110 Cookson Lane | Whitefield, ME 04353 | 207-232-7600 | tim@lackeysailing.com
To begin, I set up a siphon and removed the gas from the fuel tank up on deck, draining it into a container on the floor. Since I had to loosely monitor the process, it was a good time to move some of the various trim and interior components upstairs for storage.
The companionway trim, inside and out, was next. The old trim was in poor condition, and as I went through the removal process I discovered that the various pieces were secured in illogical ways with plenty of blind fasteners and other oddities. While I saved most of the trim for general configuration reference, most of the pieces didn't survive the removal intact. The removal eventually allowed me to also remove the companionway hatch.
I'd already removed the lower portion of the barrel nuts securing the handrails, so from the deck it was easy to pry them up and remove them. Meanwhile, I removed a few more installations from the coachroof, including the forward hatch, Dorade box covers and vents, and the ancient and decrepit dodger hardware.
The steering pedestal was quickly becoming the bane of my existence, seemingly always in the way. So I made its removal the next priority. Various sheaves were secured to a wooden framework beneath the cockpit, which framework also served as rudder stops. The frame was bolted to the cockpit, then secured to the boat with tabbing on the hull and nails (seriously?) elsewhere. In several steps, I removed the hardware, then the bulky wooden structure--which was no longer needed--and finally the bronze quadrant. Fortunately, most of the pieces disassembled with relative ease. At the same time, I removed several semi-deteriorated obstructions from the starboard cockpit locker to improve access through the duration of the project.
With most of the structure removed, and the steering cables slack and now disconnected from the quadrant, I moved on to the pedestal base itself. The aluminum pedestal and its backing ring beneath the deck were quite neglected, with significant corrosion, but I found the nuts came off without much trouble. However, the aluminum backing ring was deteriorated and fell apart at cracks beginning where the fasteners came through--a common issue with neglected pedestals.
Back on deck for the moment, I removed the compass and then the pedestal guard; the aluminum ring securing the guard to the pedestal, beneath the compass, was also a victim of the typical galvanic corrosion seen with the mix of aluminum, stainless steel, salt water, and neglect. With the pedestal thusly opened, I could remove the chain and cables, then reassemble the compass for safekeeping.
The screws securing the pedestal through the deck resisted efforts to loosen for now, corrosion-welded into place into the remains of the backing ring beneath. I applied penetrating solvent and left the bolts overnight. Meanwhile, I removed a few more things, including the fuel fill, final components of the instrument panel, most of the engine control assembly, and fasteners securing cockpit locker lids.
Total Time on This Job Today: 6.25 hours
