1973 SUPER SPORT 13: Removing Railing, Steering

[neondream]

I plan to take off the wood from my 1972 SUPER SPORT 13 and re-varnish it. The wood is varnished every year, but I have never been able to sand it down as cleanly as I'd like when it's on the boat. I am seeing discoloration around the screws. I hope to take off all the wood, and get the varnish back to new.

The one major difficulty: the railings are all puzzle-pieced in.

If I want to entirely remove all wood, the Teleflex steering will have to be taken off. My husband says removal of the steering is not possible without breaking the steering wheel or hiring out help. I say there's got to be a way.

If anybody has tackled this before, I would love to hear from you with advice and best practices--but mostly just to know: who is right?

[jimh]

A method to remove a steering wheel from the helm without breaking the steering wheel is shown in this article:

Teleflex Helm Pump Seal Replacement
http://continuouswave.com/whaler/refere ... xSeal.html

[Phil T]

Consider this:

The wood interior in your 1973 model has a patina built up over the years that makes it stand out. I am not sure restoring it to "new" would serve your interests.

Removing most of the varnish and reapplying additional coats will restore protection to the wood while protecting the patina.

[biggiefl]

Removing a steering wheel is easy, where did hubby get that notion?

The hardest part about removing all the wood is not all of the screws will go back in tight. You may need to use some toothpicks or some sort of bedding compound to give them a good bite.

[neondream]

The wood interior in your 1973 model has a patina built up over the years that makes it stand out. I am not sure restoring it to "new" would serve your interests

The wood is probably in a worse condition than I described, There are a few bare or nearly bare patches on the wood, and others where the varnish is quite built up. Maybe "new" is a stretch, but we want to refinish it so that all the varnish is even.

Fig. 1. Wood on 1973 13-footer.

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[neondream]

Removing a steering wheel is easy, where did hubby get that notion?

The steering wheel is not the original, and he seems to be concerned about two things:

--that the chrome on the new steering wheel isn't thick enough, and it would be damaged by the puller, and

--that the Teleflex system is so sensitive that it would be very easy to do incorrectly.

The hardest part about removing all the wood is not all of the screws will go back in tight. You may need to use some toothpicks or some sort of bedding compound to give them a good bite.

Thanks for the note on the bedding compound. We hadn't thought of needing it for the wood, only for the fiberglass parts on the side where the railings come out.

Q: Would silicon work for bedding screw fasteners into wood?

[jimh]

Q: Would silicon work for bedding screw fasteners into wood?

Generally to help a wood screw get better grip in an existing fastener hole, you will add some additional wood. I usually use a small piece of soft pine, and cut off little shavings with a knife. Add five or six shavings to the hole, and then re-install the screw fastener.

A silicon sealant could leach acetic acid. I'd be wary of using them to hold metal fasteners into wood.

[biggiefl]

Steering wheel better not be chrome, should be stainless. Got a pic? You usually do not need a puller. You sit on the seat with your knees pressing up against the bottom of the wheel. Loosen the nut so that it is even with threads and tap with a hammer while putting pressure on it with knees. Should pop pretty easily.

[neondream]

Steering wheel better not be chrome, should be stainless. Got a pic? You usually do not need a puller. You sit on the seat with your knees pressing up against the bottom of the wheel. Loosen the nut so that it is even with threads and tap with a hammer while putting pressure on it with knees. Should pop pretty easily.

Thanks, biggiefl -- we're feeling more confident about not needing a puller, but now my husband is saying to get to the nut he'll have to break the cap. Any advice on getting the cap off without breaking it?

[neondream]

Stage 1 completed. We removed all the railings and almost all of the wood tonight, with the exception of the steering. Luckily, all of the holes in the fiberglass are in great shape, so we'll be able to get away with simply putting silicon in them instead of making repairs with epoxy.

Fig. 2. Broken seat board.

rsz_1main_seat_.jpg (18.03 KiB) Viewed 8605 times

When we removed the main seat board, it came off in two pieces. Is there a marine wood glue that can be used to get it securely back together?

The mid-railing T-fittings are in bad shape and need replacing. We found the hardware for sale, but all the T-fittings have two holes, whereas the one we'd be replacing has only one.

Fig. 3. OEM Railing T-Joint.

knuckle_.jpg (2.79 KiB) Viewed 8602 times

Where can a replacement railing joint be purchased?

Thanks for any suggestions.

[jimh]

On how to remove a center cap from a destroyer-type steering wheel, from the previously recommended article on steering wheel removal:

http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/teleflexSeal.html

A small set screw holds the plastic or wood center hub cover in place.

To repair the broken seat:

To join two boards to make a larger board, make several mortise cuts into each board and use several loose biscuit tenon inserts to join them. Or join the boards with dowels. A wood glue that is waterproof should be fine as an adhesive. Add two or three new smaller boards as reinforcement on the underside of the seat running across the break at a right angle. Or replace the broken board with new.

