How do I remove the centerboard on my OD25

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Oct 16, 2009
65
oday 25 long island sound
ok I pulled the boat out of the water today (oday 25 cb 1981)..and I tried replacing the pendant line that I ordered from d&r marine..I have to say it did not go so smoothly..First I tried duct taping the sewn eye end of the new line to the end of the old line in the cockpit..when I pulled on the old line from underneath the boat the duct tape must have came apart because the two lines seperated so the old line could not be of any further help..I realized the duct tape did not hold because the sewn eye on the new line was too thick to fit through the round plastic grommet in the cockpit..Then I remembered this post said to remove it and unveil a much bigger hole..trouble is my round circle grommet is not attached to the cockpit with screws or anything for that matter..I did not want to pop it off with a flathead screwdriver in fear of cracking it..so a few more failed attempts of snaking it through the bottom with a wire.and then I gave up...and found an old line that was thinner in diameter than the one that I ordered and I just fed it through the hole in the cockpit right down..very easy..and then I used the shackle that I ordered and attached it to the cb..and then just tied the line to the shackle...this is just temporary because I would like thicker diameter line..and I also would feel more comfortable with a sewn eye instead of a couple of knots..the boat is blocked up in dry storage right now and there is not enough room to drop the cb..so I am going to have to wait until spring when it gets lifted again before I could replace the line..this time I really want it to go smooth..so..what in the heck am I doing wrong?? How do I remove that plastic grommet?? If the hole were bigger that would make things alot easier..then I could tie a fishing line with a small weight to the new pendant and just drop it through...Oh also my old pendant was a hybrid line..the lower half of it was wire and the upper half that goes to the cockpit was line...anybody have this type of setup..where do you purchase those? the wire goes into the line about a foot..really cool..kinda wish I just left it alone and didnt mess with it
 
Oct 16, 2009
65
oday 25 long island sound
does anyone know what size line dr marine ships for an oday 25? using the smaller diameter line was much easier..I fed it right through the hole in the cockpit..did not need a weight or anything..would it be ok to use a smaller diameter line and just change it every season? do they make all size lines with sewn eyes?where do you purchase?Lastly, I was reading some posts and and someone said that the line/wire pendants were used on old odays..but mine is an 81 which is the newer ones..is that something I should be concerned about?
 
Sep 25, 2008
992
Oday 25 Gibraltar
Now that you have a line from the cockpit down to the c/b, drop the c/b, take the end of the line you have tied to the c/b, untie it, butt the end of it to the new line you got from Rudy, wrap tape around both of the ends, making sure that they don't over lap and pull the line up into the cockpit. Spliced eyes are probably too thick to easily pass thru.
Or, if there is no line going from the cockpit to the c/b push an electrical fish tape down from the cockpit to the c/b.
I replaced mine this summer and it was the old "hybrid". Now Rudy just ships the rope with a shackle end.

Rich
 
May 31, 2004
858
Catalina 28 Branford
Digi: the diameter of the line is not all that important from a strength perspective. There isn't much stress on a pendent line, so you can use smaller diameter line if you like. The reason to use the larger line is because it is way more comfortable to handle.

As for the wire-to-rope option, there are a couple of good reasons not to use it. First, metal corrodes in water, so you want as little as possible, especially when (as here), there are mechanical joints involved. Second, there is no need to have wire line on the pendent. Back in the day, it was common to use wire-to-line, especially for high stress applications like halyards. This was done mostly to keep the amount of line to a minimum in order to minimize the impacts of the stretch that any line would produce. It wasn't that long ago that even the best halyards and pendents made from line would stretch under load, ruining your sail or centerboard trim, and requiring constant retensioning. Riggers responded by making up lines that were partly or mostly wire in order to reduce that stretch. However, the new synthetic materials stretch as little as wire does, don't require the prone-to-failure splices, and don't create dangerous meat hooks as the age. I don't know anyone in my area who uses wire-to-line anymore for anything.

