The Able Pointin in a neat boat which very much influenced the design of the year later J-30. It was introduced at Block Island Race Week, at the same series as the J-24 and both boats were seen as real breakthough designs in the write ups that covered that event. Of course that is 27 years ago and a lot has happened since then.

There were some unigue issues with the original Able Pointin 29''s such as the engine being located forward of the mast. (Some had the engine further aft.)

As to your leakage problem, it is hard to visualize what you are describing. On a keel stepped mast of that era, the mast usually passed through an opening in the deck that is larger than the mast. The hole, called the ''partners'', was reinforced to withstand the load of the mast against the deck. Wooden wedges, typically a soft wood like cedar, were then jambed between the mast and the partners to fix the masts position side to side, and fore and aft. Over the top of this was a rubber or canvas boot. Over time the wedges would rot out if not protected and using the old shims and wedges as a guide it is quite easy to make new one. While I can''t say for sure since I have not seen the boat in person, generally the partners of that era were constructed of beefed up solid glass and so rot should not be a problem, BUT these were near custom ideosyncratic race boats and as such who knows how the partners were constructed. I would also be concerned about the impact of leaks on key structure such as bulkheads and chainplate attachment. Chainplates of that era were often simply a plate bolted to the bulkhead and when wet the bulkheads would rot out. This arrangement needs to protected from deck leaks and of course they rarely were so bulkhead rot at the chainplates was fairly common. You need to check the bulkheads carefully for rot.

Jeff

 

Opps hit send by mistake,.....You can tap out the deck in the area around the mast for delamination. If it sounds hollow compared to adjacent deck areas then you probably do have some core rot. This is not the worst area to repair and if I remember correctly these boats don''t have a headliner so a repair should not be that difficult.

If the boat is cheap and in reasonable shape other than aesthetics, whatever else you do, you need to have the boat fully surveyed top to bottom before buying it.

Jeff