DaveH6
Son Chris' Tripp 26 racing boat
Where the port and starboard chain plates (mast cables attach to them) protrude through the deck, failed caulking allowed rain water to rot out surrounding balsa deck core. Apparently the previous owner had not stayed up with routine maintenance.
I did the consulting while Chris did the work of using a multitool to cut through the overhead fiberglass skin and remove the rotted wood. Via patterns, we made up 12mm marine plywood patches and used thickened epoxy to glue them against the deck skin. Next, Chris covered the plywood with fiberglass mat to increase the thickness to make the repair flush with the surrounding area. Some fairing compound, sanding and white paint and the repair is complete.
The chain plates have long legs that attach to a bulkhead thus the structural integrity of these fittings was not an issue but progressive rotting of the deck core was. We sealed the chain plates to the deck via butyl tape which I'm now a big fan of. I'm using it on my Bluejacket for deck fittings. Our tape was purchased from Sail Maine Inc. which would like consumers to believe their tape is superior to that which is used in the RV industry.
Chris is a hard worker and a quick study. You will find that after building a boat, you will have the confidence to tackle boat hull repairs and modifications.
The boat has a retractable daggerboard thus boat ramp launching is very easy. Raising this ballasted board used to be a painful 20 minute manual operation with a zillion cranks of a winch handle. Chris recently installed an electric winch thus with the push of a button in less than a minute the daggerboard is raised.
Son Chris' Tripp 26 racing boat
Where the port and starboard chain plates (mast cables attach to them) protrude through the deck, failed caulking allowed rain water to rot out surrounding balsa deck core. Apparently the previous owner had not stayed up with routine maintenance.
I did the consulting while Chris did the work of using a multitool to cut through the overhead fiberglass skin and remove the rotted wood. Via patterns, we made up 12mm marine plywood patches and used thickened epoxy to glue them against the deck skin. Next, Chris covered the plywood with fiberglass mat to increase the thickness to make the repair flush with the surrounding area. Some fairing compound, sanding and white paint and the repair is complete.
The chain plates have long legs that attach to a bulkhead thus the structural integrity of these fittings was not an issue but progressive rotting of the deck core was. We sealed the chain plates to the deck via butyl tape which I'm now a big fan of. I'm using it on my Bluejacket for deck fittings. Our tape was purchased from Sail Maine Inc. which would like consumers to believe their tape is superior to that which is used in the RV industry.
Chris is a hard worker and a quick study. You will find that after building a boat, you will have the confidence to tackle boat hull repairs and modifications.
The boat has a retractable daggerboard thus boat ramp launching is very easy. Raising this ballasted board used to be a painful 20 minute manual operation with a zillion cranks of a winch handle. Chris recently installed an electric winch thus with the push of a button in less than a minute the daggerboard is raised.