Easy back stay installation

[Ralph Merkle]

Question ---- I had sent a note as to how to do this several days ago . Since it hasn't been posted as yet , was it ever received or just refused ? Ralph Merkle

[Ralph Merkle]

Ah Ha--just discovered as to why it never appeared , my goof apparently . Anyhow here it is again . For those who are tired of fishing under the deck to install the deck back stay fitting , heres' a suggested solution for your next hull or as a replacement if your fitting keeps coming loose ----and we are not going under the deck much less cut away any of the aft cross member . This is probably not the only way but this one works . I used a Pekabe #455 . For this its best to use a drill press . Find a piece of 3/16ths dowell . (1/4 dia. dowell is OK too) . Cut off a piece about 5/8ths to 3/4 in. in length that allows the original nut and washer to be installed PLUS another stainless steel washer slightly larger in outside dia. than the dia. of the dowell . This additional washer will hide any goofs that occur when you drill the mounting hole for this assembly . Pick a drill bit that is as close to the dia of your dowell as possible . Use this bit to drill a hole in a scrap piece of wood that is about the same thickness as the length of dowell . If you are lucky the dowell should be a nice press fit in the fixture . This becomes your holding fixture for the dowell so as to drill a C/L hole thru the dowell . The object is to keep the drill centered all the way thru the dowell . If it doesn't work the first time do it again with another piece of dowell . Don't forget to use a scrap piece of wood under the fixture to prevent the drill from pushing the dowell thru the fixture . Pick a bit that is as close as possible to the 455's threaded dia but NOT larger . Drill a sample hole in a scrap piece of wood . If you picked the right size bit for this operation you should be able to thread the 455 into the new hole with some difficulty . The object here is that we want the fit to be tight but not so tight that it can't be removed at some later date . If all is well thread the 455 ass'y thru the dowell (with its original washer and the new one). Install a lock washer and the original nut on the free end of the 455 . If you are careful now is the time to use a bit of slow cure epoxy on the nut to secure it to the dowell . A tiny bit of oil on the exposed threads might be a good idea to prevent any errant epoxy from grabbing the threads . Let this throughly cure before proceeding . Use a piecs off 100 grit sandpaper to rough up the outside of the dowell . This is especially important if you happened to use a piece of maple dowell as it may have a glazed finish . While we wanted a tight fit in the fixture a bit of clearence now will give a bit of room for epoxy later . Locate the 56 in. dimension on the aft deck and use the first bit to carefully drill thru . I was never tickled with just a 3/16ths thickness for this mount so I backed it up with a 3/16ths x 1/2 length underneath the back bone . Since the mast pull is at an angle you really need more support for the back stay (my thought only). Now you can install this ass'y any time you choose by applying slow curing epoxy to the outside of the dowell and wiping the inside of the deck hole with the same , just don't over do it and DON"T use any kind of CA as it might flash off before you're ready . Fit check the ass'y by pressing the ass'y into the deck hole as far as it will go but don't over do it , we just want that new washer to fit the deck snuggly , it doesn't carry any load and won't dig into the deck . You might want to put a tiny bit of silicone sealer under the washer for insurance . NOW--- The immediate benifits of this method are---You can easily replace the 455 fitting . You can tighten the fitting as tight as you want without crushing a balsa/glass deck and if the fit of the 455 to the dowell hole was very tight , the 455 is never going to wallow out it's hole which seems to be a recurring problem so I've read .