Cape Dory 22 restoration

[seasailor55]

More photos: First time out after 2 yr. restoration and my first time sailing a Cape Dory!

[barfwinkle]

I have to ask, how big of a chore were the new toe rails? Hopefully I wont get crucified for this but I like 'em. A Lot

Fair winds

[seasailor55]

The original teak toerails/rubrails were beyond salvaging, so the donor purchased these used bronze anodized rails from a boat salvage shop in Kemah, TX.

They were fairly stiff and didn't want to accept the compound curve of the sheer of the Cape Dory, so we first pre-bent a curve in them by placing the ends on sawhorses and forcing the center of the rails downward until they had nice sweep to them. We then dry fitted them using stainless screws every 12" starting at the bow, working aft until they were snug, then trimmed them to match the corners of the transom. We removed them, applied 3M 4000 sealant the length of the rails, and reinstalled them. It helps to have several pairs of hands, one to drive the screws, and others to hold the rail snug against the sheer, especially once the sealant is applied.

The biggest hurdle we found was drilling the screw holes, as the Cape Dory22 hull/deck joint is almost 3/4 inches of solid fiberglass and resin sealant. We found that drilling slow and pulling the bit out often to clear out the cuttings helped, and that it was necessary to also caulk each screw before we drove it to prevent leaks.

I was worried about the aesthetics of the boat without the teak rails and obtained blueprints of the originals in order to fabricate new ones. I decided against it when considering the fact that this boat will be used for sail training, and I didn't like the thought of inexperienced sailors slamming that nice teak against a dock, not to mention the prospect of drilling and plugging almost a hundred fastener holes. The boat already has plenty of teak, and these slotted rails provide a number of options for genoa sheet snatch block and fender line attachments, and match the winches, ports, cleats, chainplates, and lifeline stanchion bases.

[barfwinkle]

Thank you and again I like it.....

Fair Winds

[seasailor55]

One thing I have considered is mounting a 3/4" thick X 1-1/4" wide teak rub rail below the slotted rail, which would preserve some of the traditional look while retaining the utility of the slotted rail.
But for now, no more work, just plenty of sailing!