Newport 28 Chainplate leak repairs

[RandallC]

I have a '79 Newport 28 that one(if not all) chainplates are leaking, I know this from the rotted bulkhead and seat cushion( I pilled off of the rotted bulkhead) as well as discoloration of the wood at the chainplate. What is the best way to treat and seal the chainplates on a fiberglass monohull sailboat? I feel this is something that my wife and I can handle repairing if we knew the best way to approach it. I have been trying to get this little boat back in tip top condition for weekend sailings around the Galveston Bay region of Texas.

[Stumble]

The only real option is to pull the chainplates out, replace the rotted wood, encapsulate the remaining wood in epoxy, then rebed the chainplates. It's can be a pretty big job depending on how much rot there.

While they ar out I would also recommend just replacing the chainplates you have. You can pay for dye and X-ray testing, but the cost to do a proper inspection is a good percentage of the cost of replacement.

[Sailmonkey]

I concur, you'll need to pull the chain plates, if the chain plates are bolted to the bulkhead, and it is rotten, you will need to replace the wood.

As daunting as this job sounds, in some boats it really isn't too bad.

If you don't want to pull the mast to do this, use a halyard to support the mast and pull one at a time.

Where in Galveston bay are you?

[Suijin]

If you Google "chainplate repair" you'll probably find tons of resources on how to approach it.

If the deck is cored then it likely has rot in it. You'll want to dig out the rotted wood with a pick or an allen wrench in a drill, then fill in the void with epoxy with structural filler (which will make it like putty, and easier to form). As Stumble said, if the wood that they were bolted to inside is damaged you'll need to find a way to remedy that as well.

The extent of the damage would indicate that the chainplates themselves are suspect. They can look fine, with just what appears to be surface rust, but have succumbed to crevice corrosion where rust has eaten into them in a crack or seam. This usually happens right where they go through the deck as it is promoted by lack of oxygen.

Shop around for a machine shop to have them fabricated. If you go to a rigger they're just going to send them out to a machinist and mark them up. One argument for taking the mast down is that you'll be able to take all the chainplates to a machinist at once and it will be less expensive than doing it one at a time. For your boat, likely less than $100 each. Make sure you take all of them as sometimes they are not symmetrical side to side, with different bolt hole patterns. Make sure they polish them as that will help them to resist corrosion in future. It's not cheap to have new ones made, but it's necessary. It's a lot cheaper than a broken mast if one of them fails.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Randall.

[foufou]

I have found 316 straps of close to the correct size at scrap metal dealers here in the San Francisco area. 4 chainplates 1/4"X 1 1/2"x18 for under $100. I drilled them myself with a cobalt bit and rounded the corners with a saber saw. Then I had the polished for $20/ each. They look better than the original.

[Stumble]

Originally Posted by foufou

I have found 316 straps of close to the correct size at scrap metal dealers here in the San Francisco area. 4 chainplates 1/4"X 1 1/2"x18 for under $100. I drilled them myself with a cobalt bit and rounded the corners with a saber saw. Then I had the polished for $20/ each. They look better than the original.

You know that stainless work hardens over time, and after that it's use in rigging is very dangerous. It looses the maliability needed to absorb shock loads.

And 'close' to the same size worries me as well. The originals were almost certainly 304, moving to 316 is. A loss of strength, moving to even a little undersized could be very dangerous.