Rebedding Deck Hardware

[Soundevice]

Hello!

I'm a recent purchaser of a '98 26X and am quite excited to enter this forum! I was curious of any thoughts/opinions regarding deck hardware rebedding and in particular, chainplate rebedding. The boat has been stored in a boathouse for 90% of it's life (thankfully!) and is in fantastic shape compared to the 2 other comparable Macs I checked out. There is no sign of leaking on any deck hardware but I plan to moor in a slip 6 months of the year and possibly want to do some preventive maintenance to prevent any damage. My questions:

-since the boat is 20+ years old, is it prudent to remove and rebed all deck hardware (not necessarily all at once!), if easily accessed?
-The chainplates appear to have rivetted trim covers. Does removal involve drilling out rivets? What is the best way to reattach, if so?
-There is a small amount of black discoloration beginning to show on parts of the deck. Would the best coarse of action be to remove hardware and refinish the deck at this point?

Though the boat is in great condition, I really want to go through the entire thing to keep it that way. I plan to use the boat this year so not looking for too extensive and time consuming repairs all at once but would like to fiddle around while hanging out at the slip and slowly bring the boat back to as close to new as possible! I appreciate any thoughts and/or recommendations!!

PS- the boat is in Pittsburgh, PA. Pretty average temp, humidity and rainfall, nothing too extreme...

BH

[Inquisitor]

Welcome to the forum. It sounds like you got one of those barn find / cream-puff. My M is only 14 years old and someone with as old a craft will certainly chime in, but I've never heard of chain plate being a structural issue to need scheduled re-work like some bigger boats. If you don't see any evidence of water intrusion, you're probably safe. Since its been inside most of its life, and as a test you might want to get on top and hose the joints down. If you still don't see any water intrusion, I'd say check it off and head to the next on the list... or out to sail and enjoy the new baby.

VBR,
Inq

[Russ]

Welcome to the forum. New guy buys pizza. Sorry, it's the rule. We have 20 years of experience here for the searching. Click the search (upper right) and ask away. Which might yield results like this

https://macgregorsailors.com/forum/view ... eal#p27160

[Soundevice]

Thanks to both replies and any time y'all find yourselves in the 'Burg, pizzas on me!

As the chainplates, in particular, take so much wear and tear, they are of concern to me. That said, I removed the 2 plugs below deck to expose the bottom of the plates and they look clean. I'm inclined to give it a wait and see approach though there is no visible sealant around the trim piece on deck. If there were simply screws holding it in place, I'd pull them and have a look but drilling out rivets and then reattaching unnecessarily isn't too appealing as I have plenty of other items to go through. I plan to do a basic tuneup on the Honda 50 and force my 14 year old son to polish the hull to a mirror finish and we're out on the water this Friday!
I will utilize the search function though, admittedly, I really was kinda excited to actually get to post something since I got my dream 26X!!! And I appreciate not getting my head torn off for making such a 'stupid' choice on a poor sailing, poor motoring, generally ugly and all around terrible boat! I don't quite get the anger swirling around these Macs! For me, living on a river but wanting to be able to sail here and there via trailering, it was the perfect choice and hope to have her for many years. Thanks again for the thoughts, see you out there-

BH

[pitchpolehobie]

BH welcome! I'm in Columbus west of you with my 02 . what cruising spots are you utilizing?

[Be Free]

I'm with Inquisitor on this one. If your boat has been under cover for most of its life it is probably not going to need much work to get it back on the water.

You've already looked at the chain plate bolts and seen that they appear to be fine. You can (just barely) see the forestay bolts if you squeeze all the way up in the v-berth. Check them out as well. I think you will find they are just fine.

Look carefully at all of the connections on your stays. Check for damage or corrosion on the turnbuckles. Pay particular attention to the stays themselves. If any of them show any rust or even one broken wire replace them. They are not expensive and are certainly less expensive than a new mast if it comes down while sailing.

Check the gasket on the forward hatch. Make sure that the hatch is locked down before you go to the next step.

