leaks
Hi Jeff- Congratulations on the 272! I bought mine new in '86 and love it (just a 272, not LE). In the 15 years I've had it, Ive had a few leaks as well. In the first few years I had to rebed the forward hatch. I've had to do the chainplates every few years. Two or three years ago I removed the bow pulpit and all the lifeline stanchion bases and redid those. I don't have a particular favorite when it comes to sealant, but don't go cheap. Use what's generally recommended for the application. What's important though is that the piece you're doing is removed, all the old stuff cleaned out, the mating surfaces cleaned well (like with a solvent) and adequate caulk is used to rebed. When the piece is remouted, don't tighten it so much as to squeeze all the sealant out. Rather, snug it up so as to leave a turn or so on the fasteners. Then, after leaving it to set up for a couple days, go back and do the final tightening. Don't just run a bead around the piece; it's messy and doesn't work long term. As far as the parts you need, there's a guy out here in Mass. that has alot of these things. His name is Rudy Nickerson, but I don't have his phone # handy. You should be able to get it off the one of the O'Day sights Good luck
