Bolt holding mainsheet block snapped.

mikeyh

New Member
Help. I was replacing my hiking strap and twisted the forward lefthand bolt and it snapped at the deck level. Were these specially tapped holes to fit the particular bolt holding down the mainsheet block and hiking strap, or can I drill a couple more holes to use as new fixings? I would rather try to get the snapped bolt as a first choice however. Any suggestions. :confused::confused:

Cheers

NZL Mike
 
Bolt is kind of small but you could try an easy out drill bit.
 
Not sure about the boats built down under, but in NA, Vanguard uses self tapping screws to fasten into the 'glass laminate. The laminate isn't all that thick and there is no wood backing plate either in this area.

I would be thinking seriously about putting in an inspection port, drilling out the broken fastner and thru bolting it properly at this point, especially if the fastener broke due to rust.
 
I did exactly the same thing with my block mounting bolt. I had a bit of a try at drilling it out, but that stainless steel is so hard I couldn't keep the drill centred on the bolt. I'm sure I'll end up with a huge hole though the surrounding fibre glass if I keep at it.
So I solved it by turning the block mounting saddle through 90 deg and fixing the other end with the bolt which keeps the hiking strap in place. Its at just the right spacing. This bolt seems just as strong and its lasted over a year now.

I know, I know technically its probably illegal but no-ones complained yet.
(I hope our measurer isn't reading this ... (-; )
 
Haha that sounds like a good idea. I tried drilling it out and did make a bit of a mess. Doh! I do have a port located to the left hand side of the mast step. so maybe a bolt is the answer. Thanks for your feed back everyone
 

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