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Rebedding chainplates

9K views 13 replies 10 participants last post by  ravinracin 
#1 · (Edited)
Mr. cthoops and I had a great season last year - our first as boat owners.

We were down at the boat today greasing and lapping the sea cocks when Mr. Cthoops noticed that we have some water penetration at the port chainplate. It wasn't evident last year, and I suspect the heavy snow we've had this winter was the final straw. The prior owner (who owned the boat for over 15 years) said he had pulled them a few times and always wondered why he bothered because it had been dry, so I don't think this is a situation where they were neglected for the past 20 years.

It looks like rebedding the chainplates is going to be our first "real" maintenance project on the boat. We have Don Casey's "This Old Boat" and we are also scouring the internet for info, but I was looking for any tips others might have. Is this something that can be done in a day? Can we use butyl (thereby not having to wait until late March or April for warmer temps) or do we need to use epoxy or 3M. The instructions for 3M say not to apply in temps under 40 degrees. If it's in the mid-40's but drops down to freezing at night, will it just take longer to cure, or do we need to wait until temps stay above 40 day and night?

Attached is the picture of the area that showed us something was up.

If you can't tell yet, any suggestions or advice would be most welcome.

Thanks!
 

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#2 ·
are the plates behind that box?

many ways to bed plates..

I used sikaflex, butyl is good, stretchy sealants...whatever

it does depend a bit on hoy they are installed but Im a fan of only sealing from the top...never from under...that way if you do spring a leak you can trace it better

all I see in your pic is some damp wood at the bottom of that box joint

cheers
 
#4 ·
Only sealing the top is correct - for all deck fittings. If you seal top & bottom a top leak will go into the core or elsewhere into the boat.

You should remove the chains to check them for crevice corrosion where they pass through the deck.

When you have the chains out, take the opportunity to seal any exposed core with epoxy. Then chamfer or countersink the top of the hole they go in to create an "O-ring" for the sealant to squeeze into.
 
#6 ·
I just finished digging out all the caulk and sealant (including silicone) from the previous owner's decades of stuff and go.

Butyl tape from MaineSail's web site is the way to go, and just from the top as the idea is to keep water out, not seal it in.
 
#13 ·
Thank you for all of the suggestions. We went back to the boat yesterday and removed the wood covering the chainplates. Things look pretty good overall, so when Maine Sail's butyl arrives this week we'll head back down this weekend (weather permitting), pull and inspect the chainplates, and hopefully finish everything up.
 
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