Albin 27 FC BECKSON ports & screens

[Beta Don]

Nice job! Looks brand new!!

Don

[Sprig1]

Hi rnummi everyone is worried about through bolting the port lights. I'm just going to put them back the way they where and put 4000 uv on them. That worked for 30 years that way. 4000 uv is way better then what the original builders used. It seems these boats are one step up from a travel trailer. So let's get are projects done and use them.

[rnummi]

Concur...., I'm just digging out the core around the pilot house and wondering if I need to pull all the ports while I'm on a core dig out mission.

[Sprig1]

Just stop the water intrusion and make it structurally sound. I try to do it right I research as much as I can and talk to as many people as I can. Everyone usually tells you something different. Just do what you think is right. It will be better then what was there.

[Sprig1]

I pulled all the cabin Windows and port lights almost all where leaking but not to badly. My problem is where do you stop. If you are there you fix it right. I pulled the port lights then that makes the head liner easy to take down then you have access to the handrails that's where I'm at right now. So I guess the headliner goes then you bed all the hardware. Everything compounds. Luckily a boat is small. If we didn't have that pesky day job we could probably have it done in a month and enjoy working on it.

[Beta Don]

I used 4 through bolts when I removed and resealed all of our portlights. There are places where the screws holding the portlight from the inside and the screws holding the outside trim ring do not line up exactly. At those points, I drilled all the way through and installed a countersunk bolt from the outside with an aircraft nut on the inside. Later when the trim ring is reinstalled, it covered the head of the countersunk bolt

You could also buy new trim rings - They come with no holes drilled in them and just through bolt the entire 'sandwich' (outer trim ring, outer fiberglass skin, core, inner skin, cabin trim) and portlight. We had to buy a couple new trim rings because some were broken and they come with no holes in them. Use the portlight as a pattern and drill the holes in the trim ring to match the portlight. This would make for a very secure, watertight installation

Don

[rnummi]

That sounds like the solution. I'll pull them after I fix the pilot house.

[rnummi]

My butyl tape just arrived... Did you order a particular size bolt for the port light sandwich or cut to size?

[Beta Don]

If you're including the outside trim ring in the 'sandwich' then your bolts will be different from what I used. Mine were flat head, counter sunk bolts so they would be flush with the outside skin so the trim rings would go over them. You'll need ordinary pan head screws and aircraft nuts if you are including the trim ring in your 'sandwich'

I *think* I used 10/32 screws and aircraft nuts . . . . but don't quote me. If I were you, I would buy a pack of 10/32 pan head screws about 2 inches long from Lowes and try those to see if they are the correct diameter and how much too long they turn out to be. You're going to need a BUNCH of them to do all 10 port lights, so once you know exactly what length you need, I would to to eBay and buy a pack of 100 from Albany County Fasteners - They will sell you 100 for about the same price as it costs to buy 25 of them from Lowes - Lowes is my 'fastener of last resort' store

Don

[rnummi]

Thanks Don. Silly question but here goes, if you pulled the port lights, could you not pour in some git rot and epoxy the exposed edges? Yeah I know, doesn't address the 30 year horror hiding behind the interior headliner(s). The question is more... Can I stop "additional" leakage by epoxying edge, butyl rebedding, through bolt "sandwich"?

I'm up to my keester in pilot house repair, if I can "quick" fix the port light leaks temporarily, I can put this puppy in the water and fix the interior rot another day. The headliners overall seem to be in pretty good shape. I can tell it's been leaking long term though. I've got the tell tale "bulges" along bottom of sideliner where it caught water and "balsa" particles.

[JT48348]

Yes.

West Marine sells a red sticker that says: "Not really fixed, but thinking about it."

You should buy several packs and keep them handy. Put one under each porthole.

[rnummi]

Yep... thats the ticket...er, sticker. I was chastised for trying to do too much at one time. Now I'm just dodging projects. Bare Necessities has been at an RV storage lot for 6 years. There is absolutely no moisture in the core (which for Florida is saying a lot). The very last thing I want to do is get the core wet again. My "I have to stop the damn leaks" priorities are 1. The Pilot House, 2. The port lights and 3. The hull deck joint. Everything else I think I can do when it is floating. The PO had exterior screws missing around the port lights, I think the port light repair is a "quickie" that doesn't address the interior rot, just stops the water from reentering a dry core.

[Beta Don]

Thanks Don. Silly question but here goes, if you pulled the port lights, could you not pour in some git rot and epoxy the exposed edges? Yeah I know, doesn't address the 30 year horror hiding behind the interior headliner(s). The question is more... Can I stop "additional" leakage by epoxying edge, butyl rebedding, through bolt "sandwich"?

That's exactly what I did for all of the ones in the aft cabin

*Assuming* you can stop the water intrusion 100%, all you really need is to seal the rotted wood so it doesn't compress when you thru bolt it

We also removed the headliner and everything in the aft cabin and completely redecorated everything. What we removed wasn't original - The previous owner had paid someone a small fortune to do a very poor job of installing a new headliner

Don

[JT48348]

Yep... thats the ticket...er, sticker. I was chastised for trying to do too much at one time. Now I'm just dodging projects. Bare Necessities has been at an RV storage lot for 6 years. There is absolutely no moisture in the core (which for Florida is saying a lot). The very last thing I want to do is get the core wet again. My "I have to stop the damn leaks" priorities are 1. The Pilot House, 2. The port lights and 3. The hull deck joint. Everything else I think I can do when it is floating. The PO had exterior screws missing around the port lights, I think the port light repair is a "quickie" that doesn't address the interior rot, just stops the water from reentering a dry core.

I feel your pain and know it well.

To me based off what I have learned about the construction of the Albin 27 and the way they age, the only way to fully address your leak problems is to remove the headliner and see what's going on. You have a dry boat--so you really have NO IDEA what's really leaking or where.

There's no point thru bolting without removing the liner. Because you don't know if ur cabin sides are solid. There no point re-screwing the portholes if you go that route. Fixing portholes without removing the headliner is like trying to fix a car engine without opening the hood.

You can spend time and effort chasing them down but you will still have mold or debries behind the headliner. You will have more leaks. Basically one of every type mentioned in the forum and in the "Albin 27 Buyers Guide"

Save yourself the frustration and do it right at this point. you're half way there, already a pilothouse expert, so don't give up.

[Vic K]

Don,

What did you do in place of a headliner? I ripped out the one that was in my boat. It was a haven for mildew etc. Then cleaned and simply painted the overhead until I could come up with another solve. It looks OK but nothing you would write home about.
Vic