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Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

Catalina 25 Specific Forum

Another off-season thing to worry about!

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hinmo
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USA
248 Posts

Initially Posted - 10/27/2009 : 16:49:59

In attempting to cover my boat for the off-season (cheaply I might add!) I tried to pull out the spreaders (mast laid on my deck) after removing the pins. They don't budge even with a vise-grip and some persuasion. So I took off the plate that holds them to the mast...all good.

Of course my friend (serious J-boat capt) said if the spreaders did not come out of the sockets/brackets, they must be corroded/seized in the sockets and they would be PRONE TO BREAKING under normal operating stress.

Is he right? Come-on...dont I have enough stuff to worry about?

thx

"Kukla" '83 FK,SR

Edited by - on

OJ
Master Marine Consultant

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4382 Posts

Response Posted - 10/27/2009 : 17:01:48

Just like steel, aluminum does oxidize. I would certainly want to remove and inspect them . . . key piece of rigging!

Edited by - on

pastmember
Master Marine Consultant

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2402 Posts

Response Posted - 10/27/2009 : 17:49:34

He is right. Good chance they will fracture at the base, I would deal with it.

Edited by - on

hinmo
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248 Posts

Response Posted - 10/27/2009 : 17:59:05

Seriously - how many folks have checked theirs...and how many actually can remove them?

Edited by - on

Tom Gauntt
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Response Posted - 10/27/2009 : 19:01:40

I checked mine, found one bent, and a good bit of corrosion. Ordered replacements from CD and easily replaced both.

This is a "side-by-side" of a new spreader and the original.

Edited by - Tom Gauntt on 10/28/2009 06:28:07

hinmo
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Response Posted - 10/27/2009 : 21:07:32

$$$$

ok - here goes the off-season budget. Since they did not budge with a vise-grip and hammer, should I be soaking with WD in an attempt to dislodge?

Edited by - on

OJ
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4382 Posts

Response Posted - 10/28/2009 : 00:07:09

BP Blaster works miracles on steel - I wonder how it might work on this application.

Edited by - on

Tom Gauntt
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Response Posted - 10/28/2009 : 06:20:54

hinmo,

Do you have the cast aluminum spreader brackets or the the stainless? If you have the cast aluminum, you should probably look at replacing those rather than wrestle the old spreaders out. If you have the aluminum, go ahead and replace the spreaders and brackets at the same time. The spreaders weren't that expensive from CD. I think the bracket is around $130 and the spreaders are about $30 each.

Edited by - on

aeckhart
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1709 Posts

Response Posted - 10/28/2009 : 07:30:00

I remove my spreaders every season. It makes it much easier to work on the boat when the mast is down on deck and they won't interfere with the tarps and framing when the boat is covered.

Perhaps you already have the stainless sockets and galvanic action has caused the unlike metals to fuse together.

Edited by - on

Renzo
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621 Posts

Response Posted - 10/28/2009 : 08:05:09

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by hinmo
 Seriously - how many folks have checked theirs...and how many actually can remove them?
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
Only those people who store with their mast down.

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OJ
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4382 Posts

Response Posted - 10/28/2009 : 15:42:53

I was crewing on a C&C 38 out of Cleveland one summer when during a race the leeward spreader came off. We were so focused on the what was going on around us we didn't notice. Needless to say when we tacked - the mast snapped in two. The effort and cost of inspecting and possibly replacing the spreaders pales . . .

Edited by - OJ on 10/28/2009 15:43:32

hinmo
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248 Posts

Response Posted - 10/28/2009 : 16:36:09

Yup - its now on my must do list:

1) new rudder ($700)
2) spreaders and brackets ($150)
3) Various standing rigging components ($200)

ARRRGGGHH - another grand!

Edited by - on

Dave Bristle
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Djibouti
10005 Posts

Response Posted - 10/28/2009 : 18:42:16

B.O.A.T. = Break Out Another Thousand!

Are you sure you don't already have the stainless brackets? I thought the change was before 1983, but my memory should never be trusted! Actually, the stainless would better explain some corrosion--dissimilar metals.

Edited by - Dave Bristle on 10/28/2009 18:43:32

hinmo
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248 Posts

Response Posted - 10/29/2009 : 00:28:50

D - pretty sure I do have ss brackets, but am anticipating issues getting the spreaders out and damaging the current ones. Maybe I can salvage.

