Installing a new windlass

[samchristo]

Our old Muir windlass gave up a couple of weeks ago and we bought a new one thru the PSC factory. Their price for a new Muir was the same as the lowest I found on the Internet and they built a new pad and backing plate for a reasonable fee.

The new pad is for the new Muir design, hence I need to remove the old teak pad. This is not a trivial task, I've found.

Anyone have any ideas for removing blocks of teak glued to the deck ?

Thanks,
Sam
sv Grace PSC34 #163

PS - if you use a PSC pad have them build the new pad considerably larger than the one for the new boats. It will be easier to hide the old holes, etc with a much larger pad.

[Sapperwhite]

When I replaced my bowsprit I used Debond, a heat gun, some metal bladed putty knives, and some small plastic timber wedges.

Warm the joint with a heat gun, then spray some Debond on and let it sit awhile. Then use the metal blade putty knife to start breaking the joint. It may take a few passes around because you will be exposing "new" bonded sealant as you make your way deeper under the pad. Tap the plastic timber wedges into the joint as you go around and leave them in. They will provide constant pressure to break the seal.

I did this and got my bowsprit up with only a very small patch of gel coat coming up from the surface right in the middle of the project area. I admit that was my fault, I got a little excited as I saw the results.

It's not that hard and cheap to do if you are handy.

Here is the Debond link, this stuff is crucial:

Debond Marine Formula

[Kailani33]

Sapperwhite is right about the puddy knife and wedges. Since I didn't have any Debond, and since I had been warned to keep PB Blaster away from rubber parts, I got the idea to try PB Blaster. After breaking the edge seal with a putty knife, I let PB Blaster soak into the sealant. When the seal started to let go, the whole piece came off and no gell coat was pulled off.