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Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

General Sailing Forum

Removing the Mast Post and 3M 5200 etc.

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britinusa
Web Editor

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USA
5404 Posts

Initially Posted - 02/08/2012 : 05:05:38

Determined to stop the drip leak in the cabin down the mast post. I am reviewing the 'how to remove the mast post' issue.

Last time I tried to do it, the sealant beneath the mast plate on the cabin top was so secure that the plate and post would not budge.

Reading about how 3M 5200 is a lifetime glue prompted me to give up at that time.

Now I find [url="http://www.catalinadirect.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&product_ID=2190"]this[/url]

What do you think about it?

Paul

Joint Decision. (Sold)
PO C250WB 2005 Sail # 841.

Moved up to C34 Eximius

Updated August 2015

Edited by - on

TakeFive
Master Marine Consultant

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2272 Posts

Response Posted - 02/08/2012 : 07:10:53

First, be sure it is actually coming down the mast post. The masthead light connector is a very common leak point, and rebedding that cured the moisture I was seeing in that area. (So common that I found moisture in the starboard spotlight of every one of the 6 or so used C250s that I looked at when shopping a couple years ago.)

Second, if the mast post is leaking, the leak points are probably small enough that a capillary void filler should do the trick. I'd pick up some [url="http://www.captaintolley.com/"]Captain Tolley's[/url] at WM and squirt it into the exterior deck/plate joints and into the screw heads (easy if the mast is down, but still accessible with the mast up). Allow to dry, then keep repeating until the cracks do not soak up any more.

Remove your interior spots and clamp a fan to blow dry air up into the void space, and another fan to blow up into the interior crack between the compression post and the ceiling liner/deck core, and that should help dry out any moisture.

I had been considering removing my compression post, but did not realize it was glued in so tightly until your message. Instead, I've done what I described in the above three paragraphs, and that eliminated any need to remove the compression post. It would be nice to remove it and epoxy seal the hole in the core, but since I dried things out this has dropped down to the bottom of my to-do list.

Edited by - TakeFive on 02/08/2012 08:09:03

John Russell
Master Marine Consultant

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3444 Posts

Response Posted - 02/08/2012 : 07:55:18

I think you're opening a bucket of worms here, Paul. If it's that secure, I'd wonder if it really is the source of the leak. I'm with Rick. I had water dripping from the starboard spotlight last year. I re-bedded the electrical connectors on the deck and no leak.

Even if it was leaking at the mast plate, a small bead of good quality, flexible, marine caulk around the base would solve the problem.

Edited by - John Russell on 02/08/2012 07:57:07

britinusa
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Response Posted - 02/09/2012 : 23:11:55

I pulled the stbd cabin top lamp fitting and all of the cables inside.
It looks as though there is a piece of plywood on the underside of the deck with a space about 1" high between that and the cabin liner.
I see no indication of water damage in the area visible from the lamp fitting hole, but cannot see the mast post in that void. If I had a remote viewer that would help.

So I'm not certain if the leak is around the mast base or the any of the 3 wiring connectors (Mast lights, Wind Transducer, VHF antenna cable)

I had thought of making a cover for the electrical connections on the deck.
Open to ideas. I have some thin stainless steel plate (the sides of an old coffee maker

)
But also could make one with sunbrella and studs to secure to the deck so that the cables pass in though an overlap.

Paul.

Edited by - on

TakeFive
Master Marine Consultant

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2272 Posts

Response Posted - 02/10/2012 : 07:22:57

I think the compression post hole is surrounded by a wood block that maintains the space between deck and cabin liner. That's why you can't see the compression post from the spotlight hole.

Before trying a SS plate or cloth cover (each of which could create their own problems), I would try the Captain Tolley's and a fan to dry out the area around the compression post first.

One other thing that I do is I remove the mast light plug from the deck connector and keep the black cap on the connector all the time. I only connect it if I'm going out at night. I think the cap is more watertight than the plug.

I've bought a new connector set from CD - will replace it this spring. On of the causes of leakage is that the plastic deck connector's flange presses up against the metal VHF antenna fitting flange next to it. The metal flange wins this battle, pushing upward on the adjacent plastic flange, leading to leakage. When I replace the plastic connector, I'm going to shave/grind off about 1/8" of plastic from that part of the flange so the two don't press against each other. I'll also use butyl tape as bedding compound, because it maintains a seal even if things move around a bit.

Edited by - TakeFive on 02/10/2012 07:27:49

Arlington
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196 Posts

Response Posted - 02/10/2012 : 17:06:54

Paul I did use the CD Marine Sealant Debond Kit and it worked great to get the original Compass and Depth Meter out, both were bedded in what I think was 5200, and it softened it nicely. It does take time to soak in and penetrate, so be patient. It will eventually allow you to get a plastic or metal putty knife in there. It is a lot better that tearing up the gel coat. I have recently seen larger sizes elsewhere, so you may want to do a google search. I would say it is good stuff to have on on hand.

Otherwise, it sure would be better to find out the leak is in one of the other penetrations, and I am going to get some Captain Tolley's for some of my pesky cracks in the gelcoat.
Doug

Edited by - on

delliottg
Former Mainsheet C250 Tech Editor

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4479 Posts

Response Posted - 02/10/2012 : 19:31:20

Paul,
I've tried the debond stuff with limited success, but perhaps as pointed out Doug, I didn't wait long enough.

Removing the compression post is a pain, but it's pretty doable once you figure out how to break the bond. I used about a 3' long 2x4 as a lever to slowly spin the tabernacle (obviously after removing the four mounting bolts). Once I had it free, it was fairly easy to remove it with Rita pushing the post up from the bottom, and me wiggling it from side to side with the 2x4 until I could get my fingers under the flange to pull straight up.

Once that was done, we spent a bunch of time removing the old 5200 (?) that was holding everything in place. Then I let the hole dry for several months under a tarp. I think this could be sped up with a muffin fan rigged under the hole in the cockpit overhead to continuously push air through the hole to dry out the plywood. Once I felt the plywood was dry enough, I sealed it with epoxy. I just taped off the bottom of the hole and painted several thin coats of epoxy which was quickly soaked up by the plywood. I had a little bit of trimming to do where the tape met the bottom of the hole, but that was quickly cleaned up with some sand paper. I made sure that the compression post still fit in the hole because it might have reduced the diameter with the epoxy coatings, but it didn't.

I don't remember which sealant I used to put the tabernacle plates back down, but it definitely wasn't 5200, but possibly 4200.

With all that work, I still get a tiny bit of leakage around the compression post. Since I know the plywood is sealed now, I know that I'm not getting it wet any more so I put up with the leakage. The amount is miniscule but enough to notice after a heavy or prolonged rain. It's not on my list to repair, I've got two chainplates who are next on the list.

I think I posted about the repair with photos, so I'll look for them. It was about 4 years ago or so I think. I also think I used Tom Potter's photos to get going, but again that's a guess.

Edited by - on

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