On where to buy replacement parts for railings:

The REFERENCE article on the topic of RECOMMENDED OEM VENDORS has an answer. Please read

http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/OEM.html#railings

[PatSea]

You may be better off buying new wood and making new pieces. Find a hardwood importer. See if they have any Mahogany or Sapele planks.

[neondream]

You may be better off buying new wood and making new pieces. Find a hardwood importer. See if they have any Mahogany or Sapele planks.

Point taken--but then what would we do to keep ourselves sane during this stay at home?

[biggiefl]

You might want to keep your husband away from the boat. Why would he think you need to break the cap to get to the nut? Did he not even look at it? There is a hex nut set screw right on the side of the wheel, you can't miss it. Yes that is an OEM Stainless destroyer wheel, not chrome and more sturdy than his thighs, don't worry about bending it but that much pressure should not be needed. Stainless T-fittings for the rail are available everywhere, made by perko.

[neondream]

There is a hex nut set screw right on the side of the wheel, you can't miss it.

I have been scratching my head over this for a couple of days, but alas, I confess--we cannot find a set screw. There are two holes on either side of the [bezel] which have Phillips head screws, but they are not set screws.

[biggiefl]

I have never seen [a Destroyer style center cap] without a set screw. If no screw then [the center cap] is either glued in, or just a tight fit.

You basically have two choices: you can try to get off the cap, and hope you will be be successful; or, you can unscrew the black mount base [bezel] and slide it up to the wheel. Then you can sand, varnish the console, and screw back in the bezel when finished. With older models with cable steering I have varnished around the bezel as people here know what a bear it is to spool that type of steering system.

[neondream]

If no screw then [the center cap] is either glued in or just a tight fit. You basically have two choices...

Shoot -- that is what we were fearing. I think we're going to try to avoid getting into any of the bearish work. Our ideal situation would have been just to take the cap and then the wheel off and get the electric sander in there. Maybe we just flip a coin to see if we try popping it off or not.

[jimh]

There is no way to remove the steering wheel if the center cap cannot be removed. Remove the cap, even if you have to destroy it. Try to pry it out. Use a hot air gun to warm up the steel in the steering wheel, letting it expand. That should loosen the cap if it is just a press-fit and there is no retaining screw. A new cap can't cost more than $20.

[neondream]

To update on the cap: We didn't have a heat gun, so we gently tapped a flathead screwdriver into the seam between the wood and the steering wheel, and eventually were able to pop it off. Turns out it was just a press fit, and it seems like it'll go back in without too much trouble.

Fig. 4. Steering wheel center cap removed from press fit into wheel.

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We're making slow progress on the sanding but getting there. We have almost all the boards down to the original wood.

Fig. 5. Original wood components with old finished removed by sanding.

SandedBoards.jpg (33.31 KiB) Viewed 8259 times

The exception is the main seat. We are still debating what to do with it, but we might just replace the whole piece.


Fig. 6. Boards

We've read that the original wood on these older models was Phillipine Mahogany, but that wood has been taken out of use for environmental reasons. Now people are using Sapele , an African wood.

Will Sapele wood look close to the other pieces?

Are there better woods to use?

[neondream]

We are still considering pulling out the wood around the steering column. None of the tutorials or guides online are specific to the exact type of Teleflex system we have, and we found that the instructions on the "TO REMOVE" tag on the underside of the steering have faded out completely.

[Seeks] a photo of the original tag, or the text of what it indicated, particularly the warning.

[Phil T]

Given the old growth of the bench seat, I would reattach the two parts and add wood cleats on the back side to give the board support. Use Gorilla glue and clamps.

[jimh]

Congratulations on removing the wooden press-fit center cap from the steering wheel.

The newly cleaned and sanded boards look good.

My advice on how to repair the broken board for the seat remains the same.

[neondream]

We finally got our little whaler back together. It was a much bigger job than we expected. In the end, we:

• Removed the console, and sanded down ALL the wood to bare wood, applying eight coats of varnish.
• Replaced the corroded T-joints on the side. We ordered these from CMI Marine and I have mixed reviews if anyone is looking for input on using them for your own project (Namely: Don't expect to get anything done in a hurry.)
• Used wood glue to glue the two seat boards back together, then installed two metal connectors under the seat.

Fig. 7. Before refurbishing.

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Fig. 8. After refurbishing.

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We're very happy with how it came out. This little Whaler is looking presentable again. We enjoyed our first ride out on the water this past weekend. Thanks to all for the advice and input.

[PatSea]

Looks very nice!

[jimh]

We ordered these from CMI Marine and I have mixed reviews if anyone is looking for input on using them for your own project. Namely: Don't expect to get anything done in a hurry.

I think you are being unrealistic about expectations during a nationwide shutdown of manufacturing. You really give little to no information about your transaction with CMI. Your comments are vague. If you really think CMI should no longer be a recommended vendor and readers should be warned away from using them, you are going to have to give much more specific information. And then CMI will have a chance to describe their view of selling product to you.