Sticky swing keel

[mstrud]

Im thinking of purchasing a catalina 22, now i havent looked at it in person yet but i have a feeling the keel will be either stuck or sticky, as the pics ive seen indicate barnacles and some rust on it. I had heard from an old salt that if a swing keel becomes stuck, you'll never be able to get it unstuck. I would have thought a new pin, bushing, cable, ball and winch would fix the problem, but of course is quite a pain, and costs a little money. I was hoping if it was stuck i could use that to bargain the price way down (maybe as little as 500) but would it be wiser to walk away as it will never function properly or even at all? If anyone has any insight i'd sure appreciate it. thanks
-mike

 

[kendall]

One boat I picked up for $200 a few years ago had the keel frozen in place, what that required was removing the top of the trunk, then running a modified handsaw down between board and well (file off the kerf so it only cuts directly ahead) replaced the pivot bolt and re-attached the trunk top. If you can easily get under the boat, there's no need to open up the trunk. (wear goggles, dust mask, and ear muffs, trust me that crap will make a right angle turn in mid air to shoot into your ears)

Ken

Edit:
often you can drive it down either through an existing hole, or by cutting a small hole in the top of the trunk and using a drift and a mini maul to drive it down. Either jack the boat up, or do it at dock -AFTER- making sure the trunk top is above the water line.

 

[Marcia]

Been There, Done This!

I bought a PY23 last fall with a stuck centerboard. This spring I had the boat hauled. There was a ton of rust and barnacles causing it to be stuck in the up position. The boatyard used a machete and LOTS of high pressure water to free the CB. Not sure if your swing keel is the same as my CB, but I think the technique for freeing it may be the same. Once we got it unstuck I replaced the shackle and wire rope pennant and have not had any trouble with it since. Between sails I just raise and lower the CB at the slip to keep things loose, whenever I'm at the boat.

 

[Brian M H23]

Re: Been There, Done This!

Whatever you do, make sure that you restrain the board from falling unrestricted. I have heard of more than one boat that had it's board deploy at the dock and crack the hull.
They either get stuck for 2 reasons: growth between the board and the trunk, or corrosion inside the board, causing it to get bigger.

 

[jimmcgee]

Lot's of info on C22 Swing Keels

Mike,
The good news is there's lots of information out there on Catalina 22's. It's the top selling sailboat of all time, Catalina still makes the boat, there's a company called Catalina Direct that sells parts for small and mid-sized Catalinas and there are some really active user groups and fleets out there.

So pretty much anything you want to do you can find a web site with information on how to do it and you can still buy the parts.

Check out www.chipford.com for a ton of information on just about any C22 project including dropping and fairing the keel . There are links on the bottom of that page for keel pin, cable & winch, and also a checklist of what to look for when buying a C22.

Check out Catalina Direct , they sell a DVD w/manual that will walk you through the project step by step.

You'll also want to check out the Catalina 22 National Sailing Association.

These are great little boats. But you might want to think hard about a $500 boat. Unless someone just wants to get rid of it you may be able to buy a better boat for less than it will cost to get this one on the water. There have been a lot of discussions about this on the C22 News Group.

I like my C22 so much I kept it when we bought our C30.

Jim

 

[mstrud]

too much work

well i was ready to dive right in to a project, but i found a 1975 Oday 22 that appears to be in ready to go shape, actually from what i've seen she's beautiful. I was planning on starting a new post to draw more attention as i am unable to find nearly as much info on the Oday as i can on the catalina. I rather like the idea of a fixed keel that drafts as much as the C22 does without the problems associated with a swinger, i imagine you'd have to reef pretty early though. Ill start that new thread now I'm sure you salts will have read it before you read this but if you havent stop on by and give me your opinion. thanks
-mike