Plastic Classic Forum

Hi Clint, That's a mighty square bolt of lightning (just kidding). Is that an exit hole in the lower center of the exposed area? There doesn't seem to be much consensus on whether or how to protect a boat on the water from lightning. My mast is grounded to a bronze plate on the hull. Was the mast in...

I've decided to try and rebuild my mahogany winch stands. I noticed on ebay today that Triton 227 has stands with a deck supported underlying column of mahogany, whereas mine (hull#188) has a hanging knee attached only to the coaming boards. I've seen the former configuration on other older sailboat...

In Bristol, the Ospreys were trying to set-up shop on a microwave antenna much higher up than a mast. I guess all those brushes on the sailboat masts forced them into Verizon land. I really enjoyed the natural history of the eiders and the red tide in this thread. I remember when fish hawks were rel...

The winch stands on Mahana are laminated 1-by mahogany and showed their age as we were beating to 25 knot gusts on a Sunday last month. For some reason, the s/s screws holding on the bases are sunk into the seams between the laminated wood and don't appear to have ever been very strong. I replaced o...

Thanks, Britton. I should have added that the Ford wrench can handle 3"+ nuts, etc.

My large channel-locks didn't hold when I tried them, but that may be operator skill. I found that an old bronze winch handle fits perfectly in the thru-hull to engage and hold the lugs. I used it with a Crescent wrench for torque- so far no broken lugs. I had never heard or seen a "Ford Wrench...

Mahalo for all the good tips. I like the green patina, too. That's fortunate because oxidation is pretty quick around here.

BTW, Idon84, I believe Tim has a post elsewhere concerning the strength of discolored bronze- I think in the context of replacing his rudder shaft.

What are good home solutions for cleaning old bronze?

My Mom taught me to clean the copper bottoms of Revereware pots with salt and vinegar.

Is there something simple like this that works for bronze?

I'm trying to remove several old bronze thru-hulls and all the fittings are >1 3/4" (too big for the 15" Crescent Wrench sold at my local stores). I'm not eager to chew the pieces to bits with a pipe wrench. What tood(s) do you folks use?

Thanks, all, for the feedback. While I marvel at the longevity of silicon (what other products in a tube give you a 20-yr guarantee?), it doesn't seem to have held up very well as a marine deck sealer- most of it peels very easily. I'll try sanding the gel coat where practical and using rubbing alco...

I am also dealing with the problem of silicone removal prior to putting on an epoxy primer on my deck. The silicone is weathered and often peals up when I rub it with my thumb. Once the stringy snot of old caulk is gone, do I have to worry about germs (=residue)? Is there any test, short of putting ...

David, good on you for putting her back together! Uh...I wouldn't say that I've put her back together yet, but she does float. I wish you could have seen the expression of another Triton owner when he peeked below and I told him my son and I were sleeping on board. He offered alternative accomodati...

Dorothy is now on the hard in Bristol. In a couple months I will start up a new project page for her under her new name-Mahana (Hawaiian for twin). She was on the water for about a month last summer, as dry as one could wish for. As Tim pointed out, at some point in her past she was well-loved and i...