Hi all 25 years at sea and I just got my first sail boat. My 76' CS 27 has a rusty smiley face on the fwd end of the keel where it meets the boat. The previous owner apparently had a soft grounding. I'm getting mixed reviews on where to go next. It's a cast iron Keel with SS 3/4 bolts...

Hi, My name is Mark also signing as Marko, soon to be 56 in landlocked Shropshire UK Sailed dinghies mostly but became obsessed with getting a trailer sailor about 3 years ago and probably, somewhat ill-advisedly bought a 21ft cruiser (Ballerina Mk2) I tell people I bought a twin axle boat...

I'm looking at a 1981 Newport 30 mark 2 as a potential purchase. I've read that the keel bolts in these boats were completely covered with a resin and asbestos mixture and should not be visible or accessible in any way. During my diy serve I looked in the bilge next to the dinette table and...

I was under the impression that the keel bolts are what hold the keel on the boat, but read elsewhere that the keel on the Newport 30 was attached with epoxy and fiberglass and that that is what really holds the keel on these boats. The keel bolts were used for alignment and to hold the keel in...

Hello All, I have a 1975 Islander 28 (was abandoned and was given to me) that was not maintained well by the previous owner(s) and needs lots of work but the worst thing appears to be very rusty keel bolts. My question is... how to assess the bolts and if needed how to replace and / or repair...

Hello All, I have a 1986 Scanmar 33 that has an issue with its iron keel in need of maintenance and am seeking advice to tackle this job. I will haul out at a full service boat yard in Hawaii so there may be reasonable yard services and expertise available as needed, but I prefer to do as much...

I'm about to buy Nicholson 33 1976 Between the hull and the keel there are some cracks. I'm planning to change the Keel Nut (Stainless steel) Does any one knows if the keel is lead or Iron and if the nuts are j shaped cast in the keel or threaded? Thank you Eliad

I own the earlier version of the San Juan 34, a Sun Yacht 1030. It is a 1978 hull and I wanted to check the tension/torque on the keel bolts. Where can I obtain info on the proper tension(torque)? Thanks Bob Jones

I have just bought a Santana22 of unknown age (suspect 23 years old). I've heard the keel bolts need replacing on this every 30 years. Can anyone tell me if these keel bolts look like they need replacing?

I'm a new owner of a '89 PCS 37 Hull #206. It is going to be a lot of fun / work... Like most new owners I started by doing something foolish. Asking a lot of questions I might not want to know the answer to like "Whats in the bilge?" So as part of an effort to clean the boat up and learn...

As the title says, we're new sailboat owners and SailNet members (after a few weeks of lurking)... but not yet sailors. Brief history...lots of time spent in small 12' - 14' fishing boats w/ a 9.9 hp Merc botherin' Walleyes and Northern Pike. Decades. Always wanted to sail. Bought a Sunfish...

I recently purchased a 1978 Macgregor 25. The bolt on the swing keel had wiggled and created a gap. I need to fix this problem before I can get her in the water, but I am not sure how to go about fixing it. Any suggestions would be much appreciated. Thanks.

Hi all, The keel bolts on my Pearson 26 are pretty rusted. Especially the aft most keel bolt; however, the is no delamination in the sole and it is solid. Since the boat is hauled for the winter i'm thinking about taking out the bolts and inspecting them. What do you all think? What would be...