Holding it all together (keel-hull joint)

[Bigggwilly]

Every year for winter haul out, I always try not to look too closely at my keel - hull joint out of fear of what I might find. Perhaps I've read too many horror stories about keel bolts failing that I've come to appreciate my ignorance about the state of my own. However, it's probably best to consult with some experts before I decide to ignore it for a few more years.

The boat is a Bandholm 24, Danish built in 1976, and sailed in Danish waters (still). I strongly doubt that the keel has ever been removed. There is a thick layer of epoxy covering the keel bolts (studs, actually) in the bilge. Embarrassingly, the bilge usually has some standing water over the aft set of keel bolts. The keel is lead, and the hull is solid polyester fiberglass. No blisters at all on the hull.

What concerns me the most is the evidence of rust from the joint. It doesn't make much sense to me as the hull is fiberglass and the keel is lead, so where would the rust be coming from.

The pictures: (Note, the BIG gash is from where i sanded it back a bit to see what's going on... I didn't learn anything)

Any thoughts / tips / suggestions on how to proceed? I love this boat and would like to keep it for a while.

[HappyMdRSailor]

Bigggwilly !

What's going on??? It's not winter after haulout... It's sailing time!!!

If you are weeping water for days, your studs are getting likely getting wet and should be cause for inspection... If you want to give yourself more incentive... After it dries up, fill the bilge on the hard and see if you've got more leaking out... Stainless can and DOES rust so that's likely your stains...

Pulling the keel really is a fairly straight forward job, especially for your size boat and relatively short keel...

There's a great thread that has plenty of good pictures and details about pulling/potting/snugging a keel while repairing some crazy damage...
http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...ir-164093.html

My vote is to look at those studs... Make sure you have plenty of cross section left... And seal them back up for another 30 years!