Keel cancer?

gtg

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Sep 12, 2019
103
Catalina, Hobbie 22, 16 Windycrest
First cleaning of my keel, she has knuckels on her. Looks like the bumps under the paint of vintage autos. The bumps protrude out about 1/2 - 3/4 of an inch. Also reminds me of a pizza out of the oven with bubbly cheese. Catalina 22. Will the bumps affect my raising of the keel into my fiberglass body? Can I leave my keel down all the time? Any key words would help for reading up on this condition.
 

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Jan 19, 2010
12,362
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
That is called scale. It is basically really bad case of rust.
If you go to my profile page and then my albums, you will see a set of pics for a repair I did on a balboa 26 keel. I can give more details but right now I’m on my phone so... next time I’m at a computer
 
Jun 9, 2008
1,771
- -- -Bayfield
Yep, a rusty keel. It's made of cast iron. It will slow you down - especially in very light air. So, instead of a wire brush, I'd use a grinder (protect your eyes and lungs, use gloves, etc.) and clean it up to make it smoother again and try to get all of the loose rust off for sure and get down to bare metal, which will be nearly impossible (I know - that should have been several sentences instead of one). Then you want to clean the dust with a solvent and apply a good epoxy primer over the keel as soon as you can because it will immediately start to rust again. Pettit's Rust Lok steel primer works as well as Interlux' Interprotect 2000 etc. Then to get a nice smooth surface, you can use an epoxy fairing compound over the primer (not over the steel) after the paint primer is dry. Sand the fairing compound smooth and apply your fav antifouling paint. Of course, you can only do this with as much keel as you can reach. So, to do the best job, you should drop the keep, which means you have to remove the 4 hex head bolts holding the pin hanger into the hull. You really need an overhead for that to lift the boat, in which case a boat yard would be your best option. You can pay someone to do the work, or maybe you can pay someone to remove the keel and when you are finished with it, pay them to put it back in the boat again. You mentioned lowering the keel. Did you know that a Catalina 22 is only self righting when the keel is in the down position? Obviously, if you can get the boat lifted off your trailer and put on a cradle or jack stands where you can lower the keel, you should be able to clean and paint most of it by lowering the keel, working on what is accessible and then raising it to work on the leading edge.
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Sep 16, 2020
22
Catalina 22 New Braunfels
I recently acquired an 86 in similar condition. What you need is a needle gun/ descaler. I bought this one on Amazon. Harbor Freight has a cheaper one. The one I bought is just like the ones I used in the USN in the 80's. Great training program for doing bottom jobs. lol. Finish with Sanding and then prime with Petit 6980 Rustlok. I am still in the process. I hope to finish this weekend. I will post finished photos.
 

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Jul 7, 2004
8,402
Hunter 30T Cheney, KS
Most people sandblast but that's not a DIY process. How well does a needle gun work? I need to clean my keel . ...again
 
Sep 16, 2020
22
Catalina 22 New Braunfels
Needle gun worked fantastic. I only had a pancake compressor so I had to wait for the pressure to build up occasionally. I think my boat had been in the water for 10 years. No wonder it was all scaled up.
 
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capta

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Jun 4, 2009
4,766
Pearson 530 Admiralty Bay, Bequia SVG
Is that a keel or centerboard? If a board, remove it and sandblast it, then take it to a galvanizing shop. Then epoxy coat (barrier coat), then paint and replace. No sweat.
 
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Sep 16, 2020
22
Catalina 22 New Braunfels
Before and after needle gunning and sanding. Used a primer from Petit called Rustlok. Must be good stuff.... I can't get it off my hands. This is the keel primer West Marine CPP Antifouling Paint recommended. I got this boat in Oklahoma. I think it had been in the water for 10 years. This will get me by for quite a while.
 

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Sep 16, 2020
22
Catalina 22 New Braunfels
Rustlok 6980 Steel Primer. Keep in mind I did this while on the trailer. I lowered the tongue to the ground and supported the back with pallets then raised the front with a floor jack so my keel would lower. I was replacing my keel cable as well. You cannot get all of the top of the keel but a great deal of it. I hope to finish the bottom painting tomorrow.
 

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