn't sag any lower around the post and the mast shows no sign of the previous loose shrouds on the leeward side. And now the picture. This is photo # 27 on my web site. The other side of the beam is seen in photo #28. Phil, I love this feature.
I'll post the picture from my web site and also the text. First the text: This is the port view of the compression post with the wire cover removed. The reason these boats suffer damage to the athwart ship beam is because the factory screwed up on quality control. They didn't insure that the space between the deck and contact patch for the compression post was completely full of suitable wood. This is what I did to repair the factory work; You will have to remove the mast. When you unscrew the molding at the top of the post, draw a line with a ink marker around the top of the post on the glass of the beam. Then remove the post. You will have to jack the beam up. Cut the beam with a dremel or similar cut-off tool, just INSIDE the ink line. The idea is to make sure the compression post will fit INSIDE the cutout. That way NO weight from the mast will be on the beam. It becomes a decorative/wire chase beam only. You will have to chisel out the old wood. Good riddance. Make sure the wood you remove is about the same size as the OD of the compression post cutout. Then measure the void and find a suitable piece of wood that will fit snugly in your hole but loose enough so you can trial fit it and remove it for drilling. I used teak but I think most wood will work. The factory used fur. You will then drill the required holes in the wood for cabling. Then again lift the beam with a jack, enough to re-install the compression post. When you release the jack, make sure the compression post fits inside the cutout you made with the dremel. It should fit so the glass of the beam drops around the post about an 1/8 inch. If you made your new insert so that you are SURE it is tight against the deck and small enough so that it can be trial fit and drilled with a hole saw, the end result will be that the load of the mast is now transferred via the insert, directly to the compression post and the beam does nothing but HOLD THE COMPRESSION POST IN PLACE and that is MORE than the factory did. Any cosmetic damage remaining to the beam can be dealt with as desired but don't spend a lot of money on glass work, just cover it with some kind of wood matching your decor. Not counting mast removal, the cost of this work if you do it yourself, is next to nothing. I did it myself because everything I was seeing on-line was too complex or expensive. The top molding is ready to reinstall but I thought I would wait until we launch and do sea trials. That way the work will settle into place and the molding won't get crunched. (11/14/3) Sea trials prove the repair to be perfect. The beam didn't sag any lower around the post and the mast shows no sign of the previous loose shrouds on the leeward side. And now the picture. This is photo # 27 on my web site. The other side of the beam is seen in photo #28. Phil, I love this feature.
Jeff and Fred...
Fred, Thanks for the info!!! I guess I need to open up the beam and inspect/repair as required. Your repair makes sense. I was hoping I could just get away with replacing the post. Jeff, there was no sign of rot/failure until removal/inspection. I did it as a precauction since we just bought the boat and had it inside for the winter to work on it. I heard/read of all the problems and decided that it is easy enough to inspect/correct prior to failure and can be a big mess once it fails. I am a terrible procrastinator but this one is well worth the effort. Call or e-mail if you have any questions. Rob 845 457-1000 rob@unlimitedaircraft.com
Fred, Thanks for the info!!! I guess I need to open up the beam and inspect/repair as required. Your repair makes sense. I was hoping I could just get away with replacing the post. Jeff, there was no sign of rot/failure until removal/inspection. I did it as a precauction since we just bought the boat and had it inside for the winter to work on it. I heard/read of all the problems and decided that it is easy enough to inspect/correct prior to failure and can be a big mess once it fails. I am a terrible procrastinator but this one is well worth the effort. Call or e-mail if you have any questions. Rob 845 457-1000 rob@unlimitedaircraft.com
Top beam Inspection
I was concerned about the integrity of the top beam but didn't want to open it up. I drilled two small inspections holes and looked for water and or signs of rotten core wood. When I poked around and didn't find an obvious problem I injected some epoxy and called it done. Sure was easier than doing a very destructive inspection.
I was concerned about the integrity of the top beam but didn't want to open it up. I drilled two small inspections holes and looked for water and or signs of rotten core wood. When I poked around and didn't find an obvious problem I injected some epoxy and called it done. Sure was easier than doing a very destructive inspection.
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