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Cleat Repair

eeyore1763

New Member
My family and I are in the process of purchasing an E30. The port side cleat on the bow needs to be repaired and we got an estimate from the marina of $1700-2000. Since we are new to sailing, I wanted to check to see if this is a fair price or if we should continue getting estimates. I was also wondering how difficult it would be for us to repair. I'd appreciate any advice you can offer.
Thanks,
Holly
 

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Per your bio here, it appears that you might be repairing an Ericson 30+.
Bow cleats (the underside where the fastenings are) might be hard to get at, depending on how the anchor locker was installed in this model.
It takes some knowledge (from other similar-model Ericson owners here...) and some time and patience. I have added backing plates to most of our perimeter deck hardware. The projects came out great, and I am not a craftsman by any means.
No special "skills" were needed, just attention to detail.
If you have not done any epoxy work before, you will find that it is forgiving to work with. Matching the gel coat, if needed, may well be the hardest part of the finish-up!

Please post some pics of the cleat problem.

Without more info, the quote sounds high. Perhaps, for $1699, I could fly down to Texas and fix it for you. :)

Best,
Loren
 
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u079721

Contributing Partner
$2000? To repair a cleat?

I'm guessing that what is wrong is that the cleat is loose, or has even pulled right out through the deck? Can you be more specific?

If the holes are just enlarged, it would be fairly easy to fill them with epoxy, redrill the holes, and mount a bigger backing plate underneath the deck. If the cleat has ripped out you are looking at fiberglass work to rebuild the area, and perhaps even match the gel coat on the deck to hide the repair. This type of work is not difficult, just messy and time consuming. For that much money I would sure give it a try myself. One option might be to do the structural work yourself and leave just the involved gel coat repair to the experts at the yard.
 

gareth harris

Sustaining Member
Unless the cleat is made of 24 carat gold, that does not make sense. Does the section of deck around the cleat need rebuilding?

If you can post pictures here of what needs doing, it may be possible to give a better answer, as simply replacing a cleat takes less than an hour on a $40ish item.

If you are not familiar with the ins and outs of repairing boats, my best recommendation would be to hire a surveyor. Finding a good one can be tricky, you can ask for a recommendation in the section for your region on this site, or ask boaters in your area and look for names that get repeated by a number of people. It will cost a few hundred for a survey, including haul out, but it may find major problems that have been painted over. The surveyor will tell you about how much any needed repairs will cost.

Good luck,

Gareth
Freyja E35 #241 1972
 

eeyore1763

New Member
I appreciate all of your advice on this matter. We are having it inspected on the 20th (pulling it out and sailing on it). If no major work is revealed at this time(that we don't already know about), then we are set to close that day. I'll take pics at that time and post them so that you all know what we are looking at.

Thanks again,
Holly
 

eeyore1763

New Member
Cleat Repair Pics

Here are pictures of the cleat that needs to be repaired. The anchor locker is in the way and we have been told that this is the reason for the added expense.

On a side note, we closed this weekend and took her out today. Had a blast!!! We can't wait to get out next weekend.

Holly
 

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bwb

E/30+ Berkeley, CA
Here are pictures of the cleat that needs to be repaired. The anchor locker is in the way and we have been told that this is the reason for the added expense.

The anchor locker on the 30+ should be removable. I have never actually tried to remove mine, but I believe it is just held in with some screws (and probably lots of 5200). If you can get it out of the way, hopefully this will make the repair less expensive.

While you're poking around up there, if your navigation light wiring is run inside the pulpit tubing, check to make sure there's a good seal where the wire passes through the deck. I just spent all day tearing my v-berth apart looking for the mystery leak that kept filling the forward storage compartment with water, and sure enough, it was coming from the aft starboard pulpit base where the wiring was run. I pulled the pulpit, applied polysulfide sealant quite liberally, and reinstalled it. No more leak.

Congratulations on your new boat, and welcome to the E/30+ club! :egrin:

Brian
 

Glyn Judson

Moderator
Moderator
Stanchion/ pulpit base leaks.

All, If any of your bases are like mine, ones that the stanchions or pulpits slide into, consider a clever little trick I picked up along the way from another E31 owner. Drill a drain hole at the side of the base on the downhill side. Then any water that collects in there will immediately run out and won't remain captive between the tubes and begin to make a rusty mess. In those instances where wires or coax, etc run through the base, use rigging tape at the joint of the two tubes and bed the bases as well. Regards, Glyn Judson, E31 hull #55, Marina del Rey, CA
 

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
The nitty gritty

My model is different, and, FWIW our anchor locker was solidly glassed in from the inside of the deck mold. We have to access the cleat backing plate and the pulpit bases from underneath. This involves building up a "ramp" of old throwable cushions and rags on the inside all the way forward so that I can work my shoulders into the area ahead of the little bulkhead at the front of the bow berth. It is not comfortable or easy for a six foot guy...
It helps to have someone around to hand in the portable light, tools as needed, and finally glass patches and resin...
(Meanwhile sweat forms on my glasses and mixes with sanding dust on the lenses. :rolleyes: )

I spent some interesting hours and days all the way forward, adding backers to the pulpit bases and the anchor roller. I left the factory aluminum cleat backers for another time.

From your photo, I would venture a guess (and at this distance, that's all it is) that your model has balsa coring all the way to the edge of the deck, including under the cleat. Second, moisture got under that cleat and, over time, the coring in that immediate area (maybe 2 inches by 8") turn soft and lost its rigidity. Then a really hard pull on the cleat collapsed the surface layers of glass and produced the cracking in the photo.
Time to repair, mostly from underneath if you can, and fill in the area with epoxy mush. Then, add a much larger backing plate of 3/8" FR4/G10 epoxy plate, set in epoxy mush from the bottom. Yes, this involves working overhead in an area not big enough for a weasel to survive in! :p
Plan B: If (!) your particular model has a removable anchor locker, do remove the many screws and use a heat gun to soften the sealant, and pull that molded locker out. Then you can do all the needed rebedding of ALL the bow fittings, with new backing plates for all parts. Then reinstall the locker and be good for another 20 years.

Remove all the forepeak cushions before you start, of course, and put down some drop cloths. A shop vac and abrasives and chisels and foul language will be involved... Try not to inhale any of the vapor from the acetone you use for surface prep before applying the epoxy!
:crying:
FWIW, with dust and humidity fogging my glasses, I have used the end of the long vac hose propped up in the compartment where I am working to pull out the debris as I go.

Best,
Loren
 
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