[Rhodes22-list] Reconnecting the Tabernacle Screws Following Sacrificial Failure

[Michael Weisner]

Gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "al dente".Mikes/v Wind Lass ('91)Nissequogue River, NY
-------- Original message --------From: Graham Stewart <gstewart8 at cogeco.ca> Date: 9/3/20  8:32 PM  (GMT-05:00) To: 'The Rhodes 22 Email List' <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org> Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Reconnecting the Tabernacle Screws Following
 	Sacrificial Failure I am always amazed at how everyone who does any particular repair puts their own twist on how it was done. But this is the first time I heard of anyone using spaghetti to guide a pilot hole into epoxy. That is a brilliant idea that needs to be recorded in the annals of innovation in deck repair. Unconventional, but brilliant.Graham StewartAgile, Rodes 22, 1976Kingston Ontario-----Original Message-----From: Rhodes22-list [mailto:rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org] On Behalf Of Chris on LBISent: Thursday, September 3, 2020 7:01 PMTo: rhodes22-list at rhodes22.orgSubject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Reconnecting the Tabernacle Screws Following Sacrificial FailureRepair of the HolesI made the repair and we successfully re-stepped the mast a few weeks ago.As requested, I'll provide a summary. I opted to fill the holes with epoxy. This decision was based primarily onthe advice to consider the possibility of rotational torque (shouldsomething go awry while raising or lowering the mast) and the feedback thatonly one owner had experienced significant damage to the cabin top aftermaking this sort of repair. However, I did NOT make the holes larger indiameter below the fiberglass. That is, the new epoxy plugs should not takemuch fiberglass with them should they pull out of the wood block. I didscrape the very small amount of soft wood off the edges of the holes; theredid not seem to be any evidence of water infiltration; the wood block belowthe fiberglass seemed very solid. I opted to stay with the 1” screws and used JB Weld epoxy. I don't have muchexperience with epoxy, and was pleased to discover that I had about 5minutes to work with the liquid epoxy before it ceased to flow well. I tapedoff the area immediately around each of the holes to prevent any unwantedepoxy from getting on the gelcoat. I did not fill the holes flush with thetop of the gelcoat, but more like up to the approximate top of thefiberglass.While the epoxy was starting to setup (about 10 minutes after I had filledthe holes), and using the tabernacle plate as a guide, I put a small pieceof spaghetti in the center of each of the epoxy-filled holes reasoning thatthese would provide a good guide for the drill bit. I let the epoxy hardenfor about 3 hours then snapped the tops off the spaghetti pieces and drilledout the pasta with a small bit giving me a precisely-located pilot hole. Ithen ran a larger bit into the holes and gently threaded the screws into theholes to tap the epoxy before it got really hard. I then backed the screwsout and let the epoxy cure for a day before attaching the plate with thescrews.A few days later the mast raising went well. Since we were still on thewater, we picked a calm morning with minimal boat traffic. All went reallywell until the mast was vertical when my mate noticed that the genoa was onthe wrong side of the spreader and was routed through the triangle borderedby the mast, the upper shroud, and the spreader. When I had replaced theupper shroud, I had locked the bottom half of the genoa on the aft side ofthe spreader. I was told that we were not lowering the mast to correct theproblem … find another solution. I was pleased to find that a 7' ladderplaced on the cabin top and tied securely to the mast allowed me to climb upand easily remove the pin from the base of the spreader, pull the spreaderout of its seat, move the genoa forward of the spreader, and replace thespreader and pin. I was up on the ladder less than 5 minutes. I wassurprised how comfortable it was.Another note: The rigger who built the new shrouds recommended thatreplacement shrouds be up-sized to 5/32 inch from the standard 1/8 inch. Heis very familiar with the regular winds that we get in this area and thoughtthat 1/8 was too small. I've attached some photos showing the progress of the repair. I alsoattached a screen-shot of the output from the weather station located nearthe boat. It shows the 73 mph gust that broke the upper  shroud and damageda lower aft shroud. As you can see, it was an unusual gust in that windspeed went suddenly from about 15 mph to 73 mph.One final round of thanks to all who provided input in helping me fix thisproblem and get back on the water. We've since had a few really goodafternoons on Little Egg Harbor.<http://rhodes-22.1065344.n5.nabble.com/file/t902/IMG_0639.jpg> <http://rhodes-22.1065344.n5.nabble.com/file/t902/IMG_0693.jpg> <http://rhodes-22.1065344.n5.nabble.com/file/t902/IMG_0694.jpg> <http://rhodes-22.1065344.n5.nabble.com/file/t902/IMG_0707.jpg> <http://rhodes-22.1065344.n5.nabble.com/file/t902/IMG_0620.png> -----Long Beach Island--Sent from: http://rhodes-22.1065344.n5.nabble.com/