J/30 Class Association Forums J/30 Forum The Boat, Sails and Equipment J 30 bulkhead technical discussion

Thanks for reminding me of the G10 core. I LIKE that idea!! I was looking at better core materials. Do you think that the difference in the "working" of the G10 vs. the wooden part will cause an issue in the future? Overall, the moisture in the boat is not bad. The boat was dry sailed while it was in Miami, and it is actually floating high on the marks. There are couple of spots on the deck that are moist, the area under the halyard stoppers, and under the port winch. The hull is pretty dry. I have seen far worse on other versions of J/Boats. I saw a 27 once that had a crack between the keel and sump that allowed water intrusion in the hull core all of the way from the keel to the deck. Nothing on the deck or hull is soft yet. Vic, guess we are located pretty close in the winter anyway! I can't really complain, I practically stole the boat.

While I'm a bit past the personal fiberglass-work-on-boat stage. Horatio, (my fiberglass guy and an ex Hinckley repair guy ... also at TP in the 80s when these boats were built) prefers to use G10 and Corecell as he did on this transom for 526. I think all that you are looking for is to spread the area for the attachment points with a solid base. for example the squares of G10 for the gudgeons. If there is a working between the elements ... I would vote that would not enter seriously enough to matter.

Vic, Where did you put your ID Plate?

He tacked it on and gelcoated around it.
this was before it was finished off even with the new gel coat.

Nice!

Laser Beam #192 had severe water penetration issues in the bulkheads near the chainplates when purchased in 2001. I drilled multiple holes, (drilling aft from the head and the hanging locker))at 1" intervals all around the chainplate attachments in the bulkhead, let the damaged wood dry out, and injected West system epoxy with high density filler into each hole. Also cleared out the rotted deck core in a six-inch circle around each chainplate cut-out, dried it out with my wife's hair dryer, and filled up the area with the West System epoxy mixture there as well, then redrilled the slot for the chainplates. That, and annual rebedding with silicone sealant of the chainplate hole in the deck, seems to be doing the trick so far.

OK we sat down with the surveyor, and the results are in. Not a big deal. Both chainplates are cracked, which was not really a big surprise. Everyone should have a close look at theirs. What he recommended is to extend the chainplates as long as possible. It looks like they can be extended another 18 inches, and replace the plastic backing plates with 1/8 inch aluminum. Do not reuse the existing holes. The surveyor thumped on the forward side of the bulkhead, and was happy with the soundness. Soooo, I will fill some holes with epoxy as LaserBeamer suggests, see if I can order custom chainplates from Rigrite and put the boat together again and gently go sailing. I only say gently, because the surveyor was VERY concerned about the original Navtec turnbuckles on the shrouds. We believe they are original equipment. Any thoughts?

Check out local welders ...re new sheets of SS. got to be some decent marine guys near Cape Canaveral. we did that with a local boat down here ... and while the welder was more into biminis and SS tops for fishing boats, he didn't blink when he saw the original chain plates .... [not from a j30 repair]...

Welders can use the originals for the top pattern. and wing it on the belowdeck. Suggest you go one thickness up. where were the cracks ... visible or betweendeck?

not impressed with the aluminium suggestion though. and don't remember seeing a plastic backing plate in use.

if the shrouds are original, you need to really check to see if there are any broken strands mostly at the swages ... generally we change shrouds every 20 years ... but with the cracked chainplate they may have gone though a "shock".
Hall used a beefier turnbuckle last time I had the shrouds done on 505.

This is the proverbial weak link in the chain. Something will give eventually. Do yourself a favor for the peace of mind, replace the 30 year old shrouds and turnbuckles. It won't make you go faster assuming you already tune for your sails, but it will sure make you sail more confidently knowing you don't have to worry about the rig coming down.

I agree with Vic and wouldn't use an aluminum backing plate. G10 is definitely the way to go.

I will be ordering new shrouds on Monday. As for the cracks in the chainplates, this is an issue that EVERYONE needs to have a look at. What happens is the holes create a weak spot. All of the cracks will eminate from the holes that bolt the chainplates to the bulkhead. I found cracked chainplates on my 82 J-24, a 79 J-24 in my fleet dismasted after his chainplates broke, and the same types of cracks are on my chainplates in my '30. Everyone should take a good look at theirs. I don't think that increasing thickness is necessary, heck they stood up for 30 years, new chainplates should last another 30. It would also be a good practice to remove the bolts, look for nicks on the surface, and replace if nicks are found. See the point about aluminum, could make a battery.