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Catalina 25 Specific Forum

Replacing Swing Keel Pivot Pin

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Deric
Captain

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USA
408 Posts

Initially Posted - 04/12/2009 : 08:06:29

Hello Folks,

I replaced the pivot pin on Saturday. I friend, Dave, helped me get the job done. I recommend at least two people perform the procedure as a matter of safety should be a concern.

My Cat 1978 had two previous owners. The pin had never been replaced or inspected previously. I wanted to check the integrity of the pin and bracket housing.

Last fall, I purchased the upgrade kit from CD with the intention of replacing the original bracket and pin before the sailing season started here in CNY.

I hope others find this email thread helpful as I post pictures, and comments.

Summery: The keel can be dropped low enough to replace the Keel Pivot Pin while the boat rests on an EZ-Loader trailer. A wooden brace can be fabricated to keep the keel vertical.

Below is a list of items I used:

Fabricated Wooden Brace
4 threaded Rods
9/16 socket and box wrench
4 x 4 boards for bracing
Heavy Duty Car Jack
Disk Sander
Lock Tite
Calibrator
Hammer

Edited by - on

Deric
Captain

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USA
408 Posts

Response Posted - 04/12/2009 : 08:12:01

Here is the beginning of replacing the Keel.

Note the fabricate wooden brace, and the trailer bar -- allowing 6 inches to lower the keel.

Here is a picture of the original bracket that needs to be removed.

After removing each bolt one at a time, I replaced the bolt with a threaded rod. The rods allow me to lower the keel while a car jack support the keel as a safety measure.

Edited by - on

Deric
Captain

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USA
408 Posts

Response Posted - 04/12/2009 : 08:18:23

Here one can note how the bracket is now separating from the hull. We had to jiggle the keel side to side to sort of unfreeze the connection -- believe it or not. I shall also add that the bracket like to come off and go on symmetrically -- very level.

Here is a picture of the rods, and the brace.

A picture comparing the two brackets: original and new from CD. The idea of replacing the old bracket is to remove play in the keel, and to mitigate rocking. The new CD bracket was over-sized, so be ready to use a disk sander to grind away material in order to make the bracket fit properly.

Edited by - on

Deric
Captain

Members Avatar

USA
408 Posts

Response Posted - 04/12/2009 : 08:26:34

In the above picture one can note the plastic washers on the old bracket.

The new bracket is going into place. We used the car jack to raise the keel. The rods kept the alignment

The new brackets are on place on both sides. Bolts are in the hull. Lock- Tite was used, can be purchased at CD.

This is a picture of our work area. Note that we used the trailer. The boat is sitting next to my garage. The tarp wrapped toward the rear of the boat was used to block wind. The job took about 5 hours -- we did stop for lunch though. We lost time because we had to drop the keel a few times; we learned that the holes in the new keel bracket didn't align exactly; we had to enlarge them a tad.

Edited by - on

dmpilc
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4593 Posts

Response Posted - 04/12/2009 : 11:51:31

My experience with our C-22 was similar. The new brackets came oversized and I had to take them to a shop to have them ground down. Of course, the C-22 keel is 550 lbs, not 1500 lbs, but the process was the same. When we bought the C-25, I bought the kit of spacers that attach to the sides of the keel to help reduce keel wobble.

Edited by - dmpilc on 04/12/2009 11:52:57

tflick
Deckhand

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Canada
10 Posts

Response Posted - 04/12/2009 : 12:32:23

Deric, is there any need to use plastic washer with the new bracket? Also, how did you determine the exact amount of material you needed to remove from the new brackets without grinding, raising, lowering, multiple times until you got it right?

Edited by - on

Deric
Captain

Members Avatar

USA
408 Posts

Response Posted - 04/12/2009 : 15:42:40

CD recommends using the spacers to attach to the keel in near the front of the keel (ahead of the pivot) as well as using the over-sized brackets. I'll create another posting like this that pertains to adding the spacers when I perform the task. The combination of the spacers (as Dave above has mentioned) that are glued to the keel with the over-sized brackets are designed to work together to mitigate the rocking of the keel. I don't see a need to a plastic washer -- on the old bracket an absolute yes.

Regarding the amount of material to grind off, I measured the distance needed to grind off using a caliber. On the first attempt to install the new brackets after the material was removed from the bracket, we were very close, but a bit to tight; second time down, app 16th of an inch was removed.

MEASURING TIP: Take a measurement of free space between keel and old bracket before removing the keel. Push keel to one side so its against the old bracket. Measure the distance of free space on the other side between the keel and washer or bracket. Align the old brackets, after they have been removed, against the new brackets with their pins in place. The old brackets must have their washers on the pin. Add the measurement of free space taken previously. Mark the position on the new bracket that matches the old brackets -- in distance -- that includes the washers and the free space measurement.

TIP: If you align the brackets against each other - - I used bolts and nuts to hold them together - - then one can use a disk sander to grind the material off. while doing both brackets at the same time.

Safety TIP: Wear a mask to prevent breathing in the fine particles of metal.

Now that I have performed this task, I can say that I don't think the job is terribly difficult. I do recommend having someone to help, if for nothing else but to be a spotter in case something is missed i.e., forgot to set the car jack as safety measure.

Edited by - on

Merrick
Navigator

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USA
192 Posts

Response Posted - 04/12/2009 : 19:52:49

Our trailer has the individual jacks. With boat near level the front of the keel is raised a few inches so we jam couple boards underneath. Then to remove keel pin we lower the boat (pic 2) to get the keel flat on the board, then with the help of a bottle jack, raise the boat until the keel is clear. I'm pleased with this system because a main reason I bought this boat was to save the costs of hauling at a marina to do bottom work.

Edited by - on

skrenz
Captain

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USA
351 Posts

Response Posted - 04/13/2009 : 00:57:29

Great pictures and great information guys. One very small comment. Please be VERY careful using concrete blocks under jacks. I personally know of the son of a friend of mine who was killed working on his car using blocks and jacks. A very sad story for his dad. Concrete blocks can be deceiving. They look and feel very strong and start out supporting the weight just fine. But then they just crumble catastrophically. Timber is much more forgiving and reliable. In the picture I can see that the blocks are oriented in the correct direction with the holes in the block in line with the load and the force of the jack distributed by a 2 x over the face of the block, but even so, you are taking a risk.

Edited by - on

Deric
Captain

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USA
408 Posts

Response Posted - 04/13/2009 : 06:14:37

Merrick,

I like your working environment. Looks like you can have heat, no wind, no rain, maybe a refrigerator nearby.

Steve makes a good point about concrete blocks. I used the car jack that that was placed on a 2x6. When I lowered the keel the keel rested on a 2x4 that was resting on the metal cross beam of the trailer. As a safety, we made sure the jack maintained pressure on the keel, even though the keel was resting on the metal bar of the trailer.

Merrick, you mentioned that you raise the boat with the jack, I didn't think one could raise a boat as such with all the weight of the boat pressing down on such a small area of surface. I suspect you are also raising the individual side jacks to spread the load that is holding the boat.

Deric

Edited by - on

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Notice: The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.