Stanchion mounting Tufnal Tufel pad?

[auditdata]

I have a new deck laid and I need to refit the stanchions. The height of the teak planks and the toe rail are different and my boat builder says I need some Tufnal/Tufnel pads. I have no idea what these are or indeed if I am spelling them correctly. Google seems to want to send me to Tufnell Park! Any ideas what he is on about and a source? The photo below shows an arrow on the old deck to the existing pads now too thin and old.

 

[smonard]

Try tufnol.
Its a phenolic impregnated cloth.
Get it here:
http://www.directplasticsonline.co.uk/Tufnol_Sheet.html You want the whale brand stuff for marine use.

 

[DownWest]

Try tufnol.
Its a phenolic impregnated cloth.
Get it here:
http://www.directplasticsonline.co.uk/Tufnol_Sheet.html You want the whale brand stuff for marine use.

+1 But, it has some carcinogenic problems, so wear a good mask when cutting and sanding. Very easy to work with. I am making some winches and rope clutches from it.

 

[laurie the sailer]

Just put my stanshons back with 6 mm neapreme gasget material and gunge good luck

 

[nedmin]

Tufnol is excellent material,used a lot of it in my working life.If you cant get that Bakelite is very similar,but might not be available anymore.If you get stuck I,ve got 1/8th and 1/4 inch Bakelite.

 

[auditdata]

I continue to be amazed by the knowledge here. Thanks again. I am definitely going to get a plaque fitted "Sephina, refitted in 2011 by PBO Forum"
Clive

 

[mawm]

Why do you need a pad - the leaking only occurs where the holes are and this is where you need to waterproof. Try Butyl tape and countersunk holes.

Here -
http://www.sailnet.com/forums/gear-maintenance/63554-bedding-deck-hardware-butyl-tape.html

 

[Poignard]

If you can't find Tufnol you could cast some pads using epoxy resin, as described in the WEST manual

http://www.westsystem.com/ss/bonding-hardware/

The section entitled "Casting a base" describes the technique, which is very simple.

 

[RobinBirch]

There's usually a few ebay sellers - might be worth a shot for 'offcut' size pieces.

 

[Nigel_Ward]

If you can't find Tufnol you could cast some pads using epoxy resin, as described in the WEST manual

http://www.westsystem.com/ss/bonding-hardware/

The section entitled "Casting a base" describes the technique, which is very simple.

If it were my boat I would use epoxy as PARSIFAL says.

Epoxy with additives will take up any uneven surface. Just be careful to mask the area well.

 

[PuffTheMagicDragon]

I think that a major point before deciding which solution to follow is the difference in height between the deck and the 'toerail'. Are we talking about 1mm, 5mm, 10mm, etc...? Which is the highest of the two? If the 'step' is small you might be able to fit two shims instead of fabricating or machining a pad.

 

[ghostlymoron]

On the subject of Tufnol - I had strips of this material laid under my sliding main hatch. The hatch had become very stiff to operate and I was going to replace the strips when a friend suggested just turning them upside down. I did this, cleaned the whole area and gave a squirt of Holts sail track lubricant, and this difference was dramatic.

 

[theoldsalt]

Auditdata,

To put a new slant on the subject, I suggest you have the wrong type of stanchion base. Since you have an aluminium angle toe rail, a better base would be the one in the attached photo. Securred to the toe rail not the deck. So no leaks possible.

View attachment 14105

 

[auditdata]

Lots of interesting views and solutions. To clear up a couple of points raised, the existing stanchions have not been leaking so I never considered this as a requirement of the solution. The current arrangement is "Oyster" original so I was thinking of doing the same. The thickness of the pads needs measuring and as the teak is new approx. 9mm. I guess the difference between the aluminium is 5mm. I will check next week end. The epoxy solution seems a little overkill as the toe rail is level and the teak is new so don't think i am having to custom make each base mounting?
Will let you all know but so far I think getting a sheet of Tufnol and fabricating pads is the best option?
Might be wrong!
I will get a better picture to illustrate the height difference.

 

[pvb]

Will let you all know but so far I think getting a sheet of Tufnol and fabricating pads is the best option?

Of course, it doesn't have to be Tufnol, you could use any stable sheet material of the correct thickness, maybe even aluminium sheet.

 

[DownWest]

Direct Plastics have lots of other sheet materials, high density types might be an idea.

 

[Niander]

Very good article mawm !

 

[Quandary]

If you go to direct plastics website you will find two grades of tufnol, one is much more brittle and prone to cracking under stress than the other which is the one for mechanical uses rather than electrical. I have managed to forget which is which, but the company will know. However there are other plastic sheet materials on there which I would prefer to use for your purpose.
I recently bought some Tufnol from them to make a drive arm extension for my autopilot to replace an alloy one because it it needs to be electrically insulated to prevent galvanic corrosion risks, lot of choice of thickness and you can get it in sheets as small as 300x300mm. Works like very hard plywood, I cut it with a metal cutting blade in a jigsaw, laminated with epoxy and finished it with a drill and polished it off with an angle grinder. It is not that pretty, a white nylon like plastic would be less visible in your application and would still insulate the dissimilar metals. I would not support the idea of the cast alloy stanchion bases recommended above, even with alloy stanchions and sleeves these tend to corrode and split over time, have a look at any Sigma 33 to see what happens.

 

[Tranona]

Looking at your photo, I assume your new deck level is higher than the aluminium toe rail through which the outer fastenings go, and the pads are to bring that height up to the level of the deck. Tufnol is the correct material to use for this, plus the usual sealer. Make sure you still leave the gap between the base and the toerail to allow water to drain.