Please help!!!!

[brettportzer]

Just purchased a 73 hatteras 38 double cabin... three questions: 1) what do you call the long slender wing-like parts on both sides of the after exterior of the hull along the waterline... it is rotten, 2) I am chipping away at he rotten wood but can figure out how to get the bolts out... can you tell me where the nuts are located?

Thanks

How bad are they? I did a fairly extensive repair on one of mine, without removing it, and it has held up fine for a few years since.

[riverrandy]

I have the same issue. My starboard quarter fender was rotten. I cut it off with a reciprocating saw. I have laminated a new one out of solid mahogany, and am shaping it with skill saw, belt sander and planer. My plan is to lag bolt it back onto the hull, and bed it with 5200.

[whoover]

Take the stainless steel off, you just might find nuts sitting in couterbores. Mine was like that. The nuts may come off without the bolts turning.

Walt Hoover

[jim rosenthal]

It is difficult if not impossible to get to the inside where the nuts are located. My wooden rails rotted too (they only lasted about 45 years) and I replaced them; first a temporary rail made from PVC, then fiberglass ones made by Slane Marine, which we attached with a combination of 5200 and self-tapping fasteners. I then painted them with AwlGrip. So far, so good. Last time we spoke, Slane had one set of fiberglass rails left. You can reach him through this forum.

[yachtsmanbill]

Slanes rails in 2009 were about 7K and came TWO per side that needed to be glassed together, Their total was about 24 feet per side.


Mask off the hull side and take the carbide bladed skil saw and cut the wood down the middle, then tap the bronze bolts inside. The judges will never find them.

Drill the new rails and then drill and tap the 3/4" glass hull as the nut and 5200 into place. End of discussion.

[dsharp]

The nuts are behind the mufflers and the exhaust piping and the fuel tanks. They make a pvc shaped rub rail that’s close to the shape. Which ever way you go I would cut the old bolts and glass up the old holes. You could probably get away with fastening the new rail on with self tapping sheet metal screws and a structural adhesive. You may be able to get a bolt in the end of the rail. The old bolts should be 1/4” silicon bronze so they’re easy to cut. If you try to glass them to the hull it’s going to take a lot of grinding and fairing.

[JCG-PR]

When we purchased our 45C, it was missing this lower rub rail on the starboard side, from hurricane damage. We had a friend make one from solid mahogany, using the port side as a model for the shape. As for attaching it, as mentioned here the original bolts are behind the exhaust so no way to access them. We pushed the old, broken bolts into the hull and covered the holes. Drilled new holes and used self-tapping wood screws with a liberal amount of 5200 to attach the new rub rail.

Good luck!
JCG

[brettportzer]

Project creep, but is it fair to say that the 50 yr old exhaust hose might need replacing as well?

Two birds, one stone!

[jim rosenthal]

Interesting, Willy. The rails I got from Slane Marine were one-piece, but my oat is a lot smaller in LOA than yours.

[yachtsmanbill]

Yeah, Tom made these is 12 foot molds and shipped the 4 pieces in a 200 lb box. The glue joint was about a 60* scart. They turned out well. Drilled and tapped 1/4-20 machine screws into the hull and used a lot of 5200 for adhesive.z25.jpgz26.jpgz27.jpg