New Chainplates for my T37 #49 HELP PLEASE!

tutoray · **Joined:** 01 Mar 2018 23:22 **Posts:** 5

Hello everyone, I purchased hull #49 about a year and a half ago and have been doing a complete refit. Currently working on rigging and have pulled all the chainplates. They look ok but are 40 years old so I will be replacing them. I was considering titanium chainplates since I hear they don't corrode any experience with those? Was wondering for those of you that have done this replacement what company you used to manufacture them. Also, any other tips would be greatly appreciated. I will try to enclose pictures. PC hates me

Thanks

Ray

tutoray · **Joined:** 01 Mar 2018 23:22 **Posts:** 5

More Pictures!

tutoray · **Joined:** 01 Mar 2018 23:22 **Posts:** 5

More...

tutoray · **Joined:** 01 Mar 2018 23:22 **Posts:** 5

More Pictures!

Maineiac · **Posted:** 02 May 2019 11:21

Clean them up with Ospho, wash and rinse with water and mild soap after, dry them and look them over carefully. Might even have them dye tested. You might find you'll save an arm and a leg in fabrication cost. Otherwise, if you go for new, I don't believe any gains from titanium would offset the expense (and fabrication cost as well).

Velera · **Joined:** 29 Dec 2006 09:38 **Posts:** 656

I am with Maineac. Now that you have gone through the trouble to remove them, clean them up and reinstall them. Seal them from the top—the danger of rotting your bulkhead is probably more possible and serious than an actual chainplate failure. Have them inspected with dye if you must, but I doubt you will find much of a problem—pay attention to the bolt holes in the bulkhead if they were somehow loose—but I doubt that was a problem. My boat has probably sailed farther and through more scary weather (30 years, Both US coasts, cruising all the Central American countries and regularly to Nova Scotia—I would estimate 50K miles over 30 years) than just about any sister ship (except perhaps the circumnavigators) and still have the original chainplates in place and would not think of removing them for “inspection” unless I saw some hint of failure first.
I don’t want to dismissive about attempts to maintain your Tartan for solid sea going, but—frankly—I have no idea how this idea that pulling out good looking chainplates for pre emptive replacement got started. They will give you plenty of warning if they are going to fail—which I do not recall ever hearing as an actual situation. The same goes for pre emptive dropping and resetting the keel. Never yet heard of a T37 keel even coming loose (OK the cracks show up on just about every production boat that actually leaves the marina regularly, but no failure). Not sure where that came from either.
If you are really going off shore or out cruising here is a list of things I would recommend you actually preemptively break down and inspect and replace if it has not been done in the last few years:
1. The entire cooling system side of your engine (unless you have a Yanmar). Take apart all the hoses, connections, remove and have a competet radiator shop blow out the heat exchangers. Remove and most likely replace the exhaust elbow—this is a maintenance item every around 1500 hours of engine time. Carry a spare fresh coolant and sea water pump and learn how to properly disassemble all the parts of this while you are in a marina and have access to parts and tools—it will fail at some point and that will likely be when you are not near help and parts. The T37 with a W50 had a particularly fussy cooling system, but all of these “marinized” diesels with external heat exchangers require regular maintenance that somehow gets put behind adding the latest electronic gizmo or maintenance of things that we see every day.
2. Rewire the boat (properly) if you have a rats nest that most of these boats turn into with serial additions of electronics over the last 30 or 40 years. The nest is not just confusing—it is a serious fire danger. While you are at it add a battery monitor and carry a spare alternator (you can get one with an internal regulator—so you can solve two problems with one device). You can buy an adequate brand new replacement alternator for $70 on Ebay. They are all made in China now, do not let that bother you. I bought a replacement for my Yanmar for $60 delivered that had the exact same stampings on the case and windings as the one that came on the new engine. Cheap insurance and fix for either alternator failure or regulator failure.
Lots of folks replace the rigging every few years. I have replaced mine 3X in my 30 years of ownership and the only piece of rigging that ever failed was a very recently installed forward jumper—might have been a bad swage job—but some of the new SS rigging wire does not seem to be up to the past standards.
I just do not see how dropping the keel and pulling the chainplates became a concern with these boats—there are a lot of things that could use attention before you leave on a long trip and these, other than cursory visual inspection, just do not seem to warrant the work involved.
FWIW.
Ray Durkee

Maineiac · **Posted:** 03 May 2019 18:16

My bulkhead backing plates are huge compared to what you have there. I ascertained my chainplates had been replaced, and looked good, but I've seen what looked otherwise good on an Endeavour 40 pull right out of the deck. Scared the crap out of me. A deck stepped mast would've come down. It's what you can't see buried at deck level that's the biggest problem. Now that you've got them out, have someone who knows what they're talking about carefully inspect them and tell you what they think. Also saw a rudder drop out 10 miles off St. Maarten and sail/steer all the way back to the Virgin Islands across the Anegada Passage. Missed the Heineken that year. 2 years later the keel was so wobbly it was ready to let go and had to be dropped and redone. Beneteau (same boat, both cases). That one also had a chainplate let go and the deck stepped mast danced off in rough seas just south of Culebra. My friend hit MOB and managed to retrieve it from 80' of water later. Shit wears out.

airedog · **Joined:** 09 Nov 2011 07:22 **Posts:** 72

It is my understanding stainless corrodes from inside out, therefore visual inspection tells you nothing. And the way to be sure is to have them x-rayed.

https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/cgi/view ... ext=theses

airedog · **Joined:** 09 Nov 2011 07:22 **Posts:** 72

Question: was it easy pulling the chainplates? Twas a bit of work disassembling the cabin overhead and joinery eh? You are re-fitting? Those show rust. I’d be shocked if an x-ray didn’t reveal corrosion. I think it would be foolish to re-install them. Mine look about the same. And I’m pulling them to replace them. And I’m not looking forward to tearing everything apart.

So, to the part b.; I’m thinking silicone bronze maybe? It would need be thicker and much more expensive I believe. I was also wondering about a re-design to eliminate the cantilever.

clay123 · **Joined:** 03 Jul 2017 11:52 **Posts:** 66

Curious if you could comment on your backing plates? Specifically port side. I pulled mine for bulkhead repairs and found one aluminum backing plate used on the upper shroud and aft lower chainplates. On my forward lower there was actually a shaped wooden backing plate.

Tartan37.com

New Chainplates for my T37 #49 HELP PLEASE!

Who is online