As you might recall from my Hatch Board Hell post, my hatch boards were seriously a wreck. I’m happy to report that after some serious work, my friend from work has helped me transition out of the depths of hatch board hell. Take a look at these beauties!
Tag Archives: DIY Boat Maintenance
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… And it happened again!
We tacked around a couple times and then “Crack….!!!” I heard the tiller break! I could tell it broke at the very back, under the metal brackets.
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Hatch board hell
When I bought the boat, the companionway was (and currently is) covered by one piece of painted plywood. It looks terrible, it’s heavy, and it’s difficult to store while underway. It’s hatch board hell.
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How I did a two-person job by myself
I made my way down below and then to the stern inside the boat. I was relieved to see the bolts still sticking through the transom. Very gingerly, I held the bolts and slipped the backing plate over all three.
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I might have to bludgeon this gudgeon
So I got the larger washers, but when I tried to get that blob of stuff off, it was extremely difficult. I’m assuming it’s some type of epoxy or 1979 version of lock-tite.
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Scraping my dirty bottom
I descended into the murky lake water and was immediately greeted by the sight of a slimy green growth all over the underside of my boat’s hull. No wonder it was slower than a herd of turtles. I’ve never done any type of diving like this, so it was initially a bit uncomfortable. Not uncomfortable like having your shoes on the wrong feet, but more like some type of cognitive dissonance since it’s unnatural for humans to breathe underwater.
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Tightening the boom end tang
Removal and maintenance on the boom end tang on a Catalina 25 sailboat.
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Tiller Repair [part 2]
I mixed up the epoxy, spread the split apart a little more than it was already and put the epoxy within the split. I put it as far down into the split as I could. I then clamped the tiller end shut with the C-clamps.
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Tiller Repair [part 1]
I can either repair it [whilst also increasing my knowledge of sailboat maintenance and repairs] or simply buy a new one [and learn nothing].
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Let There Be Light
All the lights inside the boat were the original 1978 fixtures that are now brittle, cracking and mostly missing the covers. The incandescent bulbs were also getting pretty hot when left on for any amount of time.