Compression post I-beam repairs
I had/have the same problem with my Hunter 30. The "Perfect World" repair is to decommission the boat -- pull the mast -- to take the weight off the compression post. Support the compression post and remove the I-beam. Replace the I-beam with a stainless steel pipe section welded between two pieces of SS plate and then reinstall that. Chances are pretty good this little assembly will outlive the boat!! You and me both, probably! When my yard told me it would be about $3k to do the work, I kinda laughed and asked what their second opinion was. What we did, at least for an interim fix, is to leave what is remaining of the I-beam in place and chock either side of it from the base of the compression post to the keel with dense wood with little compressibility; quarter-sawed oak in this instance. We drilled through the plywood plate at the base of the compression post and snugged the oak in place with SS wood screws. This should support the weight of the mast for the time being. Ok; so what's the risk if you don't do anything? Well, about the time the I-beam was installed, it was more or less new and possessed a known engineering strength. If it's delaminating, and mine did, too, then it no longer carries its former load rating. What you have is an unknown quantity there which will support only God knows what weight. This could possibly lead to a failure of the I-beam, or what's left of it, which would then essentially place all the weight of the mast on the deck, which would most likely fail too, causing you to possibly dismast the boat. I'm no engineer, but I have been around boats all my life having grown up on a coast and started sailing at an early age. If I can be of any more help, let me know, but you should really have an expert take a look at this. It's not something you want to let just go. Hope this helps.
