W
WWolfson
I have had a reappearance of rust penetration from the inside out at the keel-deck joint on my 2001 Hunter 340. The dealer repaired this at the end of the 2001 season by tightening the keel bolts and patching the exterior keel - hull joint.Water is still finding its way down the keel bolts and across voids in the sealant between the top of the keel stub and the bottom of the hull at the keel joint. Hunter says the keel is lead-antimony.The rust may be from filings that have worked their way thru the keel' sealant. I noticed the bilge collects 2-3 inches of water even when the boat is out of the water during its winter lay up. I ahve a leak to trace this spring.The water (probably rain driven in thru the hull deck joint -my guess) is the likely suspect for the problem with the rust penetration from the inside out.Any danger of the keel loosening or snapping off underweigh?What is causing this?Does any one have any experience with this problem? similar experiences?Both Hunter and the dealer have been very responsive and helpful in the past. Yesterday's monthly inspection found this problem had returned.