No vegetable oil!!. I don't think it would keep the steel ballast from rusting, and it would definately keep any future repair from sticking. Same for silicone. Boatlife might do the job, but I would prep the glass by sanding, then use epoxy resin and fiberglass cloth. I'm assuming that the area in question is in the INTERIOR of the boat and that the liner you are talking about is indeed the hull liner, as opposed to the centerboard trunk liner, underneath the boat. Jerry ----- Original Message ----- From: "Howard Audsley" <haudsley@tranquility.net> To: <montgomery_boats@mailman.xmission.com> Sent: Monday, September 16, 2002 1:26 PM Subject: M_Boats: M17 Keel/Centerboard
Not sure what I had been drinking before a recent post, but a current inspection of the boat's keel confirms that the keel is in fact glass, and part of the original lay up of the boat. But I do notice that right above the interior opening for the CB trunk, the glass keel and trunk liner are separated in places, with small pockets up and down the seam, and hairline cracks....that looks like something that would allow water inside the keel cavity. Push on it in places and there is some visible movement.
But since I'm not having trouble with a swollen keel now, and don't want to, the question is how to best cover up and seal these cracks? Water may already be in the interior cavity of the keel....so sealing it may seal water in. If you knew where the ballast was, one might be able to drill a small hole in the top and drip or pump in something like vegetable oil (protect iron from rust, but not matter if it leaked out into the water) in to displace the water.
And last, but not least, how to seal the crack? I have all the epoxy products, and a polyester gel-like gap/crack sealer, but would not something like 3M 5200 smeared over the crack work just as well, if not better?
Howard M17, #278
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