28' TE Railing

[Markv]

A weld broke at the railing mounting plate of our 2000 28' TE. Has anyone removed a railing? Any issues?

Thanx,

[kowal_53]

Could not find the delete button.

[kowal_53]

I had the rear port weld break at the flange. The good news is was not expensive to re-weld. The railing on my 2006 28 was in 3 pieces, removing and reinstalling is the work. This is a two person job.

Begin by separating the broken rail assembly from the others. I think this is near the front running lights on top. Make sure you save the flange since it will let the welder know how to re-weld it. I am sure this would be the same if any other joint broke.

Each rail base has bolts, lock nuts and nuts on them. To get to them takes some imagination. I had to remove the ceiling in the back birth, take out the kitchen equipment. (These took a while to find, but came out) Then there were several behind the birth ceiling upholstery. To get these my mechanic recommended that we cut the ceiling fabric at each nut. Just enough to get the socket tool in there. This worked pretty well.

Our plan called for manufactoring some stainless round plates about 3 inches in diameter with 3 holes in them, about 1/2 inch thick. This would keep have having to reinstall the ceiling padding after the job was complete. I was afraid of getting a smooth looking ceiling after the install.

Once the bolts are out, you can remove the railing. Then you might need a flat bed to transport the railing to and from the welder. I did use the Albin site to find a local welder form marine jobs.

Remove the old silicone, where they were attached.

Once fixed the railing can be re-installed just like it came off. I used regular silicone, not 5200 since you never know when you might need to remove a railing again. I think we put tape around the flange area to help keep the silicone at bay. Tighten the nuts until fairly snug, clean up oozing silicone as you go along, try not to make a mess. (We did the tightening tire thing, going around each 3 bolt/screw positions several times until they were quite snug, but not finish tight) Once they set about a day, you can re-tighten the nuts a bit to make a better water proof seal.

Close up all access panel etc. Get some long bolts/screws for the ones up front. I used new ss hardware everywhere. They will have to be long enough for the extra space, and new circles, with just enough tread for decorative nuts. Then I added extra nuts so that the stainless circles could be installed at the correct height. The circle are so far up and close to the sides you really don't see them. They look very boat like. Once could add new cieling lights in there if you needed them. The ceiling looked just as it did when we started, so the circle plan worked wonders.

If I run across one for those circles I will post a picture. The boat was sold, so I can't take a picture of the finished.

[Jeremyvmd]

Kowal pretty much covered it all, however I will make a recommendation of using butyl tape rather than silicone or other liquid sealant. It never "cures" so as the boat shifts and people bump into the rail you never have to worry about the seal giving up the ghost.

[Markv]

I was able to reweld the railing without removal. The break was at the aft port connection. I crawled into the quarter berth an unbolted that connection. The railing was flexible enough so that I could slip 1/4 inch of hardwood (with mounting holes drilled) under the railing with the mounting plate aligned with bolts through the wood and deck. The wood gave enough insulation to allow three weld tacks to be placed without harming the fiberglass. After the tacks cooled, I removed the bolts and inserted a piece of 1/4 inch aluminum between the railing plate and the wood. The aluminum with its high thermal conductivity spread the heat from welding, and the wood insulated the heat from the fiberglass so no damage was done to the fiberglass. I rebolted the railing and was done.

[Pedro]

I will need to address the cracks in mine someday, were you able to fully weld the stainless plate after you used the alum plate to insulate the deck,?
Did you take and pictures? Pete

[Markv]

Yes, fully welded. No photos. Very important to put 1/4" of hardwood under the aluminum, The aluminum spreads the heat, the wood insulates the heat from reaching the fiberglas.