Check the bilge for any existing moisture. Assuming it is dry, hose down the topside. If you have any leaks it will likely be around the chainplates or at the deck/hull seam. Hopefully there will not be any but as long as they are not too bad you can still use the boat and plan to work on them during the winter.

Pull the cover of at the rear of the aft berth. It originally had a couple of small screws in it but they may be gone by now. Check the small hose that connects the engine well to the drain in the transom. We've recently had a report that one boat had cracked this hose from ice during the winter. Make sure it is not cracked, missing, or disconnected on either end.

Check the hoses under the galley sink and the head sink the same way. They are too large to freeze given the small amount of water that may collect in them but they may be missing or disconnected.

The chainplates on a Mac really don't take that much wear. It is not a high performance boat and carries a surprisingly small amount of sail for its size. My Prindle had about the same sail area and less than 1/8th the weight.

Examine all of the running rigging for signs of deterioration or wear. Make sure that nothing has been chewing on them. You are not likely to break something on the boat if one of them breaks but it will cause you to lose control.

You did not mention the trailer. If it is steel go over it with a hammer. Tap everywhere you can reach listing for changes in the sound that may indicate serious rust damage inside. Pay particular attention to the tongue and the axles.

If the boat has not been moved in a long time you should plan on rebuilding the hubs with new seals and bearings as soon as possible. You can jack up the tire, spin, and listen for any sounds of dry or damaged bearings but nothing beats actually knowing the condition of your hubs and spindles after you've rebuilt them.

Trailer tires wear out more often from time than from mileage. Check the date code on the sidewall. Replace them if they are more than 6-7 years old or if they show signs of dry rot (cracking of the surface of the rubber in the sidewalls).

For some reason rodents like insulation. Check the trailer wiring for signs that they have been snacking. There is not a lot of wiring in a Mac and most of it is in an area that even a mouse would not choose to go into. Pull out the breaker panel and make sure they have not been up there. Also, take off the port side cover on the steering pedestal. There is wiring in there that they might be attracted to. There is some wiring that runs through the aft berth. It's easy to see and check.

I think you've got a real "find" there. Congratulations.

[svscott]

Welcome to the forum and congrats on your new boat! I'm 2 hours North up I-79 in Erie and just bought a 1999 26X last fall. Presque Isle Bay and Lake Erie offer up a whole bunch more room to roam than the Pittsburgh rivers and it's an easy drive. I've been sailing a 1997 26D on Lake Erie since 2005.

I've worked in and visited Pittsburgh a many times and I imagine boating there MUST be easier than driving there!

[Soundevice]

Morning All!

I'd apologize for my delay in responding to the above posts but...I WAS WORKING ON MY BOAT! Man, that feels great to write, haha!! Great weekend in Pittsburgh, perfect weather and a fun project to tear into.

-@ Pitchpolehobie- I was actually just in c-bus last week. Did a recording project with a buddy right outside of Dayton. I took sailing lessons last year on Lake Arthur but have not really looked into more spots to trailer to. Initially, I plan to practice out on our rivers but then really want to get out on Erie (about 2 hours away) to get some experience. Any suggestions as to great spots are appreciated!

-@Be Free- Thanks for the rundown list. I've gone through each of your suggestions but won't bore y'all with a response to all of them! I will say:
-the gasket on forward hatch is showing daylight. Is this a specific type gasket or can I pick something up that's suitable for car doors?
-the aft berth panel was absolutely disintegrated, looked like some type of luanne ply and rotted cloth. Pulled that and plan to leave it open? There is a decent crack in the 'basin' below the motor (not sure what this is called!) and is barely visible on the exterior but definitely was leaking water. I'm going to epoxy/glass the interior and gelcoat repair the exterior and this should resolve. The hose looks good there.
-I did find a spot of rigging that the SS cable has frayed. Its at the top of the roller furler and I've not taken it apart yet. Its about 6" but I'm not certain on the connection and so perhaps another post or search (see Russ, I'm learning!) will be in order.
-The trailer has been the bane of my boat buying experience! PA is pretty stringent on trailer so this was the single most difficult part of buying the boat. Luckily, this trailer had brakes (poor condition) and is the original Mac trailer, never even re-painted. I looked at some that had so much paint slopped on it was nearly impossible to inspect. That said, on my pre-2 hour freeway journey home, I pulled over for a quick safety check and found the right wheel was hot enough to fry an egg! After a panicky session on my phone to find a trailer repair and a hotel stay in Erie, the brakes were unstuck and we were on our way. As soon as the boat is in the water (Friday, woohoo!!) I plan to overhaul the trailer and again, I'm sure more posts/searches to follow!

