Stanchion repair

geehaw · Aug 26, 2013

Well I would say that there is a better fix that is also not a hard one and would be a much better fix. A stainless plate would be better then aluminum but it would work. Cut the plate to a little bigger then the depressed area. trace around the plate where you want it to sit. Then cut the top fiberglass away Then get rid of the rotten wood and dig out between the fiberglass layers around the hole you made as far as you can reach with anything you can. Now you will have to spend about $100 and get a small set up of epoxy. I thickened mine with fiberglass mat and pulled the fibers apart mixed it in and filled the voids sand made it level with the deck and remounted the stanchion with the plate and butyl tape to cover the repair. I let it dry out for a day but the repair itself took about 2 hours Greg

Ward H · Aug 26, 2013

I like Greg's idea for a fix.
If the area around the stanchion has crunched a bit there is sure to be some water damage. If you just mount the plate on top of the crunched area, it probably won't take much pressure on the stanchion to make it crunch again.
Greg's fix would prevent that and as you are planning, the plate solves the issue of refinishing the gelcoat.
Since you are already planning to fill the void, try digging around a bit to see if there is wet wood. If not, you are golden.

FastOlson · Aug 26, 2013

I would recommend against metal, alum or ss. They're not a bad choice, but technology in the last 20 years has brought us reasonable-priced epoxy plate, aka "G10/FR4". Sometimes other trade names too.
Sanded to give it some tooth, it bonds readily to West System epoxy, too.
I used it for oversized backing plates for all my stanchions and pulpit bases, set in thickened epoxy.
http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-plastic-sheets/=o8n22y

It can be readily sourced from plastics supply firms in most cities,too.

Your goal is to have a stanchion base that will hold firm without damaging your deck, even if the ss stanchion itself is bent by extreme force. What you're doing is making sure that the "failure point" is not the deck of your boat.

Good luck with your project. Fiddly work, laboring on your back under the side decks, but worth it when you get done.

Cheers,
Loren

FastOlson · Sep 2, 2013

korchinskyp said:
Looked at the product. Is it called "Garolite" appears to come in opaque/yellow/brown green colors. What thickness did you use? I think a 4" wide piece will be sufficient.
I assume you painted over it?

Thanks for your reply!

No need to paint a backing plate, since it's under the deck and not a 'cosmetic' item. Yup, Garolite is another name for it. I like it in 5/16 or 3/8, as a good average.
Bed it into a layer of thickened epoxy and hold it in place with props while the epoxy cures. Lots of fun, doing this upside down.....

One of my projects, backing plate, in photo in reply #4,
http://www.ericsonyachts.org/infoexchange/showthread.php?3371-Stanchion-Bracing&referrerid=28

Brian S · Sep 5, 2013

Not a good idea...

A plate to go over depressed area of deck is not a proper fix. A depressed area is indicative of failed core, as has been pointed out. The proper way to fix that is to address the issue in the core. Perhaps being able to cut out a small area of the deck, dig out wet/rotted area of core, and refill with thickened epoxy is the proper fix. At a minimum, proper potting of through holes is the thing to do: http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/sealing_the_deck

Brian

korchinskyp said:
I thought the plate was to go over the depressed area on the deck.

agprice22 · Sep 5, 2013

You need to remove the deck in the depressed area and the area a little ways around it. You can use a cutting wheel and a depth guide. Replace the plywood core. Don't use treated wood. It is wet. Replace the cutout and fill around it. Then bed your deck penetrations properly.
Here is the article. Might as well do all your deck hardware at once. And do it right. It will never leak again.

http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/sealing_the_deck

Thanks,

Andrew

Brian S · Sep 5, 2013

If you are cutting out deck and core rot, I might consider replacing any plywood reinforcement areas with the Garolite G10. The Left Coast Dart is not laid up with any plywood, only foam coring and laminate board such as G10. Definitely wouldn't use Starboard for this application, as it is Ultra High Density Polyethylene, which is a material not known for easy adhesion...

Then again, when I replaced the fir plywood of my Harpoon 4.6's mast step, I used 2 pieces of 3/4" okoume ply laminated together, bedded in thickened epoxy, and 3 layers of fiberglass woven roving with epoxy. As long as it doesn't crack again and allow water infiltrate, I figure that okoume will last another 25 years, and by then I won't care much

Brian