H26 Water Ballast

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Jim

I am looking at a '96 H26 waterballest that appears to be good condition. Any of you H26 Owners outthere have any words of wisdom, or things to lookout for, before I purchase? Thanks.
 
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John Baumgartner

one thing or maybe two

Look at the SS engine mount , all the courners should be at 90 degrees, make sure the water pumps all pump after a couple of pumps (no pun intented) oh ya one more thing check the rudder for cracks or splitting. If a trailer is part of the deal.... check the brakes for operation and wheel bearings and lights. If you want some ideas look at what I have done with my 260 on the photo form (mostly under 260 improvements) John Baums Rush
 
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Tom Wootton

Some things to look at...

The one thing I wish I had looked at but didn't is the electrical panel. Almost all these boats have owner mods to the (inadequate IMO) electrical system; I've had to redo several substandard additions. I would have gotten a clue about this if I'd removed the 4 screws holding the panel in place, and looked behind. Check the mast for kinks in the luff groove (possible indication of a mishap while stepping/unstepping). Make sure you raise and lower the mast with the seller's help a few times. This way you'll be familiar with the gin pole and side shrouds, and how they work. Go all the way, including unpinning the mast from the base and rolling it forward to the pulpit cradle. Check the T-bolts at the bottom end of each shroud; bent T-bolts are a common, easily remedied problem, but could be serious if ignored. The companionway is another common problem area. Most sticky hatch problems are easy to fix, mainly by dismantling, varnishing & waxing the slides, replacing worn bumpers and possibly trimming the width of the lexan panel itself. But one possible cause is of more concern. If the lexan hatch is sticky due to excess deflection of the cabintop on the starboard side, you could be looking at some tricky reworking to fix it. Hope this helps.
 
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Brian

Ballast tank

It is unlikely that anyone would do this but they do warn about it in the H26 manual. If the ballast tank was allowed to freeze while full of water you would have a major problem. The water would leak out of the ballast tank and into the boat when it heeled. I don't think that is something you can check unless the ballast tank is full.
 
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Alan Flowers

H260 Ballast Funk

If there's a really funky smell coming from the primordial soup in the tank because you didn't heed the warnings, like I did, a clorine tablet for swimming pool filter/pumps (Wal-Mart) will solve the problem. You have to shave it down to fit the vent hole; one does the trick.
 
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