Split Teak Coaming

[adamganz]

projec update: taking some advice from folks here, I "repaired" the split coaming boards by drilling vertical holed through the coaming (5/16" x +-6") and filled the holes with ss rod and epoxy. doesn't look great yet, but the coaming is much more rigid. a few photos.

will sand and likely leave the wood natural

[tjr818]

That sounds like a good idea. Where did you get the SS rod?

[Dick Kobayashi]

Get some new or even better old brass hinges, cut the part that holds the pins off and sand smooth. Then attach with brass wood screws. This will 1) increase the strength of the wood, 2) prevent the crack from widening and 3) save a hellava lot of work. The brass will turn green like all the other brass on your boat. You might even get compliments. Our beloved advisor, John Vigor, has advised that the only time to work on teak is when you sell the boat. My 1983 25D's wood has never seen oil or varnish/cetol which once on needs to be maintained.

This is a case where "less is truly more"

[adamganz]

Tim, I bought the SS rods through Amazon; don't recall the actual retailer. I bought a bunch of 12" lengths to test diameter against the coaming thickness, then picked up a longer piece and cut to size. Once I had all the parts the installation took no time at all. I wish I had pried the coaming board apart and filled the crack with epoxy as well. Adam

[Pembquist]

I've never worked with teak so this might not apply but I have made a few kayaks and repaired a few wood handled tools,(madock, axe etc.) and I've used a light fiberglass cloth laminated with epoxy, (system 3 silver tip,) with good results. In the case of the kayaks I finished them with a good glossy spar varnish like petite or such.

[Ben Coombs]

Ours was split and fixed by the PO. They took the coaming off, clamped it together and then drilled holes up from the bottom edge and screwed it back together. You can barely see the crack. Now that they are all varnished up you can't see it.

[Tom Carter]

Adam,

What diameter rod did you end up using? I know you said that you drilled 5/16" holes but were the rods the exact diameter or did you use something a little smaller to allow the epoxy to fill in around it. I'm asking because I am about to do the same thing...

-Tom

[adamganz]

Hi tom, I need to double check. I used a bit slightly larger than the rods. Looking back at my order I can't determine whether the rods were 3/16 or 5/16. The may have been 3/16 as I believe I bought a 7/32 bit. I can confirm on weds. I wanted the fit to allow a small amount of epoxy to surround the SS rod. My coamings are really thin so I had to use smaller rods than I initially planned. Adam

[adamganz]

Tom, confirming that the ss rods I used were 3/16. The drill bit unfortunately doesn't have any markings on it but it is slightly bigger than the rods. Adam

[Tom Carter]

Thanks Adam! I bought some 3/16" rods from McMaster Carr but didn't have them when I was down at the boat last weekend and, as I was looking at my coamings, I was nervous that I wouldn't be able to drill the holes slightly larger.

Other than filling the actual crack with epoxy as well, do you have any other recommendations on this project in hindsight?

[Steve Laume]

If you are going to be using a metal rod as a long dowel it should not be smooth. I have done a couple of projects where I have used threaded rod. This gives the epoxy a great bite on the wood and rod. For my belaying pins, I needed to use smooth stainless for the pin but it also needed it to hold in the handle. The solution was to grind a bunch of spiral grooves into the part that would fit inside of the wood. You really need something for the epoxy to grab hold of. If at least one of the grooves runs the length of the dowel it might make it easier to install and it will not act as a piston. You want a fairly lose fit as epoxy has excellent gap filling properties. The hardest part will be pushing the dowel in if there is not sufficient room for the extra epoxy to squeeze out.

Masking off the area would be a great idea, Steve.

[adamganz]

Tom,

Drilling the holes was the hardest part. I stood above the coaming with the drill and was able to avoid blowing through the sides. As noted, you need to use a larger bit. Test out a few sizes before you buy the long bits. Not cheap.

Def mask the repair areas. I used a syringe to get epoxy into the holes; and put epoxy on the rods before inserting them. The rods slowly rose out of the holes probably due to trapped air. I used another rod to push them down fully. I also mixed teak saw dust and epoxy to top off holes. Haven't sanded it yet so cant report on how that looks.

Good luck!

Adam

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