While sailing in a little bit of wind I had the starboard side stay pull out of the side of the hull. It wasn't just the threaded piece that the shroud attaches to but the whole thing, base plate and all. It just let loose all of a sudden without warning and we demasted right there. I am left with the top of my hull ripped back. It doesn't effect the side of the hull, just the top and lip. Can this be fixed or is it a fatal wound? Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks,
John
(Space Coast Florida)
Pics?
Will get some this evening. Let the guy at the local shop take a look and he had never seen anything like it before.
Thanks again,
John
Seems to be a regular problem with these boat.
They pull away from the hull. When I inherited mine I noticed the deck lifting under my foot which was beside the chain plate.
My repair was easy compared to yours. Certainly not fatal but hard to repair now the deck has ripped up and get back to aesthetic original.
Thanks Warbird,
Glad to see I'm not alone. Here's some pics of what's going on.
John
If you do repair it, one thing that I would consider doing, especially since the port hole is right there, would be to through-bolt the shroud anchor right into the hull. This would be something similar to what is done on the H-18. I would probably get a welder to weld a piece of 1/8
plate to the bottom of the shroud anchor bar, flush with the side of the hull. Drill three or four holes in the plate for 1/4
or 5/16" bolts and through-bolt into the hull with backing washers on the inside. This would help transfer the load directly to the hull.
Also, on my first 17, there was some damage to the lip near the shroud anchor point, so a previous owner decided to make a longer anchor bar to help spread the load along the hull lip.
sm
They pull away from the hull. When I inherited mine I noticed the deck lifting under my foot which was beside the chain plate.
My repair was easy compared to yours. Certainly not fatal but hard to repair now the deck has ripped up and get back to aesthetic original.
I wouldn't say its a regular problem. I've owned / raced a 17 for almost 20 years and I've only heard of this problem once before - on an Australian built boat.
Regardless, I've sent your photo to Rick Buchanan, the guy that writes the
This Old Hobie
column for the HOTLINE. The guy is a fiberglass repair magician.
An example of his work:
Before
![[Linked Image]](http://www.catsailor.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10063/normal_DSC00007.JPG)
After
![[Linked Image]](http://www.catsailor.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10063/normal_DSC04814.JPG)
We'll see what he says. Usually his only fee for advice is that you join the HCA.
Like Matt said, guess I was lucky. My 86 never gave me a problem and I sailed mainly in choppy bay.
Doug
It looks from the photo that the hull to deck seam failed away from the shroud fitting. The access port will weaken the deck strength forward. Is it common to stand on the deck in that area moving around the shroud when using the wings? I would suggest routine checking of the hull to deck seam for cracking. I have seen loads of lasers fail at the hull/deck seam. After repair a longer shroud anchor bar or locating the existing bar in a tube to spread the load will be a good idea.
Cheshirecatman
Here's what Rick B. had to say:
If you want to contact him off-line, his e-mail is rickb(at)cox.net
No, it is not the access port. The H17 next to my boat shows the same damage, without access port. I have not looked in detail, but it seems that there was not enough resin or the glasefibre had the wrong finish and the resin didn't bond to the resin. Additionally there is no +-45° glass in the laminate, hence a lot of torsional forces were transfered only by the resin, which finally failed.
If you spend the money to repair the deck, laying some +-45° glass fibres in it, would be a could investment.
Cheers,
Klaus
<img src="http:/
Well. I have one of two H17s in the area. Mine has done it and the other has ripped the decks out of both side........that's a 100% outcome. As both sides on mine have been repaired before decks were damaged my boat has made a full recovery.
It is unlikely a race boat is going to have the pressure put on it that a fun boat will.
Two kids and a wife all demanding to be out on the wing or three friends having a few drinks and laughs and hey ho!
I am with the guy who says put in a proper chain pate. stupid idea not doing it at factory.
No . . . that's a hot spot on a statistically insignificant sample.
Anyway, back to fiberglass magic.
The short version:
First thing to do is to remove the hull from the frame/trampoline so you can easily work on it. Cut away all the damaged areas. Flip the hull upside down and working through the port, epoxy in some layers of carbon cloth to reinforce the torn deck and hull/deck flange. Working on the outside, build up new layers of cloth in the damaged areas. Lay unidirectional carbon tows in the deck lip channel. Smooth everything out and re-gelcoat (use non-skid mold to re-create non-skid).
Many more details than that, but that's the outline.
and if you have problems getting epoxy and carbon cloth easily/cheaply you can also use the materials the boat was made out of, ie polyester resin and normal glass cloth