Re: Potter 19....rocks 20

james nolan (nolan_laboratories@email.msn.com)
Mon, 16 Aug 1999 10:42:36 -0600


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West Wight Potter Website at URL
http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/
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All that jacking and lifting sounds real dangerous, but at least you can use
the altimeter function on your GPS. A better, quicker and safer weigh to
remove the keel is to go to either a garage that has a lift or to a garage
that has the sunken pit for guys to work under cars. Other methods that may
work are a boat hoist or a large back hoe with straps around the boat. Even
simpler would be to dig a deep hole, park the boat on the trailer above it
and discharge the keel (you could even do this in shallow water).
As far as altitude, I haven't sailed below 5200 feet elevation and the
practice pond out front is at 9000 feet elevation. Since it is closer to the
jetstream you can sail faster.

Jim Nolan P(N)-19, P-15, L138T, LGYC #6

-----Original Message-----
From: Mac Davis <mcmd@innet.com>
To: Eric Johnson <etj@nwlink.com>; West Wight Potter Mail List
<wwpotter@tscnet.com>
Date: Monday, August 16, 1999 8:15 AM
Subject: Re: Potter 19....rocks 20

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> West Wight Potter Website at URL
> http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/
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>HI Eric:
>My condolences (ISYP), and welcome to the semi-exclusive rock smatter's
>club. I'm a longtime member, as you may recall from previous posts
>concerning oyster bars. The damage you describe is all too familiar.
>Fortunately, repairs are possible at the do-it-yourself level. Tedious and
>aggravating, but do-able. Since there are no pros at this sort of repair,
>just other guys who learn on your dime, I offer the following illustrative
>anecdote based on last October's person experience:
>
>First step is to bite the bullet and pull the daggerboard. I used a
>combination of 2 jacks and 3 stands (augmented by concrete blocks as
>necessary) to lift the hull 49" off the garage slab. This is tedious
mainly
>because of the difficulty of jacking the hull in such a way as to remove
the
>trailer. I used a padded beam made of 3 2x10's, placed just forward of the
>daggerboard notch and supported at points wider than the trailer wheels.
>The third jack point was the little fin under the center transom. Jack a
>few inches, block, move jack and jack again until you have a stable 3 point
>suspension. I also fastened a safety strap under the hull and tied to the
>garage beams, just in case.
>Jacking accomplished, you should be able to lower the dagger board all the
>way down. Block under the dagger board to take the strain off the cables
>and disconnect them. Put the jack under the dagger board and lower it to
>the lowest position of the jack, block it and remove jack. Dagger board is
>now about 4" off the floor on a block.
>
>Now comes the cool part. A fearless partner helps here. You need to get
>the block out from under the daggerboard so that the daggerboard will drop
>free of the slot. Since I survived this, I'll tell you my method without
>recommending it. I took about 3 turns of ½" line around the dagger board,
>and tied it off to the cockpit rails on both sides. The idea was to keep
>the daggerboard from falling sideways and possibly knocking over the
support
>stands. Then I used a large hammer to drive out the block and let the
>dagger board fall 5" to the concrete. It remained in a vertical
orientation
>and I was able to maneuver it to a place where I could release one side
rope
>and let it fall over out of harm's way. While it may not weigh the 370
>pounds that IM advertises, it a heavy chunk of metal.
>
>This process tool most of a day, working by myself.
>
>After the dagger board is removed, access to the slot is pretty good. I
>found a dowel rod about the same diameter and the slot width and using that
>as a sanding stick, cleaned up the damaged area. I glued 30 grit to the
>dowel and put a nail in the end of the dowel. Cut off the head of the
nail,
>chuck the remaining nail into an electric drill and you get a custom drum
>sander. When the damage was removed, ( messy job) the rebuilding process
>was: epoxy, sand (80 grit), epoxy soaked cloth, sand (80),epoxy soaked mat,
>sand (80), epoxy soaked cloth, sand (80), epoxy. Let it dry between
layers.
>Let the epoxy cloth and mat hang out the top of the slot (inside the
>boat) - you can cut it off later and it helps it stay in place. I used a
>wax paper covered dowel to position the saturated cloth and mat inside the
>slot.
>
>This took most of another day.
>
>The last part, working on the bottom of the hull, went quickly, because I
>was use to working with the epoxy and access was better. Sanding was a
>pain, because I hate working upside down. I didn't tint or paint anything.
>Judy, forgive me.
>
>Back inside the boat, I discovered that the inner liner and trunk are
bonded
>to each other with 5200 or some other sealant. The bond was cracked, so
more
>sanding was in order there and then more sealant. Another day gone.
>
>Result is cosmetically challenged; but structurally sound. Who, but a
>prospective purchaser, is going to lift the carpet and shine a light inside
>the trunk?
>As they say in Chilton manuals: reinstallation of daggerboard is reverse of
>removal.
>Cost of repair: less than $50 out of pocket.
>Time: All day Saturday (with frequent breaks); all Sunday afternoon
>(football on radio is OK), and most of the next Saturday. Plus Sunday
>morning to get it all back together and back on the trailer. It would have
>speeded things up to have assembled the materials beforehand, and cheaper
if
>I was able to buy only the quanity of epoxy, cloth and mat I needed.
>
>Besides, when you have the daggerboard out, you can haul it to a
galvanizer.
>
>Hope this inspires confidence. Others on the list will undoubtedly point
>out deficiencies in my methodology and have excellent suggestions to offer,
>Mac Davis, Kelpie, WWP19#804, Aripeka, Fl
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: Eric Johnson <etj@nwlink.com>
>To: West Wight Potter Mail List <wwpotter@tscnet.com>
>Sent: Sunday, August 15, 1999 11:35 AM
>Subject: Potter 19....rocks 20
>,snip>
>
>As I feared the lower rear of the daggerboard slot was crushed
>pretty badly too. I had thought I might repair myself the damage if the
>extent of it was only the upper front of the trunk, since its easy to get
to
>and usually above-the-waterline, but this damage underneath would be tricky
>to fix correctly and being always underwater, I'll feel better if pros do
>it.
><snip>
>