Replacing keel studs

kocyk25 · May 05, 2022, 05:08:11 AM

Hello everyone.
I don't see any threads about replacing keel studs. Did anyone ever do that? Any information could help.

LogoFreak · May 05, 2022, 11:24:01 AM

They are not studs! They are J bolts cast into the keel during the keel manufacturing process. If you haven't bought the boat walk away or be prepared for a massive expense or a TON of work.

This is my personal experience...
https://jeunesse27.wordpress.com/projects/

Noah · May 05, 2022, 11:37:51 AM

Wow! What did you use to "fill" the voids/holes you cut in the sides of the keel?

LogoFreak · May 05, 2022, 12:14:12 PM

Thickened epoxy

waughoo · May 05, 2022, 12:43:17 PM

Damn!!! What a project!! I didn't know what was coming and when I saw the pencil thin front bolt at the front of the keel I literally "whoah'd" out loud. Dang man. What made you decide to look into that?

kocyk25 · May 05, 2022, 12:59:50 PM

J bolts - that's what I was worried about. They told me that dropping the keel in my boatyard will cost me around $10K. Is drilling and taping a couple of extra holes thru the bilge to install extra studs a crazy idea? Anyway, I will most likely do the same repair as LogoFreak - just need to find a more affordable boatyard. Thank you for the pictures!!

KWKloeber · May 05, 2022, 02:08:06 PM

CTY has a fix that's drilling and sistering the bolts with LONG lag bolts.
The drawing might be on the wiki, not sure.

KWKloeber · May 05, 2022, 02:15:17 PM

I removed and rebed my keel - didn't cost anything extra than the annual pull n storage, except a lot of my time (and normal materials.

Ron Hill · May 05, 2022, 02:56:20 PM

kocy : Are all 6 of the threaded rods (keel bolts) in the same condition or is your picture of just one???

A thought

LogoFreak · May 05, 2022, 03:00:14 PM

Lag bolts are acceptable but in my opinion it's just a bandaid solution that in the long run will come to bite you, not to mention what it will do to the resale value.

However 10k to just drop the keel is insane! Where are you located?

Ron Hill · May 05, 2022, 04:40:45 PM

Note that Gerry Douglas's drawing does NOT specify which Catalinas this drawing pertains to!?! His other drawings always are noted C30/ C34/ C36 etc. I mention that because the weight of the keels change drastically!!

A thought

Noah · May 05, 2022, 05:55:13 PM

A call to Catalina should solve that question? If that is a Catalina 34 "sanctioned" repair method, it should solve any resale concerns, too?

LogoFreak · May 06, 2022, 05:40:08 AM

I guess it depends on the buyer, I personally wouldn't buy a boat with sistered keel bolts, indicates a large problem solved with a bandaid. What's the root cause of the bolts falling? Is the issue addressed with sistering keel bolts?

Proper fix is to at the very least drop the keel and investigate, then decide if they need to be replaced or not.

LogoFreak · May 06, 2022, 06:00:11 AM

Quote from: waughoo on May 05, 2022, 12:43:17 PM
Damn!!! What a project!! I didn't know what was coming and when I saw the pencil thin front bolt at the front of the keel I literally "whoah'd" out loud. Dang man. What made you decide to look into that?

Rust streaks running down the keel when the boat was on the hard. When I purchased the boat I knew there was going to be issues with the keel, it was my first "larger" sailboat and I was still learning about it all. I learned to walk away from a boat with keel problems

Jeff Kaplan · May 06, 2022, 10:52:27 AM

Prior to my purchasing #219, I had a 1974 C27. The keel bolts were in rough shape so I called Catalina and they suggested that I use the 1/2X10 lag bolts. I bought them, 4 I think, and then drilled the holes, not an easy task, but do able. I coated the lags with 3M5200 and drove the bolts, down used wide washer, with an impact driver. Not a really easy project, took some time, but it worked. I never worried about the keel after that. I used a 1/2" drill with long bit. Good luck. Jeff