posted 06-17-2001 09:59 PM ET (US)        

Well, today, I decided that while the bowt was out of the water and the 101 was curing in the deck, I would take out the screws and check out where the nasty stuff was comming from.

Well the Great Harpoon Harry assisted in this operation. When the bow rail was removed, he pushed on the gunwale that it was mounted to, an the fluid generator was evident. All of the wood was rotted, and acting like a sponge.

Action needed to be taken! Following my father's suggestion, I used a 2 1/8" hole saw and bored out the fiberglass and the wood. We then chiseled out the rotten wood from under the surrounding glass. I then used a heat gun, and paper towels, and removed all of the remaining moisture.

Using epoxy putty (and quite a lot I must add), I refilled the hole, and underneath the gunwale glass flush with the rest. When this was cured, I redrilled the holes, and screwed the rail back in. The nice thing about the size of the hole I cut away, is that it is completely covered by the post bracket.

Despite all of my efforts, however, I was not able to parlay this into a new Whaler (I even used the Father's Day sympathy ploy).

Well, and least epaoy doesn't rot.

posted 06-17-2001 11:08 PM ET (US)            

Your rail stanchion base situation is a familiar one to me. My '83 Outrage had the same problem on the number 2 bases on both sides. It drove me nuts tightening up the screws after every trip.

The reason these stanchion bases are the first to go is because this is the one place along the bow rail where there isn't much triangulation. The rail is pretty much free to flex inboard and outboard without any resistance. As a result the screws are constantly being pulled and the screw holes loosen up allowing water to enter, soften the wood and just make matters worse.

My ultimate solution was a little different. I replaced the sheet metal screws with machine screws, washers and nylock lock nuts drilled all the way through the plywood backing. I gained access to the underside of the deck not by drilling, with a hole saw, a large through the deck but rather through the inside of the hull.

Actually I had already drilled these holes coincidentally to install a pair of flush mount stern lights to use as courtesy lights when it was dark. The wiring for these lights was fed, like the bow lights, under the rub rail. I also installed a pair of light under the gunwale boards which flooded the cockpit aft of the console with light.

Forward of the console I used Attwood #6356D7 flush mount stern lights. Under the gunwale boards I used Perko #945DPCHR surface mount stern lights.

posted 06-18-2001 08:18 AM ET (US)            

A co-worker had his (non-Whaler) 27-foot boat for sale for the past two years. Last week he found a buyer. The buyer had the boat inspected by a marine surveyor as a contingency on the offer.

Of course, the seller was anxious about the survey results, anticipating perhaps some bad news related to the twin I/O engines. He was not anticipating anything like what the surveyor actually found.

The surveyor reported that poorly sealed mounting screws on the port and starboard running light bases had allowed water to enter the deck laminate. The deck laminate was cored, and the steady supply of water had generated rot in the balsa wood core. Based on the extent of the rot, a repair of $4,000 (estimated) was required to correct the problem!

All from the lack of proper sealing of six small screws that penetrated the deck laminate!

In retrospect, my friend recalled that he had noticed that the running light lenses tended to fog up on the inside from moisture. Apparently the lamp fixture itself was not very watertight and admitted water to the interior, from where it eventually drained into the hull laminate. He recalled having to remove the lenses and clean them because of build-up of moisture and mildew on the inside.

So the problem had tried to bring itself to the owner's attention, but he failed to realize what was going on. In retrospect, he can see what was happening, and how simple it would have been to improve the sealing on the mounting screws and the fixture itself.

posted 06-18-2001 11:27 AM ET (US)            

In an earlier thread, I mentioned Kingfish's discovery of water trapped in wood, between the fiberglass, and the subsequent recommendation of applying a coating of resin around any hole where wate could enter. This suggestion needs to be repeated, frequently, and for ANY boat, cored with anything beyond solid plastic. This includes not just our Whalers, but also any balsa cored product.

posted 06-18-2001 10:50 PM ET (US)            

After spending some time having to tighten down the fittings on the older model's (and sometime having to deal with a stripped thread) and seeing a close friends one piece 'rail on his late model outrage, I've come to the conclusion that the one piece may not be all bad.