Chainplates...

I suppose in hind sight, we were really lucky. Chainplates only really fail when under high load and that high load generally occurs with a large wind, sea and typically in the dead of night in the middle of the ocean (Sod's Law right?).

We could have been dismasted. THAT would have been a story and a half. Not the good kind either!

For the uninitiated, chainplates are the metal fastenings that link the hull to the rigging and come out of the deck. People probably know of them as “that thingy in the middle of the deck that I stubbed my toe on again”.

Needless to say, both Bill (Sally's father) and my father had banged on about bloody chainplates. “Check the chainplates” I had heard a number of times. Whats to check. They are in difficult to reach places surrounded in swathes of panelling requiring a degree in mechanical engineering and to be a part time contortionist at the Boswell Wilkie Flying Circus.

I had a full survey done by a very thorough surveyor. All the chainplates that were visible and accessible looked fine. No signs of rust, discolouration, anything! Using the rule of “the others look fine so I am sure they are too”, I did not give it a second thought.

Post experiencing the problem, a little research on the internet revealed that a number of other T37 owners have changed out their chainplates. Actually the very same plates that I severed. In all fairness, they were probably originals and at 33 years old had seen a fair amount of use over the years.

When we got back to Tyrell Bay, I hauled out the broken chainplate and sent it off to the Stainless Steel Fabricator guy. This charming little Frenchman who really does know his stuff.

There was me thinking that I could just get a new one made and sail away a few days later.

Oh no, not with my father scepticism. “If one of them is shot, they might all be...” says he. “Pull them all and check them”.

Sure, easy for you to say 2000 miles away in a first world country. Here I sit in a remote anchorage (which is not even near the Capital city) with a limited tool chest and he wants me to pull my boat apart to check all the plates.

As father is generally fairly cautious (and correct...but don’t tell him that), I did as instructed. The last thing you want is to be asleep one night in a real blow in the middle of an ocean crossing thinking to yourself...”If only I had checked those other chainplates when I had the chance, as I really don’t know what condition they are in...”

Sally and I spent the best part of a day deconstructing our little ship in order to slack off the rig, unscrew most of the cabinetry, unbolt all the plates and haul them out.

Not as hard a job as one might think though! I am sure it can be worse on some vessels.

We took all the plates to the Stainless Steel Frog to get checked out. He soaked them in phosphoric acid and cleaned them all up. Carefully with his magnifying glass inspected each plate and gave it the thumbs up or down. 

Both the main plates (the ones that hold the main stays that link the top of the mast to the deck) were fine. The 2 stays from the lower shroud (spreader) that lead forward of the mast were both fine too. We already knew that the starboard chainplate for the lower shroud that lead aft was kaput, we now got the verdict on the port one. It had a few hairline cracks in it. It too would need to be replaced. Happy to do it as I already had a boat with 6 holes in the deck. Might as well do the work now.

After enquiring about the boat and its age, construction etc the Frenchman responded in heavy froggie accent...“Old American stainless is sheet, European is much better. Modern stainless is much better than 30 years ago”

Another interesting thing is that when Tartans are rigged, they seem to just whack a hole in the deck and slide in a chainplate against a bulkhead. Little to no though about water penetration into the balsa core. Upon removing the plates, I could see the balsa core. I was expecting a ring of epoxy to protect it. The previous owner had been fastidious and kept good seals on all the chainplates and as such the wood was still in good condition. 

Instead of just “whacking them back in”, I mixed up some epoxy and coated all the wood core and the fibreglass sandwich with a thick application to act as a barrier to prevent moisture from wicking.

Now the old (good) chainplates are back in epoxy hardened holes with heaps of 5200 sealant.

Fingers crossed, we should not be leaking through the chainplates any time soon.