1970 Rondar 505 cracked hull (today)

You have an excellent mast.Pictures of the rig would help with understanding how to overcome these small problems.
The outhaul need not be tied off,it is quite normal to lead it aft in the boat to allow adjustment while you are sailing.

It is refreshing to learn of an American sailing a planing dinghy,for such a large country there seem to be very few people sailing fast dinghies.Maybe you should become an evangelist and convert a few more to the thrill of fast sailing.

 

A reasonably set sail will always at least enough vang tension to keep the boom on the mast, so it isn't really a practical problem: just keep the vang a bit tighter.

There are probably dozens of ways that outhauls have been rigged. A clam cleat on the bottom of the boom in the crew area is probably as good as any. Are there any blocks on the underside of the boom towards the gooseneck end that you haven't identified a use for?
My personal favourite is to have a line coming from the outhaul into a block on the end of the boom, about a 3:1 purchase inside the boom, and the line emerging near the gooseneck and running back a few inches to a clam cleat.

 

Usually this (boom sliding off gooseneck pin) is because the sail is not cut for the tack pin fastening. Here I assume you have affixed the tack by pin to the boom. Can also be someone has put a short gooseneck on as a replacement. One trick is to put a velcro or rope tie through the tack
eyelet and fasten around the front of the mast. Remember to undo it when you want to drop the boom into the boat after or before lowering the sail.

On newer sails when you order a sail, you have to tell the sailmaker whether you intend to use the boom tack pin. He/she will cut this area to accomodate or not. the alternative is fasten with ropes, velcro ties etc. It is done to reduce creasing in this area.

 

Crazy things I've learned about sailing a 1970 Rondar 505.

1. **** breaks... (during each sail)
2. Learn to fix said "****"
3. Learn to do fiberglass repair
4. Learn to do tiller repair
5. Each 505 is rigged differently. Figuring it out takes time
6. The hull is thin. REALLY thin.
7. Don't step in hull. Or it will break.
8. Old Elvestrom bailers leak
9. The transom on a 505 might as well not be there.
10. The boat can fill with about 1000 pounds of water
11. The boom can straight fall off
12. The boat can NOT sail other than on a reach unless centerboard is down
13. **** breaks

 

I think it goes without saying, but I will say it anyway.

Before any patch-up the hull needs to dry out thoroughly. Wet fiberglass has usually delaminated. If not, it will when it freezes during winter.

If I was performing this repair under warranty I would remove ALL the wet laminate and core.

 

Hi,


More learning curve issues with the 505.

I sprang a pretty substantial leak this weekend. We noticed that water was streaming in where the centerboard plywood cowling meets the fiberglass hull. Because I don't have hiking straps, I was standing on this area when we were sailing up on rails.

Two questions. Are you supposed to be able to stand on this? Or is this a big "no" "no?"

Also, how should I repair this? Should it be simply epoxied? Or should I reinforce this with fiberglass cloth and epoxy?

 

Hi

If I understand your question correctly. The plywood seems to have separated from the glass lip on the hull floor on the horizontal axis. The water bubbles up vertically from is gap. When pressed on lightly with a foot, it's clear that the plywood is intact, it seems to have broken a bond between the glass and the vertical sheet of plywood. (See diagram below).

Will I need to remove all spar varnish and residue. Does this mean that I will need to bring both surfaces down to bear wood and sanded down to no Gelcoat?

 

How many weeks of the season left?

Quick and Dirty would be put a wedge in to open gently, 5200 in a caulking gun and work it along the gap with a thin blade, when plenty in there pop the wedge out and wipe the excess off with cloths soaked in turps/white-spirit.

wear gloves - not dangerous but messy

will seal but stay flexible

 

Yes you should be able to push with your foot against this part of the hull. However because you already have a tear in the bond, try not to do so for now, until repair This area is a classic one for pushing hard after a tack or manouvre with the foot. The vertical reinforcement for the c/board bolt should be fine though.

Longer term, the best solution is a small laminated bedlog. Which is basically a piece of timber bonded to both hull floor and c/board case side. You need to locally strip off the varnish and get it dry, then epoxy the strips into place. Can be done with one piece but I have found through experience that certain curvatures are better dealt with by laminating in this area. She'd last a long time with this. An alternative is to clean it all out and put an epoxy with microfibre fillet all along the joint.

Be wary of putting a flexible sealant in, if you cannot clean it out later as the epoxy will not like this as a bonding substrate.

If you laminate in situ, which is OK, you need a small block plane and sharp chisel(s) to make a neat job of it. It can be done though, and very neatly. Strip of the old glass which is not up to the job any longer and replace with timber or epoxy fillet and maybe extra glass.