Bow Fairleads - advice required

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Bow Fairleads - advice required

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Castoffs
France
30 Posts

Posted - 11/08/2015 : 09:52:36 Castoffs's Homepage Edit Topic Reply with Quote View user's IP address Delete Topic
A bow fairlead has been torn off Scarab in a storm.
I don't think these can be accessed from below to allow the fairlead to be bolted through the deck? Can it be drilled through successfully?
Is the only repair to re-glass the bolt back into the deck?
Has anyone done this repair before?
yerffoeg
United Kingdom
48 Posts

Posted - 22/08/2015 : 00:49:44
About 10 years ago I replaced all of Carion's deck fittings. I ended up putting three good-sized self tapping screws through each of the two new bow fairleads. At the time I wasn't happy that this arrangement would be strong enough, but have had no problems since. The cleats absorb most of the force acting on a line, rather than the fairleads.

yerffoeg
United Kingdom
48 Posts

Posted - 22/08/2015 : 00:51:14
Should have said Cariona!

Castoffs
France
30 Posts

Posted - 22/08/2015 : 07:54:09 Castoffs's Homepage Edit Reply Reply with Quote View user's IP address Delete Reply
The problem here is that the bow drops below the mooring so there's an upward force on the fairleads which proved too much in a storm.
Edited by - Castoffs on 22/08/2015 08:17:20

yerffoeg
United Kingdom
48 Posts

Posted - 22/08/2015 : 10:50:20
Is it a swinging mooring? In that case I agree that screws alone might not be adequate to hold the fairleads.

Ideally you need to get fixing bolts right through the deck moulding with nuts on the other side; I seem to remember looking at this but found it impossible on the Sabre. However, it would be worth looking in the roof of the anchor chain locker to see if it can be done with long through bolts.

As you suggest, the only solution might be to drill out large and deep holes where the original fixings were, fill the holes with epoxy plus hardner, and replace the fixing bolts before the epoxy hardens. It might be worth putting a nut on the ends of the bolts to increase grip inside the epoxy.

Might there be some way of bringing your mooring line through the bow fitting, instead of a fairlead, thence to the samson post or a cleat?

Castoffs
France
30 Posts

Posted - 22/08/2015 : 11:28:56 Castoffs's Homepage Edit Reply Reply with Quote View user's IP address Delete Reply
The fixings are blind and long as far as I can see so drilling right through will be a last resort. It would be difficult to predict the exit of the bit and if not aligned correctly could even come out through the hull.

We are bows on to a concrete wall that's higher than the bow at low water/high pressure and the Mistral comes in head on. 4 lines are needed on the bow for security and 2 springs via the winches so something has to go through the fairleads.

yerffoeg
United Kingdom
48 Posts

Posted - 22/08/2015 : 16:37:09
Despite what I said in the previous post, drilling a bolt hole right through the moulding might still be a feasible and stronger option, depending on whether the moulding on the inside under the fairleads is squared off or sloping; if the latter then it wouldn't work. Yours is a slightly unusual situation where, from time to time, you get an extra powerful strain on the fairleads.

With regard to securely refixing the fairleads, I had a similar problem when I replaced the Sabre genoa tracks. There was a need to drill right through the moulding so that it would be possible to get a bolt right through, and be able to put a washer and nut on the inside. As you imply, one is not sure where a drill hole is going to end up in this situation!

What I did for the genoa tracks was as follows. I used a small gauge bit to drill a pilot hole to find out where the hole would exit. The problem is that a small bit is not usually long enough, but I drilled slowly and put the bit in at the very end of the jaws of the electric drill. I decided it would not matter if the tracks were not exactly on the centre of the fibreglass deck moulding, but slightly inboard (same for fairleads). If the hole went nowhere it could easily be filled. Anyway, I got lucky: the holes went right through to the inside to a perpendicular moulding so it was easy to fit nuts and washers. I used the extra long bolts that Holts and others sell to secure the Barton genoa track. It's been secure over the past 10 years.
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