Bristol 24 - repairing the arch under the deck stepped mast

[barrington]

Hi all,

If anyone has gone through this process, I really would like to hear from them. To me, it is a bit of a daunting task, and before I put the saw to the deck, if I had a chat with someone who has done this to provide some guidance on what to expect I would feel a lot better.

I am not just going to put an arch down below. I want to get to the real issue, and for that I need access to the support beam.

Thanks!

Mike Casey
Halifax, Nova Scotia

[Lloyd]

Have you got any pictures so we can see what is going on? I built up a new mast beam for my Bristol 27 with a new bulkhead under it but never restepped the mast. So I can’t say how will it worked yet.

[barrington]

Will do, but you won't see much.

[barrington]

Here is a photo. There are four of these, two on each side of the slot where the bulkhead fits. It appears that something sharp is pushing through the roof.

[atomvoyager]

Can you give us more details of what you are trying to do exactly? It sounds like you want to repair the mast support beam because it is visibly sagging on the inside? and the deck is sagging also? Were you planning to leave the deck alone and cut the fiberglass liner and support beam from inside that looks like it is built into the liner? If you do need to cut out the liner and beam from below to see what you have then at that point you can post photos and it will be clearer how to rebuild it stronger.

[barrington]

Please bear with me until I get better pictures. I will be down to the yard hopefully later this week and I'll post these and a better explanation of what I am trying to do.

[barrington]

Hello all, my apologies for the delay. I underwent emergency triple bypass surgery and I am now feeling better!!

I did try to post some more pics but they would not upload.

What I did in the end was to hire a shipwright. He made an assessment by sounding and then drilled some exploratory holes with a drill into the mast step from both the saloon and v berth sides. In his opinion it is solid.

He is now grinding out where he drilled, and an area to the left and right of it. That will then be epoxied with several pieces of cloth. I am satisfied that this will now let me safely sail the boat.

[Eidoloneliz23]

One place you might want to check is the website Bristol29.com that David Browne created.
David has passed but his wife is diligently maintaining the website and keeping it up.
There’s a wealth of information for Bristol Sailboat people.
If you look at what he did with his boat Sally B. you’ll see why it’s possible that your brace IS sagging.
The Bristol factory used bits and pieces of wood and putty, probably polyester and in most cases it has weathered and deteriorated and is no longer sufficient to brace the vertical head door facings which are actually the compression posts on my boat.

I intend to look through David‘s notes and repair mine also.
This might be as enlightening for you as it was for me!

Sounds like you’re back to sailing, but keep an eye on it and if you have a chance do a little exploratory viewing underneath the sole to see how yours is supported it would be good.

Good Luck!
Eliz