Rubbing strake damage

[Sabre27Admin]

mturvey
United Kingdom
10 Posts

Posted - 10/11/2008 : 11:39:57
Has anyone any experience of replacing a damaged rubbing strake?

I'm afraid that Sabreon's port strake, from a yard aft of the bow to midships, was torn off by a collsion with ladder on a post in Portsmouth Harbour and there was some damage (apparently superficial) to the fibre-glass of the toe rail. The hull/deck joint does not appear to have been disturbed. we were motoring in flat water at 3/4 speed at the time.

These things are always the fault of the skipper of course, even when he is is not helming. I hadn't noticed that the (rather short) crew was helming while standing astride the cockpit with his head to the stbd side of the boom. A vicious post, lurking hidden from view on the port side, then leapt unexpectedly from the water and struck us cruelly.

Any hints and tips on DIY replacement or on a competent shipwright somewhere near Fareham, where Sabreon sits on a pontoon mooring accessible from the shore, would be gratefully received.

Mark
Mark Turvey
Sabreon; Fareham
yerffoeg
United Kingdom
48 Posts

Posted - 08/12/2008 : 20:05:50
I took off and replaced the whole of the rubbing strake on Cariona, including a broken section the starboard bow. My main reason for doing so was because of the dreaded leak that was occurring at the join between the hull and deck – a known Sabre problem. Putting on a new curved section of strake on the transom was a story in itself, and possibly the most taxing job I have ever done.

Do you have the bit of wood that broke off ? You could make use of it as a pattern to make up a new piece or even make use of it: screw it back on and then fill the joins between the sections of strake with epoxy resin thickened with appropriately coloured granules.

What I did was got a new section of strake machined by a boat Wright. I made a scarf (diagonal cut) on the end that would fit against the olde section of strake with a corresponding scarf on that as well so the two sections marry up neatly. I then counter bored the requisite screw holes. I used generous amounts of sikaflex to bed the strake. Then screwed it screw down with stainless steel screws. The holes in the edge of the deck obviously need to be predrilled. Use teak bungs to fill the recesses in the strake that hold the screws. Make sure the bungs are the correct size, and glue then in with expoxy. When the epoxy has dried, cut any protruding bung with a fine hacksaw or a chisel. Then sand down to the surrounding wood.

I think that your solution partly depends on your woodworking skills and how you want the new section to blend in with the old rubbing strake. I used a dark wood stain on the whole of the strake – not to everybody’s liking. The main advantage is that it is the best external wood preservative – forget varnish - and it colours everything the same, including any epoxy you used to fill up the gaps between the sections of rubbing strake. If you don’t do it this way and want the bare wood to show then you might need a boat Wright to do the job for you!