Coachroof conundrum

Sea-Fever

Sea-Fever

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Hello all,

When i was searching for a new boat, one of the plus points of the Westerly 33 that I ended up buying was the fact that the headlining had been replaced. In fact it is one of the neatest and good looking jobs I've seen.

Now I am the owner I am looking to fit a canister liferaft on deck somewhere to maximise access and save space inside. The coach roof is an obvious spot but I don't fancy drilling through the GRP for the following reasons;

1. I understand it is wood cored and this would leave it susceptible to rot.
2. Any hole risk leaks into the saloon
3. It would ruin the look of my lovely headlining

So, does anyone have an alternative method of securely fitting a liferaft to the coach roof without drilling through? I was thinking maybe a teak pad(s) epoxied to an abraded coach roof onto which a standard liferaft frame could be bolted....however I'm not sure how we'll this would hold. Having the liferaft washed off the deck just when i need it sounds depressing....so any fixing has to be pretty good.
 
Balsa core can be protected with epoxy.
Leak can be prevented by using proper sealant-I prefer butyl tape.
I would think that the head lining could be taken down?
 
Last edited:
I had the same problem. I had teak pads epoxied to the deck just forward of the mast but also had two U bolts fitted through the deck that the straps retaining the liferaft canister are attached to.

Yes - I now have two small holes through the headlining but I also have a high degree of confidence that my liferaft will be where I want it. The sort of conditions that could cause a less well secured liferaft to move are exactly those in which you don't want to be faffing about trying to re-secure it or, worse, losing it overboard.
 
Sea-Fever said:
Hello all,

When i was searching for a new boat, one of the plus points of the Westerly 33 that I ended up buying was the fact that the headlining had been replaced. In fact it is one of the neatest and good looking jobs I've seen.

Now I am the owner I am looking to fit a canister liferaft on deck somewhere to maximise access and save space inside. The coach roof is an obvious spot but I don't fancy drilling through the GRP for the following reasons;

1. I understand it is wood cored and this would leave it susceptible to rot.
2. Any hole risk leaks into the saloon
3. It would ruin the look of my lovely headlining

So, does anyone have an alternative method of securely fitting a liferaft to the coach roof without drilling through? I was thinking maybe a teak pad(s) epoxied to an abraded coach roof onto which a standard liferaft frame could be bolted....however I'm not sure how we'll this would hold. Having the liferaft washed off the deck just when i need it sounds depressing....so any fixing has to be pretty good.
Click to expand...

if you dont want to drill holes have you considered one of them cages which you can fit to the pushpit ?

similar to this thing below;

c2ce1540.jpg
 
This is a decent book for the sort of thing you want to do as well as many other types of GRP work: -

A guide to Fiberglass Boat Repair & Maintenance, Gelcoat Blister Repair and Final Fairing & Finishing with WEST SYSTEM® Epoxy. In particular Section 7, Installing Hardware, Page 45

https://www.westsystem.com/wp-content/uploads/Fiberglass-Manual-2015.pdf

You don't have to use West products but the methods they advise are more than adequate.
 
knuterikt said:
Balsa core can be protected with epoxy.
Leak can be prevented by using proper sealant-I prefer butyl tape.
I would think that the head lining could be taken down?
Click to expand...

Unfortunately the new headlining is in a big sheet and won't come down without ruining it....I considered making a hole in it then covering with some kind of trim but it sits a good 2" off the coach roof where it is stretched between the saloon windows and the centreline of the boat....if you get what I mean.
 
You do not need to through bolt. There are products such as ‘Big Head’ bolts that can be bonded into a recess. Google Big Head Bolts.
 
I would be concerned about the bond between the epoxy and teak. Teak is a wonderful wood but the oil content can be a problem with adhesives. If you were to fabricate some reasonably wide pads from either wood or FRP with countersunk bolts, Sikaflex might be worth looking at. The bond strength is quoted in their literature, so it should be possible to calculate the required area. Perhaps allow 10G force for maximum stress when falling off a big wave, a safety factor of 2 or 3, multiply by the weight of raft and calculate the area required. Then just make sure that the bolt heads do not pull through the material!
 
Sea-Fever said:
At in excess of 30kg I was thinking that my pushpit may not take the strain.
Click to expand...

Am I to assume, then, that you weigh less than 30kg.....?

When I had a Centaur I bolted davits to the pushpit. The dinghy weighed in excess of 50 kilos. Never had a problem and the davits are still being used by the present owners.

foxEBLu.jpg
 
PuffTheMagicDragon said:
Am I to assume, then, that you weigh less than 30kg.....?

When I had a Centaur I bolted davits to the pushpit. The dinghy weighed in excess of 50 kilos. Never had a problem and the davits are still being used by the present owners.

[]
Click to expand...

I know what you mean there’s loads of boats with pushpit mounted life rafts

On a side note where did you get them davits from?
 
Cactus Sailing said:
I know what you mean there’s loads of boats with pushpit mounted life rafts

On a side note where did you get them davits from?
Click to expand...

My own design, welded by a friend who has an engineering workshop. Basically there is a tube which points upwards at a slight angle and that has a flat plate that attaches to the upright of the pulpit and a shorter tube that is welded to it serving as a strut, also with a welded plate and U-bolts to the bottom end of the same upright of the pulpit. The same structure on both sides, what keeps them from swinging is a horizontal tube that passes through two Tee-joints and is held in place with 6mm bolts that pass right through and Nylock nuts, therefore the whole thing may be disassembled for easy transportation.
I can probably find a photo that shows them clearly if you are interested... and if I can find it.
 
PuffTheMagicDragon said:
My own design, welded by a friend who has an engineering workshop. Basically there is a tube which points upwards at a slight angle and that has a flat plate that attaches to the upright of the pulpit and a shorter tube that is welded to it serving as a strut, also with a welded plate and U-bolts to the bottom end of the same upright of the pulpit. The same structure on both sides, what keeps them from swinging is a horizontal tube that passes through two Tee-joints and is held in place with 6mm bolts that pass right through and Nylock nuts, therefore the whole thing may be disassembled for easy transportation.
I can probably find a photo that shows them clearly if you are interested... and if I can find it.
Click to expand...

If you can dig it out id be interested yeah :)
 
PuffTheMagicDragon said:
Am I to assume, then, that you weigh less than 30kg.....?

When I had a Centaur I bolted davits to the pushpit. The dinghy weighed in excess of 50 kilos. Never had a problem and the davits are still being used by the present owners.

foxEBLu.jpg
Click to expand...

I think I could safely lose 30kg without too much effect on my functioning.....

Anyway, I get the point.
 
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