-@svscott- If you waded through the above story, you see I purchased the boat in Erie. The silver lining in breaking down was that my wife and I got to explore Presque Isle, what a gem!! After developing my sea legs a bit, I can't wait to explore that area. Plenty of spots to pull up on the beach and beautiful open water. I'm aware of the quick weather up there and once again, thankful to have 50hp to push me out of it if I screw up and choose a poor day to get out on the water. I'd appreciate any thoughts on sailing up there as I plan to utilize that resource as much as possible...

Not sure of the forum protocol but since I may have some experienced ears on this post- I found these cracks in the linkage for my Honda 50hp. Is it possible to cut these and refit ( I have a ton of slack) or are these factory attachments? (Note the cracked sleeve on the gray cable.)




Thanks again to all, incredibly helpful info on this and all posts I've checked out!!

[Be Free]

There is supposed to be a "ton of slack" in those cables. If you don't allow for a minimum radius on the cables they will be very hard to move. On a related note, if the outside of the cables is cracking there is a high probability that the cable is rusting inside the sheath. I'd recommend replacing both cables if you are replacing either.

[pitchpolehobie]

That looks more like a power cable to me than the steering cable...

[Dougiestyle]

Hi welcome to the group. I have a 98X and replaced both of my cables at the same time. I think they are 14ft. long. You can buy them that make tighter turns and still work good. Google teleflex cables.

[Inquisitor]

Since we've kind of diverged from the O.P. title... I'll ask...

... has anyone converted to the hydraulic type systems? My brother-in-law swears by it for Bass Boats. It would get rid of all the slop.

Something like:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/SeaStar-HK4200 ... 0925001700

[Herschel]

Welcome, as well. Fellow '98 owner down in Central Florida. I have had no chain plate issues with my boat and it stays in a slip all year. I do keep silicon sealant around the fittings to prevent leakage. Renew that periodically. I have replaced my forestay, backstay and the longer/higher shrouds just for peace of mind. I have also done a complete rehab job on an OEM trailer, as well. Mine took a beating over the years sitting out in the elements. Had to have all three weight bearing crossbeams replaced with new. Recommend the full POR15 treatment when you get around to it. https://por15.com/ Switched to disk brakes some years ago. I keep the tires covered with standard covers.
https://www.campingworld.com/elements-d ... ire-covers
Keeping the gelcoat protected has been my biggest challenge. Hopefully, your latitude and winter storage will keep yours nicer longer. I do enjoy the St. Johns River. That is one of the biggest benefits of the Mac's. You can cruise rivers and really enjoy some extended motor cruising. Doesn't always have to be about sailing.

[Soundevice]

I'll check out the teleflex cables and will perhaps open another post to address running the cables. There is more slack than needed, currently, and since it looks like I need new cables either way, I'd like to see how folks have them run back the engine. I saw on other posts water intrusion via the cables and access holes but that doesn't seem to be an issue. The cables hang and lay along the rear berth in such a way that I feel it couldn't have been designed that way! Obviously, keeping the radius from being too tight is important for performance but I don't want them getting bashed around by stored items in that area.
I like the look of the "POR15" paint and will do a little research. Looks better than Rustoleum, ha! When it comes to overhauling the trailer, I will definitely reach out for some advice!

[Herschel]

I like the look of the "POR15" paint and will do a little research. Looks better than Rustoleum, ha! When it comes to overhauling the trailer, I will definitely reach out for some advice!

I'll be here!