I capsized yesterday and took on a lot of water. It took two hours to drain all the water out of the drain hole. There is a large opening (not in the fiberglass but in the seam between deck and hull) at the location of the starboard stay. There is no caulk there, whereas most of the rest of the perimeter of the boat is pretty well caulked. We were not really sailing all that hard but the rail did go under water. When that occurred, the boat became an unsailable scow and filled with water. Then it capsized and turned turtle. Two of us on the centerboard could not right it. I was frankly surprised that it didn't sink.
I need to caulk that crack. Also, a friend suggested I seal the mast to help keep it from turtling. Does anyone in this forum also recommend sealing the mast? Also, has anyone found a good source of gunwale or rub rail molding? Mine is very brittle and breaks when removed. I would like to replace all of the molding when I recaulk the seam.
Many have filled their mast with foam (I have done so), but it seems no one has ever reported if it made a difference. Those who bought a mast bob have reported it made a difference.
So I guess the mast bob is proven and filling the top of the mast with foam is not (yet ).
I am concerned. What year is your boat? There should not be a gap between the deck and the hull. On my 87, it is seamless as if the seam was completely sealed by an overcoat of glass and gel. If yours is coming apart, the rub rail may be the least of your problems.
The crack is readily visible from outside. Almost all of it is caulked.
Mine is a 1981 and I was surprised too to see the construction. There is at
least a 1/4" gap between the hull and the deck where they meet. This is
caulked all the way around. The place where the caulk was missing is close
to the starboard stay. I would think that fiber glassing the two together
would be a good solution, if time consuming. I do not know how the
deck/cockpit fiberglass is connected to the hull. The current rub rail is a
narrow U shape and attaches only to the deck. The caulk is behind it,
sealing the crack between the rub rail and the hull. I am concerned that the
two flex differently and that it may not be a good idea to solidly connect
deck and hull.
I think you are correct. In the flail, the sheet got cleated.
We are probably going to put bolts in the deck along the edge to squeeze the hull and deck together. A good layer of caulk will be put in between before we tighten things up.