Lifting a C-26 to remove the keel - without a crane

amayotte · Post by **amayotte** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 9:21 am

It's getting close to that time of the year where another boat load of projects are to be done.
One major one that everyone wants to have done but is exhausted just thinking about it, is to jack up their boat and rebuild the keel shoe/pin on a C-26.
I have read as many posts as I can find on the subject and there are some great ideas on how to jack her up, remove the trailer, and drop the keel but it still has to be done by me.
I came across a website the other day where a fellow had a really simple method of lifting his boat and I thought I would share it with everyone.
His ship is smaller than the c-26 but not by much so I think this will work well.

Just another note for those of you out there interested. An engineer I work with did some calculations and said that a safe load number for a spruce 2x10 (*** on it's narrow edge, with zero side flex ***), with supports at either end (10 feet apart) can handle 1500 lbs. of central downward force. Hence 3 nailed together can handle 4500 lbs.
I hope i explained that right.

Anyways, here is the link.
http://rjlesyk.com/Building_Steal_Away_8.html

For those out there who have taken their keel out and rebuilt the shoe, there is one thing I don't understand. How is the shoe connected to the boat so that it is stronger than the shoe assembly? If you don't have that answer can you just tell me what the shoe bolts into? Are there steel plates glassed in the hull that it bolts to?

Adam

NYCSAILOR · Post by **NYCSAILOR** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 10:14 am

this is how it is done...

somewhat safely...

http://www.portableboatlift.com/

buy one, or use the calculations and make your own

amayotte · Post by **amayotte** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 11:30 am

Ya, that looks like a cool system.
I could definitly take some ideas from it. Thanks.

NYCSAILOR · Post by **NYCSAILOR** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 1:18 pm

safety first!

Jmckamey · Post by **Jmckamey** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 1:25 pm

I glued and screwed together three 2x10x 10' for my C22 then placed a bottle jack on blocks under the center line of the 2x10's after I pulled the trailer out from under her. Rock solid.

Windward · Post by **Windward** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 6:23 pm

Adam, if you get into this, please please please take copious photos and dimensions for the shoes as well as the surface to which they mate. Using plaster of paris to get a negative impression would be way cool (I say hopefully).

I don't know what the shoes bolt into... I've assumed it was a metal plate glassed into the layup, possibly with nuts backing it (welded on?). The drawing in the manual shows a concave surface on the hull, but not sure if that's what's really there or if it's flush. Concave would make sense, since it would help bear the lateral load, but you never know.

We've been discussing doing this to Windward. I sail her much too hard in too many unforgiving conditions to trust that 34 years haven't taken their toll, but it's been such a daunting task that I've put it off. I brokie too many bolts too easily when I was working on my Jeep, and the thought of shearing off one or two of the keel shoe bolts makes me shudder. Once the Bristol's seaworthy, I may put Windward on the trailer and do this job on her while having the Bristol to sail. Guess we'll see what the spring/early summer brings.

amayotte · Post by **amayotte** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 6:43 pm

Jeff,
I will take lots of photos when I do it, but I am thinking it might be closer to September. That way I will have the winter to fab a new shoe and a plan of attack as to fitting the new shoe to old sailboat.
That being said when I was out my last time this past fall, there was a lot of noise coming from the keel trunk. I think the keel slops back a forth (port to starboard) in heavy weather and I am worried it will break and sink my baby.
I know you had posted once that the trunk was designed to wedge the keel but I have never noticed any resistance while retracting her. Is there a way that you purposely wedge it? Do you have a cross section of the keel and trunk?
I would also like to design a system to keep the keel down. Kinda like a lot of people here.

Adam

mcrandall · Post by **mcrandall** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 7:26 pm

Adam-

You may have seen this already, but...here's how I handled my C-22:

And here you can find more more shots:

http://s1213.photobucket.com/albums/cc4 ... ew%20C-22/

I ended up using 2X cross members under the boat to take the load off the strps after reaching the working heights.

P.S. The scaffold is NOT leaning, just an optical illusion.

amayotte · Post by **amayotte** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 8:40 pm

No I've never seen those.
That is awesome. Did you just use straps with come-alongs?

Thanks for posting those.
Adam

mcrandall · Post by **mcrandall** » Fri Feb 11, 2011 12:28 pm

Yep. Four come-alongs, one at each corner hung from D-rings bolted through the top of the corner 6X6s. Also used a couple heavy-duty tie-down straps for safety.

Very easy to adjust to different heights and very stable. Probably build it one more section longer for a c-26...