Lead slab installed behind starboard side water tank?

Jack ORourke · April 22, 2020, 08:30:11 AM

There is a 37" x 11" x 2.5" slab of lead behind the starboard sidewater tank. I spoke to Catalina Yachts and was assured they did not do this and the PO says it was already there when he purchased the boat. It must weight over 400 lbs and I cannot imagine what was involved installing it. I apologize if this has already been addressed but while my searches have resulted in numerous post about "list to port" issues, there is nothing about this much additional weight. The boat now shows little or no listing yet I am compelled to remove this dead weight. Has anyone heard of this before? Comments? Pics available.

Jack ORourke
1992 Tall Rig / Fin Keel #1204
"Kumatage"

Ted Pounds · April 22, 2020, 10:15:26 AM

If it ain't broke don't fix it.... Just a thought. 😉

ewengstrom · April 22, 2020, 11:15:34 AM

They definitely do have a port list to them....why not leave it alone and see if it bothers you or not? As Ted says, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it".
You may not even notice it being there and it can't hurt to leave it be for a bit.....cause you're sure gonna work your butt off getting it outta there.

Stu Jackson · April 22, 2020, 12:06:38 PM

Jack,

Some less than stellar thinkers on other boating forums have advocated adding lead (ingots, bars, slabs) to offset lists on some boats.

The only USEFUL lead is in a battery or two.

Yes, CY did NOT do that.

Some dolt did it.

Get two heavy friends to stand on the deck on the opposite side from your lead and see what it does for the boat's trim. That way you'll know what it will look like when you take out the lead.

I've never heard of any advantage of say, driving around in your car with 400 pounds of lead in it, same for your boat.

This is from before 1999: https://www.c34.org/faq-pages/faq-port-list.html

Good luck.

Ron Hill · April 22, 2020, 02:32:08 PM

Jack : Your lead slab takes correcting for a list to new heights!!

What you could try is to remove the slab and see how the boat handles? Maybe cut the slab in half? I just loaded my boat so heavier items are on the starboard side. Parasite weight is just that - dead weight!!

A few thoughts

Roc · April 23, 2020, 07:19:15 AM

Exactly on what Ron said. When you load items on your boat; lockers, cubby holes, etc. Put the heavier items on the side that helps level the boat. Take the weight out, see how the boat sits, then look in the lockers to see what you have stored and move them to the opposite side if appropriate.

scgunner · April 23, 2020, 07:41:19 AM

Jack,

I'm definitely in the camp of "if it ain't broke don't fix it", however just a caveat, as the owner of three British cars I do have a tendency to fix things until they're broken. The C34 lean is a topic that pops up from time to time so it's not unusual to find some type of mitigation by a PO. However 400lbs of lead seems a bit like killing ants with a sledge hammer. My boat sits square in the water, it always has and that's without 400lbs of lead(where would you even get that?). While it ain't broke, humping 400lbs of useless weight makes absolutely no sense at all especially if you have any interest in performance. If my boat will sit square without lead weight I would think you should be able to do the same with yours. Most boat owners (like me) carry a lot of stuff on their boats, if it was me I'd ditch the lead, move stuff around, and try to rebalance the boat.

Jack ORourke · April 23, 2020, 12:23:21 PM

Thanks for all the replies everyone this C34 community is great. Hopefully we can launch in May ( Burnham Harbor, Chicago). Once in the water I will see what effect counter ballasting has. If the change is minimal then this slab has to go. Should be interesting. Thanks again.

scgunner · April 24, 2020, 07:36:01 AM

What amazes me is this problem(not really a problem)bothered to PO so much he either found or had made a 400lb chunk of lead, horsed the thing down to the boat and installed it. You might want to take a good look around the boat and see what other interesting mods he came up with.

lazybone · April 24, 2020, 12:15:33 PM

Maybe the PO had a plan for that chunk of lead and maybe it involved his wife? (Or the other way around).

Why waste an anchor.

Ken Juul · April 25, 2020, 02:34:57 PM

you may want to remove it while the boat is on the hard. I'm sure your yard has a lift that can accommodate 400 lbs. I don't any friends that can lift that kind of weight, much less get it down the dock and into a truck. As others have said, it is easy to mitigate the inherent list by stowing thing on the starboard side.