Mast Foot T

[joelbus]

On a 1979 30' Hunter Cherubini, The mast rests on a "T" located in front of the bilge area. When I bought the boat about 7 years ago, I noticed that the previous owner had attached 2 steel plates to the vertical part of the "T". Some time ago, in this forum I read that the "T" on these Hunters can be problematic and with time it will get weak, so I understood what he was trying to do.
The first picture is what's left of the "fix" The metal plates were not prepared, painted, or otherwise placed in there to last. Both plates just fell apart in the salty environment of the bilge. The "T" seems to be in good shape (considering), and I have not clean it yet.
My idea is to replace the plates with heavier gauge steel. I would also prep the "T" and the plates with paint etc. to reduce the rust to a minimum. Before I do this, I would like to get some ideas from owners that have had the same issue. Pictures would be appreciated

. Thank you.

 

[BlowMeAway]

Welcome back @joelbus! There are numerous posts within the Cherubini Hunter forum that discuss the compression post and associated I-beam at the base. Perhaps start here and work your way through the dialogs...lots of pics too.

https://forums.sailboatowners.com/index.php?threads/h30-replacing-the-compression-post.160382/

 

[joelbus]

Wow! Thank you. Compression post. I had no idea. The solution on the thread is the right way to do it. I know very little about saiboat design so this is quite an education. Thank you again. I hope to read some more ideas, now that I know what to look for.

 

[ggrizzard]

Joel,
For more H30C repairs/improvements search the forums under "Hunter 30".
You'll get some on the newer ones but keep looking for items about our version.

 

[ggrizzard]

Also see the other post on mast compression post by Gary.

 

[Roland5048]

Here's a link to a thread I started about a year ago during the replacement of the I-beam. Other links, also, in this thread.
https://forums.sailboatowners.com/index.php?threads/compression-post.176956/#post-1269447

 

[joelbus]

This has been very useful. All the links I have received are really invaluable. So here are some things that have happened:
1) As I was cleaning the rust out of the I beam yesterday, I hit it with a hammer to loosen up said rust. Bad idea. The base of the I beam broke and the mast came down about 1". Lesson#1 If its rusted, don't hit it with a hammer.
2) Now I have to jack up the mast from the inside to relieve the pressure on the I beam, a technique I learned here in this forum, so I can prepare the area for "the solution".
3) From all the techniques and solutions I have seen here, I have a good idea of how to best fix this problem (best for me that is). My parameters include: a) do not take the interior of the boat apart or dismantle anything. b) If it's not broke, don't fix it.
Soon I will be posting my solution here in the hope that it may help someone else, because Murphy's law is unequivocally a thing, and old boats deserve to be loved and enjoyed.

 

[Roland5048]

Now I have to jack up the mast from the inside to relieve the pressure on the I beam

Remember to loosen your stays a bit first. Put a piece of tape on the threads so you can tighten them back to where they are now. Further tuning will probably have to be done. Keep us posted. With pics.

 

[joelbus]

Thank you all for sharing all this information with me. Now it's my turn.
First I placed a post and used a jack to relieve the weigh of the mast and compression post so I could remove the I beam (or what was left of it). I then loosen the stays. With the stays loosened I was able to jack the base of the mast from the inside about 1/4 of an inch, enough to remove the rusted I beam and prepare the surface for the new I beam.
Once the area was prepped, I made a wooden model of the I beam and presented it to make sure the final piece was going to fit. The final I Beam was made by Embree Welding in St. Petersburg (727-321-8771) I have included a photo of the piece next to the rusted original I Beam. I added "wings", as you can see in the picture. I think it made the piece much stronger.
I'm sure this piece will last for a very long time but i will keep an eye on it. Now I just want to go sailing!