Deck rail stanchions removal on 32 + 2?

[TomA]

In attempting to remove the three screws fastening the deck railings stanchions our 32 + 2 it appears they are thru bolted into the cabin ceiling perimeter covered by the upholstered headliner. Has anyone removed the deck railing and how did you access the nuts inside the cabin headliner? Tom A

[Nancy]

In attempting to remove the three screws fastening the deck railings stanchions our 32 + 2 it appears they are thru bolted into the cabin ceiling perimeter covered by the upholstered headliner.

That's exactly the situation on the 28TE. I located the nuts and backing plates by pushing up firmly on the headliner. The ones we needed to access were either completely or mostly hidden from view. We decided that we'd cover the repair with a circular piece of starboard. I'm sure there are lots of other possibilities.

Full disclosure: we didn't do this work ourselves.

The headliner was very carefully cut to expose the backing plates and bolts. Here's a photo of the cover plate:

stanchion backing pl cover-10.03.20-1200.jpg

I like this simple solution because the starboard can be easily removed if it ever has to be.