NO Balsa Core? Testing ENCAPSULATED Back Plates - E008 

Do you have encapsulated backing plates on your boat? How are they holding up? Share your stories here...!

This is one of the very best sailboat refit blogs out there. I really like your sensible, engineering-based approach and your view to future safety on board. Your videos are really instructive and entertaining. Thank you.

I am really enjoying and learning from your meticulous deconstructions and explanations. Thank you for the effort to record your work and produce these videos.

Love your approach. I'm not just entertained but am learning a lot from your videos.

I have worked on and repaired a good deal of sailboats. Like most builders and repair folks, I watch several channels on the subject. Your presentations show and explain your efforts as good or better then most. After only three episodes I have picked up a bit more useful knowledge thanks mate.

clever diagnosis of the material buried in the bulwarks.

Good lord John, you need to find a place to clone yourself about 15=20 timesto get a crew together to get the beast done before I die..... Fixer upper is a colossal understatement..... It is very cool how you explain things....we get a good idea of what and why you're going thru what is a complicated process. Keep the videos coming and I hope you get some clones!!

John: First kudos on your shed very nice to work in. When pouring epoxy, use foil tape holds better than painters tape and easy to remove when epoxy dries. Nice boat, you are doing a great job! Barney

I watch a lot of refit videos and most of them (Mads, Aladino, Andy… I’m looking at y’all!) are very well done and I feel like they really know what they’re doing. Others? Well, not so much. You’re definitely in the first group. Looking forward to more videos in the future!!

I absolutely love upsizing threaded fasteners when an existing solution has failed. Helicoils are nice for some applications but a larger diameter fastener does essentially the same thing but stronger. Good Call!

This episode once again showcases why you have one of the best channels out there!!! Who talks about the torque specs for bolts? Yet, when it comes to the potential life-and-death integrity of stanchions, it matters...something I would not have thought of until you explained it. This isn't a RU-vid "channel." This is a Master Class on the mechanical engineering behind sailboat restoration. Thank you so much for sharing your outstanding expertise!!

That was seriously educational, thank you.

As always a well done episode. I was glad to see you chose to drill out and up-size the hardware for the stanchions in stead of opting for the Heli-Coil solution. I'm still left with one issue though before I would spend all of this time drilling and tapping ... how do you know what material was used behind the fiberglass to provide structure for the backing plates to flex against-- what is the composition of the bulwarks? Based on what has been seen at the bow so far, the boat has suffered from significant intrusion of water as evidenced from the soaked plywood. Unless you have other information, I would assume that during the construction of the bulwarks, a central core most likely of wood was used to form the basic structure, and then it was fiberglassed over with multiple layers. The backing plates were then added in and glassed over. What bothers me is that the wet plywood was likely in contact with the base of that wood core, which might have allowed the core to wick in moisture (that rusted bolt that you took out could also have compromised the strength of the bulwark in similar fashion). At the very least I would buy a good moisture meter and check the moisture readings both at the stanchion mounts and dead center between them to compare and see if you can detect a difference in moisture content. If there is a rotted wood core in there, then the torque that is exerted by pushing at the top of the stanchion does not have an adequate anchoring point and over a couple of incidents may crack the fiberglass around the stanchion base with flexing. A solution to this would be to cut out and replace the core around the stanchion points with a Divinycell or Coosa board and re-bed the backing plates in the process -- more work, but "better safe than sorry!

Hi John , It's great to have you back, mate. I suspected that the deck was water logged, so I feel you will have to strip the lot. Better get yourself a good pair of knee pads. So much work for you but the end result will be special. Keep at it .Cheers

When tapping multiples the drill is your friend. Chuck up the tap and set the clutch. Your wrist will love it.

I am very impressed with the thorough, methodical way that you addressed the backing plates!

Great video Jon and as usual well thought out repair process, The helicoils are great and if all the bolts were the same and only one or two dodgy ones I would use helicoils every time but considering the mixed threads the drill and tap option is the only logical choice,don't forget the tefgel on installation. cheers

Glad you were able to tap them. I always used the HELOC oils as the last resort on my street rod projects. The wet plywood sucks!! Hope it’s not like that on the entire length.

Great video! Your engineering background is showing. I loved the idea of a continuity test. Brilliant. Retapping the hole is what I would have done also. I wonder how thick the backing plate is. That might have changed the bolt thread selection. Its interesting to me that the plywood under the fiberglass is in tiles like a parquet floor. Why is that? It seems to me that a solid piece of marine plywood would be stronger. Anyway, this is a very interesting video. Thanks for making it!

Great project I am looking forward to following a long. Good luck with it and I’ve just subscribed. 👍

If it doesn't come up just torch it. You can also drag a fine wire between the deck and the fitting.

Restoring a boat of this size and condition seems like a monumental task. I admire the courage and ambition that you possess to tackle such a huge undertaking. I fear that if I were to take on such a project, there’s a good chance it would never get finished. Or I’d run out of money.

Hey, great video bro, really enjoy how you diagnose the different materials and then go forward to a fix. Boats are complicated things, I'd be way out of depth that's for sure but you seem to tackle these jobs with such ease. Well done also on the explanations of what you're doing, very very informative. Keep it going 😊☘

I'm looking at the wood you are calling plywood and I see end-grain balsa. A trick I used to get a part off that was 5200ed on was to use dental floss as a thin saw, today I think I would use some of the new super fishing line like Yo-zuri super braid.

I enjoy your videos as an ex(?) engineer.

Really like your approach to issues and the solutions well explained. As an engineer appreciate your approach. What material will you use for the replacement of the plywood ? If you do finally find balsa what difference would it make if it is wet? Looking forward to next post.

It would be useful and interesting to hear rough estimates of how many hours it took you to do certain tasks. I was interested in how long it took to remove the cap rails and teak decking.

