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Visually inspected the hull to deck joint and the bonding between the locker bulkhead, hull and deck
and both appeared secure and free from indications of stress or damage. A mild steel backing plate for the
bowsprit fasteners was installed below the forward section of the deck and bonded to the hull. It appeared to
remain serviceable but was quite rusty and moderate metal loss was present along the port side. A welded tang
attached to plate to the inside of hull and no lifting or movement was noted around the plate. Recommend the
plate be cleaned with a wire bush and painted to prevent additional deterioration. Hammer soundings made at
random on the aft section of the foredeck that was accessible were sharp and clear. Moisture meter readings
were slightly elevated. The exposed plywood core around the anchor chain hawse pipe was water stained but
had not deteriorated.
Rust always looks worse than it really is. Wire brush it prep and paint with a high zinc coating.
There are several newer treatments that "convert" rust to a stable condition.
I believe that originally the mild steel backing plates were just coated with an iron oxide primer, that is okay for fresh water conditions, but not for salt water environments.
Not to worry,
I will re-iterate what TJR said above. The rust usually looks worse than it is.
Our backstay "thing" looked about like the plate in the photos above, actually a little worse. When we ground it out, we found that the majority of the material was still there and solid. If we had wire brushed and painted it, it would have been fine. We replaced it with a bronze external piece, but could have gotten by without doing that.
My concern would be figuring out where the water intrusion is, those plates won't rust unless they are exposed to water. In our case, water was leaking from a small gap in the hull/deck joint on the transom.
As for paints, we used a cocktail of Eastwood paints on our CJ7 to prevent rust and they worked really well.
We have a 28 as well. That is very much like the plate in our chain locker. Our surveyor suggested we wire brush it and use "Ospho", not sure if I spelled it correctly. Anyway, that's what I did (3 times over couple of years) and we appear to have had no further deterioration over about 7 years. Our rear plate is in much better shape, but I coated it a couple of times as well.
RUSTED METALS - OSPHO is a rust-inhibiting coating - NOT A PAINT You do not have to remove tight rust. Merely remove loose paint and rust scale, dirt, oil, grease and other accumulations with a wire brush - apply a coat of OSPHO as it comes in the container - let dry overnight, then apply whatever paint system you desire. When applied to rusted surfaces, OSPHO causes iron oxide (rust) to chemically change to iron phosphate - an inert, hard substance that turns the metal black. Where rust is exceedingly heavy, two coats of OSPHO may be necessary to thoroughly penetrate and blacken the surface to be painted. A dry, powdery, grayish-white surface usually develops; this is normal - brush off any loose powder before paint application.
I agree with sharkbait on OSPHO. I've used it before, and it works as stated. CAUTION is recommended while using inside;the fumes are not something you'll want to breath. Maybe use a fan to push air out of the cabin while coating the thingy.
The best top-of-the-line anti-rust, rust encapsulator, is Por-15. This product once applied properly, will stop rust in its track permanently. Check out their website: por15.com
Wire brush all rust flecks out, prep the surface with the recommended bonding product, apply the pro 15 and your rust troubles are over.
Also check out the link on YouTube of how to use it.
POR-15 is excellent. I have used it on a cast iron keel and in salt water. and it does work. Follow the instructions carefully and it will address your problem (assuming the rust is just surface...)
Zeida wrote:The best top-of-the-line anti-rust, rust encapsulator, is Por-15. This product once applied properly, will stop rust in its track permanently. Check out their website: por15.com
Wire brush all rust flecks out, prep the surface with the recommended bonding product, apply the pro 15 and your rust troubles are over.
Also check out the link on YouTube of how to use it.
Sometimes, rust is worse than it looks. It just kept raining down, as I struggle to remove the plate.
I think the boat is waiting for me to capitulate, before it will give in on this.
That sure looks bad to me. Mine was similar but not quite as bad . . . I pulled it and replaced it . . . not fun, but doable. My sprit is no longer platform style but my backing plate is 1/2" G10. I documented on my site how I removed it. I think you could replace it with a steel duplicate pretty inexpensively . . . or spend more for stainless. Some folks might suggest aluminum. However, if I was going to replace it I would sure try to do something with a composite if at all possible. 1/2" or maybe even 1/4" G10 for a CD 28. I'd also incorporate some G10 or fiberglass tube to duplicate the rebar. You can get the G-10 from McMaster Carr. You could epoxy it all together with some fillet and biaxial tape. You'd have to think about the engineering but I think it is doable. There is also a leak . . . probably similar to the leak on my boat . . . between the hull and the deck right under the forward edge of the bowsprit. I think to fix it correctly, meaning that to ensure it does not leak, you'd probably have to remove the bowsprit. There might be some other way to force some thickened epoxy or bedding compound under the lip but it would be hit or miss. To be certain you have it fixed you will have to remove the bowsprit. Fred, from Fenix http://www.sbastro.com/FeNIX/mainFrameSet.htm pulled his baking plate and he has some info on his site about it (a CD 28 of I remember correctly). Some of the older boats have asbestos mish mash between the deck and backing plate so be careful.
I have a CD36 made in 1979. The backing plate was 50% gone, as in not even there! The windlass was being held on by, well, not much. The hole for the chain of the windlass was really cause of all of it. Salt water simply migrated in between the mild steel and the fiberglass. It took 6 Saturdays to remove the remaining rusted mess in that there are 11 bolts to detach and the fiberglass attachment areas. Pure rust bonds to fiberglass like you won't believe. Its not like you have a lot of room in there to work. Cutting torches and fiberglass don't go hand in hand. Never again. I installed a custom stainless steel, 3/8 inch plate with stainless steel bow rod. The machine shop was very patient with me when I would drag in one of my cardboard or plywood templates. One of the hardest things to find were the teak 1 1/8 inch plugs for the bowsprit bolts when you are done reinstalling everything. I finally just made my own with a 1 1/4 hole saw. It was amazing to see the cutting torch edge to the original mild steel plate. Cape Dories are fine yachts, except for that. Don't settle for anything less than the best. Good Luck!
The seriousness of how rust is perceived is inversely related to how difficult and unsavory the repair. The rust didn't look so bad, when I thought of the difficulty of physically removing the bow plate, in a confined space (possible asbestos dust was just icing on the cake). If I wasn't in the process of replacing the bowsprit, I probably would have continued to ignore it. So far I've only been at it for two Saturdays.
I've gained some experience working with FRP, GPO3 and G-10. I plan on securing a new bowsprit, with structural fiberglass frames that span the width of the underside of the deck. These frames will be positioned in locations to secure a windlass, mooring bit and a solent stay chainplate. The end of the frames will be fiberglassed to the hull. Taken together, the bowsprit should be held rigidly in place.
New bowsprit under construction (3/8" GPO3 with a wooden core). The exposed wood will be covered with 4 layers of 1708 biaxial cloth (about 1/4"). Another use for the couple hundred pounds of lead ingots that I found hidden around the boat:
The plate on my CD28 looked the same as many of the photos shown when I inspected it three years ago. I wire brushed it, painted it with rustoleum and decided it was never sink the boat. Today it looks about the same as it did three years ago so rather than take any further actions I will spend my time sailing.
Within the the unlocked homes of the Swedish villages on the shores of the Baltic around the rocks sings the sea.
