Funny you should ask
about that right now as I was getting ready to post some info regarding this very problem. This seems to be an inherent problem with the Cherubini design. Here is a rundown on the construction from the mast down: mast, mast step, gelcoat over glass, plywood core, layer of glass, balsa core, headliner, wood compression post, plywood spacer, I-Beam, keel. I have owned my '77 h30 for almost five years and have always had a dishing around the mast. I had the mast pulled and we cut out the first layer of glass. The plywood core wasn't as water damaged as I had suspected but we removed that anyway. After cutting the next layer,(balsa core) we discovered the problem. Water had infiltrated the balsa over the years and it was just about completely deteriorated. This left a void for the mast to settle into. The compression post, as far as we can tell, is not damaged as the headliner is above it and appears to have been keeping the water from reaching it. Water does run down to the sides of the liner during heavy rain and I now suspect that is where some of it has been coming from. The spacer between the commpression post and I-Beam has compressed some but we are going to leave that alone as it is as compressed as it is going to get. The I-Beam has minimal corrosion and will get a thorough cleaning and painting. The hole under the mast step will get a new core of marine plywood and be filled with glass and all put back together. Before you start ripping the inisde of your boat part, since you are going to have to take the mast down anyway, I would start with what I have just described. Assuming, of course, that you are going to do something about it. Eventually though, you won't have anymore thread left on your turnbuckles to keep tightening your rigging. If anyone reading this has been through it and I am off base, please let me know while my mast is still off. Hope all this helps. Roland S/V Fraulein II
