J24 Bilge Cracks

[mnky]

Just wondering if anyone has seen cracks like these in J24s. They are only in this part of the bilge- the rest is solid. It's a 1983 boat, bilge was full of water and has been sitting on a trailer for months, however no sign of water leaking out around keel.

[jameswilson29]

Isn't that a lifting point for the boat?

I seem to recall some of the earlier J/24s had vermiculite in the bilge. Is that fiberglass or some other material?

You might try this same post over on Sailing Anarchy.

[boatpoker]

Its been said that the perfect racing machine disintegrates as it crosses the finish line.
J24 make a case for this bit of wisdom.

They are extremely lightly built with a fully balsa cored hull that is one of the most prone to absorb moisture. When the core is saturated and then rots, the hull structure gets significantly weaker. Most of these boats are crane launched using an eye near the bilge sump. As the boat likely weighs much more (saturated balsa)than its design weight, the stress around the eye and bilge sump starts to pull things apart. A 28 year old J24 is likely not a wise investment.

[tommays]

I would like to see the full keel sump as it does not look like the newer post 1980 sump





My 1981 hull is just fine and hull 34 is at the worlds right now

What's the hull # as 2733 and 2930 were 1981 hulls so it should be up in the 3500 to 4000 range

the vermiculite was stopped early 1980 when they went with the better hatches

The keel sump is solid glass with no core and goes about 5 to 6 inches below the hull were the keel bolts on

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by tommays

My 1981 hull is just fine and hull 34 is at the worlds right now

What's the hull # as 2733 and 2930 were 1981 hulls so it should be up in the 3500 to 4000 range

the vermiculite was stopped early 1980 when they went with the better hatches

The keel sump is solid glass with no core and goes about 5 to 6 inches below the hull were the keel bolts on

Yes , the keel sump is solid glass but extends out only about 6" then its balsa all the way. When the balsa is dry, the laminate is immensley strong but when it rots, the laminate is so thin that the hull becomes much weaker and all the load is transferred to the next link in the chain i.e. the keel sump, hence the fractures.

[mnky]

I'll get pics of the rest of the sump this weekend. It looks like original un-molested fiberglass to me. With the very limited experience I have I would guess some sort of trauma.

[mnky]

I'm guessing 34 is sans-vermiculite.

[rgscpat]

By the way, for peace of mind, can the cockpit hatches close securely?

[mnky]

Yes to the hatches. They both have lockable hasps. Here's a related question; given a boat with a sound hull and deck in good condition which still has vermiculite in the bilge that also appears to be sound, is there any reason not to continue sailing it as is? (speaking from someone who would not hesitate to buy the kit and remove the vermiculite themself)

[tommays]

If it has vermiculite which contains asbestos for and extra bit of fun it is NOT a 1983 hull as you can reach under the liner in that area on a post vermiculite hull


To my eye it looks like a vermiculite sump the way the material is moulded aroung the lift strap