Seeking advice on replacing thin, curved trim on stern

[preserved_killick]

Hi Everyone,

On my '65 Alberg 30 I have a piece of damaged trim (rubrail?) that hides the seam from fiberglass transom to deck at the stern.

See: http://www.fongemie.com/pubs/taffrail.jpg

I have yet to remove this (waiting until the boat is under cover), but
will need to deal with it before next season.
If I can get it off without splitting it, it may just possibly be
salvageable, but I doubt it.

The section appears to be made up of as many as 5 strips of wood
laminated together and curves on two planes.

I'm thinking that it may be difficult to build up a new one with the curves. Any thoughts on how best to proceed would be appreciated.

-Jeff

[keelbolts]

Hopefully, somebody with an Alberg 30 will know all about this trim piece. Just looking at your photo, I'd guess the inlaid strips are either not original or cover up the fasteners that attach the main trim piece. I have no idea why there are two of them. I can't imagine it will be hard to replace.

[preserved_killick]

Yes, it may not be original. On the sides of the boat there's a long metal trim that covers where the toerail meets the hull. I'd guess the original was metal in the back too.

[Quetzalsailor]

Seems to me that that built-up piece might be an amateur's replacement; I doubt a '60's builder would have done it - he'd have had access to decent stock and craftsmen.

Start by getting a look at another Alberg 30, or similar transomed boat. It's possible that an original piece was bent in one axis and sawn for the other. (An arc-ed piece sawn from a wide board). Experiment with strips of wood to see what you can bend and in what thickness. If it seems at all possible, by flexure and by observation of other boats, then consider building a 1-off steambox. Teak is expensive; you can rehearse by making the piece in pine. With success, do it again in the Teak. A steambox can be any rust-free enclosure; PVC will soften, but strips of plywood or whatever comes to hand will do. One end on a pot of water on your backyard grille, the other on a stepladder, closures and connections done in aluminum foil, a meat thermometer in the high end. Once 'done', you'll need a form to drop the very-hot-but-rapidly-cooling piece into. For bending in one plane a bit of plywood with blocks affixed to form a tighter-than-required curve does fine. For three dimensions, a stiff, wide enough plank, with blocks placed for lifting the ends and others for forcing the middle sideways does fine; have the C clamps at the ready. Rehearse, you don't have much time.

If the curves seem too extreme for bending, consider laminating. I've been making frames in a Flying Dutchman, laminated in 1/16" mahogany veneer. Veneer doesn't like to be bent sideways (it would rather buckle), so some shapes have either to be accepted or made in wider veneers cut to the right curve. Your trim could be made in, say, 1/8" veneer or 1/4" -3/8" lamina resawn from thicker stock; in either case, the stock won't want to be bent sideways, so appropriate widths will have to be used.

[Rachel]

I can take a look/photo of mine this afternoon and let you know how they compare. I have 1967 Hull #221.

Rachel

[preserved_killick]

Rachel, that would be great.

Quetzalsailor, I agree. I'd like to try replacement using just one piece of wood if possible.

Once the boat is covered, I'll remove it to see what it attaches to and how.

-Jeff

[David VanDenburgh]

Not exactly a closeup, but this is the area on my A30 - aluminum secured by screws into the fiberglass.

[Rachel]

I took a detailed shot of that area this evening, although I'll have to e-mail it to someone to have it hosted so I can post it here (which I will do). But to save suspense, it looks similar to Tradewinds. Basically, it's a stainless trim piece that is similar to the one that comes down the side of the hull to meet at the corner, not a wooden piece like you have. The corner joint between the two metal pieces is not even remotely fancy.

Edited to say: Oh, I see Tradewinds' piece is aluminum. I think mine is stainless, but I'm not positive.

[preserved_killick]

Rachel,

You can always email it to me:
alberg30NH atsigngoeshere GMAIL.COM.

I can put it in one a server and post a link.

Thanks,

Jeff

[preserved_killick]

Thanks David. I was thinking that was the case. I have what looks like stainless all around, except for this section.

You wouldn't have an extra 60's era alberg 30 stern trim would you?

-jeff

[David VanDenburgh]

No problem. After reading Rachel's response, I checked mine to see if it is aluminum and not stainless, and it seems to be aluminum. If it is stainless, it's pretty flimsy stuff.

Sorry, I don't have any extra pieces laying around.

I'd love to see more pictures of your boat if you're able to post them.

David

[Rachel]

Jeff,

Here's the photo of the port quarter of my A-30, showing the two pieces of metal trim, and how they meet.



I don't think a piece like that has to be one you find off of another A-30. Jamestown Distributors (for example, because I happen to have their catalog open in front of me) has stainless, solid-back half-round in 1" and 1-1/4". Well okay, it's kind of expensive, now that I look: $300 - $500 for a 12' piece! It's the solid back that does it.

Maybe scrounging is the way to go. But you could probably salvage a piece off of lots of different types of boats from that era. Did the Triton/Ariel use solid-backed stainless for their hull-deck joint trim? I bet some people who've replaced it with wood might have some extra.

By the way, thanks to all for the offers and help hosting the photo.

Rachel

[preserved_killick]

Thanks Rachel.

Makes me wonder why mine is missing. I don't see any signs of damage. Looks like it would be difficult to damage that piece of metal without smashing up some fiberglass.

-Jeff

[dmairspotter]

McMaster has 6'lengths of 3/4" half round for about $50

[Rachel]

True, although I don't see that they have half-oval. Not that you couldn't use round, of course.

[preserved_killick]

Using metal sounds interesting. I did think of that after seeing your posted pictures. Currently, I have a mold made of the transom and some 1/8 thick by 5" wide mahogany that I'll laminate as soon as I acquire some additional clamps.

I was reluctant to try the solid metal since I was afraid I could not bend it to fit a smooth curve w/o dorking up the metal. It would need to be pre-bent off the boat so it would hold the curve more-or-less..correct? It would take some monster fasteners to bend it while fastening to the boat.

Is there a good way to do this? In case my lamination plan fails?

-Jeff

[Quetzalsailor]

Thomas Moser, the furniture maker, uses sequential lamina for his laminated cherry Winsor chairs. When glued perfectly, as his are, you cannot see the laminations. Obviously, this works better with sliced veneer rather than sawn and planed.