Love your Chanel. Really interesting, great presenting, very knowledgeable . Overall , very entertaining . I hope more people find your Chanel as it definitely one worth finding. Can’t wait for the next episode

Brilliant video. I'm learning so much just by watching you. I like your methodical approach to each issue and the way you explain what you intend to do. Cheers from Australia.

.... you have certainly done research before taking this on and know what to look for. Also curious to see what fuels your optimism that you still will be finding balsam .... thx for the share .. as always .. never stop dreaming, just dream bigger .. have fun be safe, save our oceans .....

Another great video. Super informative. Thanks!

I appreciate the depth you go into with tools, repair options and why you choose the way you are going to repair it. I was in Bellingham this last week the weather is fantastic!!!!

Great video Jon! At least the backing plates are stainless. Hope the elusive balsa will put in an appearance soon!

I think that this channel has so much potential, there is just one thing that you should improve, 20 mins of vid to just two small achievements, basically much talking and very low amount of actions. Don't misunderstand me, I love also the torque details, material thickness and so on, just find a balance between talking time and action time. Nothing to say about quality, for a new channel the quality and details and amazing.

This was great ❤😊

Wow awesome video I learned so much

Solid content.

Another good episode, Jon. As many others have already mentioned, your engineering mindset and explanations are appreciated!

Really enjoying these videos and especially the detailed explanations/science of the process that you are using or trying out to fix the issues. Looking forward to next week! Thanks

Great video again. I’ve used recoils before on engine blocks, fantastic bit of kit. ⚓️👍🇬🇧😎

I really respect the engineering/material-strength aspect of the channel. I understand the impetus of using fillers as a replacement of expensive fiberglass but I fail to understand how the choice of balsa, for example, is (was) considered a choice of material with the loss of integrity when water ingressed causing the filler to deteriorate.

Debond does not soften the 5200. it makes it let go and that is what happened. You did not pull any gelcoat up, so I would say that it worked. 😉

That retap fix should save a lot of work. The hatches definatly look like you could fab new lenses and avoid the costly total replacement.

With respect to the 5200 bedding caulk, my experience is that you're likely to peel a layer of glass when you pull a piece of hardware. Since the hardware came without a layer of glass indicates the solvent you used worked pretty well.

Well done on the stanchion backing plate. I wonder if the bulwark will be strong enough to keep the backing plate fixed in place.

More great content John! I would have never guessed fiberglass could damage your taps and drill bits. In the video you tapped through the fiberglass. Did you continue that process through out your repairs? Or did you switch to drilling a 3/8’s hole through the fiberglass?

Just as a suggestion, if you have access to a drill press, countersink the holes in the stantion bases and use socket drive flat head screws. The end result will look like it was done by an experienced engineer and, more importantly, the tapered underside of the flat head screw is self locking. They won't work loose but will release when you put a wrench on them.

No stanchion could be expected to withstand the force that can be developed by a human body being thrown against a lifeline. The stanchion nearest the impact will completely fail (and probably soften the shock load) in order to spread the load amongst the other stanchions. The lifeline can take thousands of pounds of force for a reason.

5200, the Devils Toothpaste

Staysail deck fitting: when you re-install it MUST be tied to a bulkhead, or have a rigging screw to a bolt through the stem. No backing plate, of any size, will do the job.

IMO the surface area of these bases and backing plates are painfully small , on the stanchions if i saw neatly done backing plates on the hull that would be a very pleasing sight to my eyes , it would instill confidence in the rails or lines and a pretty boat that is also stout equals a sexy boat

I would have drilled a hole and used a bore camera that hooks up to your phone and quality stainless steel is not magnetic.. so if your magnet is collecting metal i wouldn't guarantee that its a decent quality

You mentioned going through a couple of taps. What is their life expectancy?

Hi! So what core material did you decide on?

Would the integrity of the boat benefit from leaving 4 to 5 inch strips of the top deck across the boat for every couple feet of cutouts?

How do you know that the bulwarks are anything but rotted mush with embedded backing plates?

Well done! Have found lots of rotten balsa core in my boat as well low, around leaky portlights and into the deck. The cabintopsides have a layer of balsa in between two thick layers of fiberglass, and the deck has 2 layers of balsa between 3 layers of thick fiberglass. So even with wet core, the deck and cabintopsides are super rigid and show no signs of softness.. anyway, I'll replace the core with foam I think, the Gurit Kerdyn PET stuff, can get it affordably here. What do you think of new core? I also want to build a bow she'd like yours, did you follow a manual?

Safety glasses please

Is she for sale on ebay?

Why not remove top skin all the wat ti the bulwalk?

If…ya wanted to be “that guy”…you could just drill and tap the bad ones and leave the good? Lol. Wouldn’t be the first or last guy to need two wrenches on the same part lol

I am not understanding the search for « balsa ». Whatever soggy bottom (layer) you have, it has to go!

Big project, I understand why you are going into details around things that are generally not mentioned in these RU-vid endeavours however for the viewer who is at the same level of general knowledge as yourself it gets a bit boring and I find myself talking to the iPad saying just get on with it. Thanks

Sorry but backing the tap is no Bueno. Doing so can cause the threads to chip.

Learn how to sharpen your drill bits , you will save yourself some money, a lot of money, I do it free hand which is the worst way to do it . Even that way I usually can sharpen it 5 times before I lose all the angles

Switch to metric. Seriously, it is the gold standard. You want to travel the world. Just Myanmar, Liberia and the USA use your system, the rest of the world uses that other one... oh, right Metric.

You talk to much go work you don't have to tell us everything

Glad you were able to tap them. I always used the HELOC oils as the last resort on my street rod projects. The wet plywood sucks!! Hope it’s not like that on the entire length.