Broken engine control panel box

[John Danicic]

Nice work Bruce.

Sail on

John Danicic
CD36 Mariah #124
Lake Superior

[Russell]

Beautifully done bruce. Teak is certainly appealing, and was my first inclination. But one more thing to varnish... though sitting in the cockpit footwell I imagine even in the tropics the varnish should last awhile as very little UV makes it there.

[Richard G. Abbinanti]

Did anyone every find a replacement as I am looking for one .

Richard

[jerryaxler]

Check some of my old postings. I replaced mine with what appears to be the original and I posted the source.
I'll check myself in a day or two.

[Como No Cruising]

Russel: We found the exact replacement on line. I may have been Sailors Solutions. I don't exactly recall. But the label was on the backside of the original box. Rather pricey for a plastic box and we were in Grenada at the time (Last Year). So, we removed the box and cleaned it with lacquer thinner, sanded with 100 grit and fiberglassed with close weave cloth and West Epoxy, both inside and outside. Three layers of cloth inside and two on the back. Sanded , applied one coat of epoxy thickened with fairing filler, sanded smooth and sprayed with White Appliance enamel from Ace Hardware. Looks nice. See it on our Picasa public postings. Almost forgot. I used 3 or 4 extra layers of glass cloth on the bottom of the panel where the controls are located. Photos can be seen at http://picasaweb.google.com/boatcomono/ ... nginepanel#

How did the cabin sole project work out?
Will










y

[Como No Cruising]

Russell: Link I posted does not work. This does-
http://picasaweb.google.com/boatcomono
At least I hope that it does. I still am a computer dummy.

[jerryaxler]

The name of the company that supplied the original panel for my CD 36 was Sailing Specialities, Inc. and the web site is ssicustomplastics.com

[Matt Cawthorne]

My choice was to make a box out of fiberglass. I did not want to add to my list of teak chores. The reason for replacing the old one was that some of the instruments (and the ignition key) went bad from salt water. I decided to make a new box where the instruments will not get wet unless the water is coming from inside the boat. The key is now down below. It is always on when I am aboard. A second switch in series is a marine switch behind a water tight boot in the half of the box with a door. You can see a few snapshots from the project by following the link.



http://www.cawthorne.org/ECP.html

Matt

[tjr818]

I built this panel from scrap teak and it looks much better than the old plastic ones. I have built several others since and have had good results, they are not as susceptible to UV rays and can be custom built to what ever size you need.





Bruce

Bruce,
i have acquired a bit of leftover teak and I would love to duplicate one of your panels. Can you give us any details? Type of glue? Thickness of wood? Jointing? How have they held up?

[Joe Myerson]

FYI, I punched a hole in the control box for my 25D while trying to remove it for access to the inside of the transom. Following advice received on this board, I repaired it with a two-part epoxy putty. It's held for two seasons. CAUTION: I'm not sure, but I think my engine control box is made of some kind of plastic, not fiberglass. If that's the case, I guess you should disregard this posting.

Good luck.

--Joe

[mgphl52]

I just patched mine using west 2-part and some microbead filler. Epoxied a pair of angle brackets to help reinforce around the shut off cable. Will see how well it lasts...

[tjr818]

We put SS fender washers inside and outside of the box at the shut off cable, that has stopped the flexing of the box, which seems to be plastic rather than fiberglass. I cut 1/4" wide slots in the fender washers so that they could be dropped over the cable rather than pulling the cable and feeding on the washers.

[gates_cliff]

Well, my control panel is disintegrating, attempting to attach pictures, also adding what the wiring looks like.

I really like Russel's solution, although my woodworking skills can't match.

anyone have any suggestions as to how to protect the panel until the end of the season?

[Joe Myerson]

Try this small Florida company. They advertise in “ Good Old Boat.” I bought one of their Lexan covers for my Yanmar, and they have other sizes and models now. I had a question, and one of the owners answered the phone.

Seaworthy Googs is the company, and I think their web address is

Seaworthygoods.com

Good luck.

Joe