J/30 Class Association Forums J/30 Forum The Boat, Sails and Equipment Replacing transducer

Is there no balsa core where the head's seacock is? I'm going to replace a transducer that is in that area and want to know what I'm getting into. It seem that there is a square area where the inner skin dips down, my guess is there is no balsa core in this square?

If anyone has any tips on replacing the existing transducer that would be helpful. The new one will be the exact same diameter. It seems the biggest challenge is getting the old one out. I would like to avoid hammering it out, so I was thinking of cutting it up with a rotary tool.

That area should be without core. If the old transducer is scrap, drill through the center of it from the bottom to make a pilot hole, then use a circle cutter the diameter of the housing threads. The transducer and old housing will pull out easily from inside the boat. Clean up the area and bed the new transducer housing.

Thanks Bill, that's useful information.

The old thru-hole is actually a speed sensor. I'll put in the plug and drill a pilot hole in that.

Any favorite bedding products? 4200?

A separate question, does the cockpit bulkhead have a core?

You can use closed cell pipe foam with a wooden dowel in the center, then pushed in the insert to provide a place to drill the pilot hole. That is what I did.

Use Sikaflex-291 for bedding the insert. It is quick setting marine grade polyurethane and cleans up with mineral spirits.

The cockpit bulkhead is cored. If you drill to mount something there, be sure to properly epoxy isolate.

The wooden dowel trick worked. I only drilled through the flange, then was able to rotate the old sensor out. It wasn't bedded with a permanent material.

Ryan - what hull number do you have? You aren't shown on the boat list and I can fix that.

456, I recently purchased her from Bill. Haven't changed the name, you can put me down for MA for state.

Got it - That explains why I haven't seen Bill out on Tuesday nights. Dave Erwin is fixing the database SW and as soon as he does, I'll make the update.

What kind of transducer?
If it is depth just silicon it to the center area under the vee berth.

It has a paddle wheel for water speed so had to be thru-hull mounted. The job ended up being pretty straight forward.