Bulkheads and Standing Rigging
I can help a little with both of these:Standing Rigging - the local rigger (in North Texas, the local rigger is basically the ONLY rigger) asked for a chance to bid on my new standing rigging. I gave him the price Rudy was going to charge for a full set. He said he can't buy the parts for that price, and said I should buy from Rudy. For the O'Day 25, I think the full set was $450 (including fittings). Expect to pay more for your 27, but I think you'd be better off going that route. Then you know for sure you have the right stuff.On the bulkheads - I failed to properly inspect my boat (1976 O'Day 25), and after 3 years, a chainplate came free while sailing. The bulkhead rotted, (actually, both bulkheads, but only one chainplate pulled loose) and the chainplate hid the damage. I decided not to just try to repair it, but to pull them completely and replace it. Since I was going that far, and some hull liner work to do, I just gutted the boat and rebuilt it all.Well, rebuilding it all. Not finished yet, but about 70% so. I used 1/2" hyrdotek plywood (marine grade luan plywood). I think I paid about $65 a sheet in New Orleans, and bought 5 sheets, for all 4 bulkheads and to rebuild the cabnitry. I bought 1 3/4 of the same for the horizontal surfaces. I've used 3 of the 5 sheets for the 4 bulkheads (I reused the wood for the aft bulkhead, but covered it with formica), but part of that was from waste from a bad cut.I've read lots of reports of using teak plywood, or mahogany, but after 10 coats of varnish, my bulkheads look absolutely beautiful, and the luan cost about 1/2 the price of teak or mahogany.I used a chisel to break the old fiberglass tabbing that held the old bulkheads, and used them for patterns (and screwed up when I "estimated" for the rotted portion that was missing). I used an angle grinder to grind down the left over tabbing. The forward bulkheads were (the smaller set) were not tabbed on my boat (your 27 may be different), buty just screwed into place. I decided to glass them in as well.