Bulkhead repair

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Challenger949L
Almost a Finish Carpenter
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Boat Name: ESPADON Kittiwake
Boat Type: Sabre 28, Alden Challenger
Location: Central Virginia

Bulkhead repair

Post by Challenger949L »

I have a bulkhead with some damage from leaking chainplates. I would really rather not replace the entire thing. Is it possible to epoxy in replacement wood? how?
Jimmy
Figment
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Post by Figment »

In a nutshell: Cut away the bad, scarf in some good.

Complexity and difficulty bear an exponential relationship to the level of finish desired of the final product.

A more detailed description of the situation will garner more detailed assistance. Photos man, PHOTOS!!!!
Quetzalsailor
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Post by Quetzalsailor »

On your Challenger? Aren't Challenger chainplates encapsulated in the hull layup? If so, then you're asking about a cosmetic rather than a structural repair, if the offensive area is not too big.

Butt joints affixed with epoxy might not be so bad if you could get the repair material planar with the original. The inevitably rough, imperfect join could be camouflaged in several ways: spline on the two faces, new veneer from onto the existing and covering the whole of the repair. Obviously much easier if there's working room. Alternative might be to lap the new and a smidge of the existing with a thin piece of plywood veneered to match the existing. (A PO did this in ours and you'd have to be picky to complain, given the location and the extent.)

Scarpfing for strength runs the work up but the cosmetics are the same.
Hirilondë
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Post by Hirilondë »

We can all speculate what your damage is and make lots of different recommendations, many of which will prove useless for lack of information.
Figment wrote:
A more detailed description of the situation will garner more detailed assistance. Photos man, PHOTOS!!!!
Dave Finnegan
builder of Spindrift 9N #521 'Wingë'
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Challenger949L
Almost a Finish Carpenter
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Joined: Sun Aug 21, 2005 10:17 pm
Boat Name: ESPADON Kittiwake
Boat Type: Sabre 28, Alden Challenger
Location: Central Virginia

Post by Challenger949L »

The Challenger is the long term project. I have purchased a Sabre 28 at a good price (under 10k) This is the boat with the bulkhead problem. I will try to post some pictures when I get home.
Jimmy
Challenger949L
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Joined: Sun Aug 21, 2005 10:17 pm
Boat Name: ESPADON Kittiwake
Boat Type: Sabre 28, Alden Challenger
Location: Central Virginia

Post by Challenger949L »

Here is a photo of the offending bulckhead on the Sabre 28.
Jimmy
Image
Image

Here is the PO's fix, a big block of teak bolted to the solid portion of the bulkhead. Hmm....might have been a good idea to fix the leak too.

Image
Image
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Tim
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Post by Tim »

Are the bulkheads even tabbed in at all, or just mechanically fastened to the flanges molded into the hull and deck liners? I don't see any tabbing in the photos, but I can't see the lower (bottom) edge, where the bulkhead meets the hull.

If you can remove the whole bulkhead easily, as in the case of a mechanically-fastened one, then I'd simply replace the whole piece--easier, quicker, and better than trying to fix and patch.
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Quetzalsailor
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Post by Quetzalsailor »

Nice looking interior. Teak veneer plywood will be available, unlike our Makore.

Is that a patch already? A doubler on the bulkhead? If you're content with the appearance, replace the doubler in the salon but consider using carriage bolts from the show side. Add a thin covering patch on the head side to conceal your repair work. Has to be thin to not move the chainplate too much. Use acorn nuts on the head side.

Presuming that the original design was a 3/4" plywood bulkhead, the adequately-bolted (glued and bolted?even solely glued?) doubler is fine - adequately bolted to sound plywood, that is. The bulkhead can be patched with whatever comes to hand, including fibered epoxy, since it will be concealed.

If you're interested in an original appearance then wholesale removal and replacement ...
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