Centerboard Pin

[Jim Goodine]

I'm working on an Elver that has a bolt for a centerboard pivot. Judging from the silicone smeared on both ends, it leaked. I thought that the pivot pin was usually only as long as the out-to-out measurement on the cb case and then a retaining disk was bedded and screwed in place to cover the holes on both sides of the case. Any comments? Thanks in advance.

[Ron Hotchin]

Your thoughts are how I did mine. However, whether you can screw a cover onto each side of the case will depend to some extent how thick the sides are - if it's only 1/4" or so, there won't be much to screw into. For my boat, I made an additional 3/4" thick piece for each side of the case and larger than the cover pieces, drilled an oversize hole in each one and filled it with epoxy. Then I drilled a hole the correct size for the pin so the epoxy would act as a bearing, with no wood exposed to the water. I then epoxied the pieces to the sides of the case so they lined up with the original holes (line up the pieces by putting the pin in place and coat the ends with something like WD40 so the epoxy won't stick to the pin) and that gave something to screw the covers to. So far it's working well. Because the pin on my boat is above the waterline, I didn't even have to use bedding compound.

[Bob Smalser]

I like Ron's idea.

I'm currently dismantling a Hartley 14...it's pin is a 1 1/8" machine bolt of mild steel using only rubber fender washers now badly deteriorated by all the rust.

I'd planned on machining a new one of 316 with new fender washers...but I like the epoxy bearing case idea much better for the new pin.

[tidmarsh]

Edson Schock's How to Build Small Boats has plans for casting a centerboard pin cover that uses threaded pipe plugs to close the hole for the pin, allowing it to be removed without unscrewing the plates from the centerboard case. I don't have my copy here at work, but I'll try to scan & post the drawing in the next day or two if you're interested.

[Andrew Craig-Bennett]

If the boat has enough salient keel, put the pin through that, outside the hull. 100% leak free!

[JimD]

Mine is below waterline with SS bolt with home made neopreen washers and a gob or two of plumbers goop. No leak, no rust yet, but cheap and easy to replace if needed. Pulled it out last winter to have a look, won't bother this year.

[Frank E. Price]

Leakless & rust free centerboard pin:

Building my lowball 18' sharpy skiff I whittled the 1" centerboard pin from a scrap of oak for a friction fit. It's located as per Chapelle's drawing -- a few inches above the waterline, with no covers of any kind. Soaked it in creosote and after it dried applied some bear **** and tapped it into the trunk holes. The board is about 2' X 5' X 1 1/2". No leaks, no rust, no problems after two years plus.

Frank

[ 10-14-2003, 08:26 PM: Message edited by: Frank E. Price ]

[ion barnes]

Though this only helps if you are building from scratch, I have read of inserting thru-hull fittings at the required location from the inside of the CB box, push in the pin and screw on the pipe caps. The only drawback is risk of hangups with lines or ankles.

[Jim Goodine]

What great ideas. Yes, Tidmarsh, I'd like to see a drawing of that. Thanks everyone.

[tidmarsh]

Here are the two drawings from Edson I. Schock's How to Build Small Boats:

http://home.bellsouth.net/coDataImages/p/Groups/147/147689/folders/95538/728021CBplate-1.gif

http://home.bellsouth.net/coDataImages/p/Groups/147/147689/folders/95538/728025CBplate-2.gif

[Jim Goodine]

Ahh, yes. Now I have no excuse for doing a grade B repair on my centerboard pin. Thank you so much for the drawings.

[Carl Applebaum]

A S.F. Pelican dinghy I used to own had a setup similar to the drawing, but simpler. The walls of the trunk werre plywood. On each side of the outside of the trunk was screw-fastened a standard plastic (or maybe it was nylon, can't remember)pipe flange with a short pipe nipple screwed into it. Into this and through the cb was inserted a brass or bronze pin of the requisite diameter. Then standard pipe caps were screwed onto each side. It never leaked, and the caps could be manually unscrewed if you needed to pull the pin and drop the cb. One could use brass or bronze pipe fittings. If the wall is thick enough you could screw the nipples directly into the walls. If you are truly worried about leaking, put plumber's pipe dope or teflon tape onto the threads. This setup is cheap, easily made from standard parts, durable, and effective.

[Walcheren]

Hello. A few points. 1: Somehow this page is spread out to several feet. So difficult to read and see the drawings. 2: I am just in the process of putting a new centre board case in a Comet, a 16 footer so I pulled all copies of W.B. that had something on the subject. About a dozen. What a resource that is. 3: We need to remember that the centreboard pin is above the waterline,. That does not mean that water won't get up that high when sailing. Ever sailed with the cap off. 4: The pin is there only for allowing the centre board to rotate, not to withstand the lateral twisting when sailing. This twisting force should be carried by the centreboard hitting the keel below and the inside of the centrboard somewhere half way up the case. So the hole in the centre board should be at least 1/3 of the width of the board away from the upper edge. So consult your W.B. magazine.