Sorry about your troubles, especially since it sounded like you were following my perscription for changing out the line. You have to get that grommet off; if it breaks, you can always glue it back together. Also, if the tape didn't work for you, you can sew the new and old pendent lines together. Good luck and don't despair!
 
Jan 24, 2005
4,881
Oday 222 Dighton, Ma.
Now that you have a line from the cockpit down to the c/b, drop the c/b, take the end of the line you have tied to the c/b, untie it, butt the end of it to the new line you got from Rudy, wrap tape around both of the ends, making sure that they don't over lap and pull the line up into the cockpit. Spliced eyes are probably too thick to easily pass thru.
Or, if there is no line going from the cockpit to the c/b push an electrical fish tape down from the cockpit to the c/b.
I replaced mine this summer and it was the old "hybrid". Now Rudy just ships the rope with a shackle end.

Rich
Rich,
When I replaced my pendant line, I took a strong synthetic 1/8" braid line and tied it to the end of my old pendant line in the cockpit. I had whipped my old pendant line as I do with most of my lines, so what I did was use a sailor's palm to push a carpet needle through the rope in the center of the whipping with the twine on the end. I then tied the twine to the old pendant line and pulled it through from the keel. After pulling the old pendant line out with the twine I cut the twine and tied it to the new pendant line in the same way. I had whipped the end of the new pendant line already. I then gave the end a single wrap with masking tape and pulled it right through. I like using a twine for a tag line because if it gets stuck you can always pull it back.
Joe
 
Oct 2, 2008
1,424
Island Packet 31 Brunswick, Ga
Rich,
When I replaced my pendant line, I took a strong synthetic 1/8" braid line and tied it to the end of my old pendant line in the cockpit. I had whipped my old pendant line as I do with most of my lines, so what I did was use a sailor's palm to push a carpet needle through the rope in the center of the whipping with the twine on the end. I then tied the twine to the old pendant line and pulled it through from the keel. After pulling the old pendant line out with the twine I cut the twine and tied it to the new pendant line in the same way. I had whipped the end of the new pendant line already. I then gave the end a single wrap with masking tape and pulled it right through. I like using a twine for a tag line because if it gets stuck you can always pull it back.
Joe
joe, when you say twine about halfway through the paragraph, is that twine the 1/8 " braid line you mentioned right at the beginning?
 
Sep 25, 2008
992
Oday 25 Gibraltar
Tape was all that was required for mine since the pendant slipped easily thru the hole in the cockpit and out the bottom of the c/b trunk.


" You have to get that grommet off"


I didn't have a grommet on the cockpit end. It's a plastic thru-hull fitting.

Rich
 
Jan 24, 2005
4,881
Oday 222 Dighton, Ma.
joe, when you say twine about halfway through the paragraph, is that twine the 1/8 " braid line you mentioned right at the beginning?
Yes. I may have used a masonry twine back then, but I now use a synthetic braid line called "Handy Hundred" which is packaged and distributed by R&W Enterprises in New Bedford Ma. It comes in 100 ft spools and has a minimum breaking strength of 100 lbs. It only sells for two bucks. It comes in different colors and can be used in construction, sailing, gardening, kites, and crafts. We have a hardware store in Dighton that sells remnants of all the R&W ropes, along with various twines, cheap. The little plastic watch band keeper broke on my Casio G-shock wrist watch last week, and I needed something to hold the strap in place so I wouldn't lose my watch off my wrist. So I cut a 12" piece of this line and tied a miniature hangman's knot and made it the width of the band and tied it in place. It worked like a champ.
 

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Jan 24, 2005
4,881
Oday 222 Dighton, Ma.
Tape was all that was required for mine since the pendant slipped easily thru the hole in the cockpit and out the bottom of the c/b trunk.


" You have to get that grommet off"

I didn't have a grommet on the cockpit end. It's a plastic thru-hull fitting.

Rich
You're a brave man Rich. As long as it worked for you, that's what counts.
Ahoy!
Joe
 
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