Edited by - on

pfduffy
Captain

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317 Posts

Response Posted - 10/29/2009 : 07:11:15

I will be dropping my mast to store over the winter and I am adding spreaders to my list of things to check / repair. So my question is assuming that I have corrosion from the 25 years of dissimilar metals living next to each other, when I replace the spreaders, should I coat the end with tef-gel to prevent corrosion in the future or is that stuff only for threaded connections.

Edited by - on

Dave5041
Former Mainsheet Editor

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3758 Posts

Response Posted - 10/29/2009 : 07:15:23

Yes (short and log answer)! I always do, and my spreaders sip out easily.

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hinmo
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248 Posts

Response Posted - 10/30/2009 : 17:57:44

Tried to get the spreaders off today, how do I get the spring clips off of the upper shrouds?

Edited by - hinmo on 10/31/2009 01:58:18

hinmo
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248 Posts

Response Posted - 10/31/2009 : 09:13:45

Update - I just unwound them. Don't know how to replace them tho

Edited by - on

OJ
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Response Posted - 10/31/2009 : 13:16:24

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by hinmo
 Update - I just unwound them. Don't know how to replace them tho
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Well, hinmo, you are well on your way to becoming a Catalina 25 maintenace guru! As my father used to say - most things are much simpler than they first appear.

How do your spreader ends look compared to the photos posted my Tom Gauntt above?

Like you, I remove my spreaders to accomodate a winter tarp. Instead of dealing with the original pins that hold the spreaders in the sockets - I used stainless machine screws with locknuts . . . no more cotter pins to wrestle out.

Edited by - OJ on 10/31/2009 13:31:36

Deric
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408 Posts

Response Posted - 10/31/2009 : 19:25:59

I would take the mast off the boat and store is in my garage suspended from the ceiling. I liked having the many months of winter to check the mast and all that is connected to it. I also would test lights, and retape, recaulk, typical maintenance stuff.

I would be nervous not knowing the condition of the spreaders.

Best,
Deric

Edited by - on

hinmo
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248 Posts

Response Posted - 11/01/2009 : 03:18:26

Ok folks, I AM replacing the spreaders, but not the brackets (if I get the old spreaders out clean).

QUESTION IS....how do I attach the spreaders to the shroud. They WERE attache with that little spring clip thing, that I had to unwind to get the spreader detached?

The spring think looks like it is wound on to the shroud wire with a tool. Is there an option?

Edited by - on

JohnP
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1520 Posts

Response Posted - 11/01/2009 : 07:26:48

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">[i]Is there an option?
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">CD has a pair of leather [url="http://www.catalinadirect.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=1093"]spreader boots, [/url]that you could also make yourself, but WM sells the [url="http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/producte/10001/-1/10001/232539/377%20710/0/rigging%20tape/Primary%20Search/mode%20matchallpartial/0/0?N=377%20710&Ne=0&Ntt=rigging%20tape&Ntk=Primary%20Search&Ntx=mode%20matchallpartial&Nao=0&Ns=0&keyword=rigging%20tape&isLTokenURL=true&storeNum=175&subdeptNum=680&classNum=680"]rigging tape [/url]that I used.

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aeckhart
Master Marine Consultant

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1709 Posts

Response Posted - 11/01/2009 : 10:16:05

Use stainless wire available at any hardware store. Run the wire through the hole in the spreader than wrap the two ends around the shroud - one end above and one below the spreader. Do not make this connection too tight. The shroud must have some play through the wire loops but must be held into the slotted spreader end cap. Once the wire is on add the spreader boot.

Edited by - on

OJ
Master Marine Consultant

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4382 Posts

Response Posted - 11/01/2009 : 13:36:25

If you look at the Catalina 25 parts catalog, they don't have a part number for the "spring clip" which may imply (as aeckhart explains above) that you purchase a spool of stainless wire and re-wrap the stays to the spreader end caps. Wish I had a my boat nearby . . . I'd post a picture!

Edited by - on

hinmo
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248 Posts

Response Posted - 11/01/2009 : 17:08:46

I already removed them. I think I left the remainder of the spring clip (half unwound) on the shroud. I will try to photo. Guess I will have to do what Al said. It seems like the winding is very tight and must have been done by a tool, not by hand.

Edited by - on

OJ
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Response Posted - 11/01/2009 : 18:19:30

hinmo, there is a good likely-hood that a special rigging tool of sorts was used to wrap the wire you describe. This same wire was probably wrapped by someone who has done it a thousand or more times before. For us novices a pair of pliers or needle-nose and side-cutters may have to suffice.
Your post has motivated me to check the spreaders on the boat I recently purchased. A photo of this wire wrapping posted here would be very beneficial!

Edited by - on

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