Sunday, 26 January 2014

Replacing the Mainsheet Horse


Replacing the Mainsheet Horse

The main sheet horse on Tra Bhui when we purchased it showed the normal signs of age that are common on most of the older Drascombes. The galvanized tube had oxidized and had turned a dark grey interspersed with small patches of rust.
The galvanized tube which forms the majority of the horse on the Gig is attached to the gunwales via two stainless steel sockets welded to sections of stainless steel flat bar which in turn are bolted through the gunwale. Where the galvanize steel and the stainless steel meet the rusting was more prominent. Apart from being unsightly I was concerned as to how much steel actually remained at the end of tube. The failure of the horse could be fairly dramatic if it happened in windy conditions.
Removal of the horse is simple as there are two set screws holding each plate on. Remove the crews and the horse and mountings can be gently eased from between the gunwales. I was interested to see how the galvanized steel tube was connected to the sockets. Car body filler was the answer – well epoxy resin and filler, but it is the same stuff. I suppose that this served its function of providing a waterproof seal at each end of the tube and keeping the two different metals apart, but it can hardly be considered cutting edge engineering even by Drascombe standards!
On inspection there was still sufficient metal left to be sure that the strength of the traveler was not compromised. The rusting on the tube however was unsightly so I decided to simply replace the galvanized tube with a bit of stainless steel. Having previously replaced the horse on our Lugger with a stainless steel one I knew how much better it would look.
As the fittings at each end of the horse were already made of stainless steel the easiest option was simply to have a piece of stainless steel tube but welded to them. As I was about to order tubing for the tent that I was making for Tra Bhui I added a piece of 30mm stainless steel tube to the order.
As stainless steel welding beyond my capabilities (and my own welding equipment) I asked a local fabricator to weld it for me. Fifteen pounds later and I had a new horse.

No comments:

Post a Comment