Hobbies And Interests
Things You'll Need
Instructions
Determining Where to Place Your Bailer
Place your boat on a firm, even grassy area.
Level the boat and determine where you want to install your bailers.
Pour a 5-gallon bucket into the cockpit. Measure the low point, aft and fore within the boat's interior as a guide to placing the bailers. Consider placing the bailers at 14 inches in front of the far edge of the CB trunk, nearest the cockpit.
Leveling the Boat
Lower the mast to the ground providing support in leveling the boat.
Hoist the main halyard -- line used to hoist the sail, boom and gaff -- with one end fixed at the deck of the boat. This will cause the boat to be imbalanced and tip easily.
Roll the boat to its side placing thick padding underneath the side for protection. Use a heavy object, such as a 50 lb. sand bag, to place on the interior wall keeping the boat on its side.
Preparing the Installation Area
Place the bailer template in the desired area. Trace out the bailer's position with your marker leaving 1 inch between the grated, non-skid surface area of the floor and the smooth surface area around the seats.
Drill a 3/4-inch diameter hole at the center of the bailer hole. Place the jigsaw into the hole cutting it into a rectangle to the measurements of the template.
Measure your bolt thread width. Use an over-sized drill bit making slightly larger holes that the bolts at the bolt locations, making the bolt installation easier.
Outline the external ridge of the bailer on the gel coat at the smooth surface of the seat side of the boat. Measure the thickness of the gel coat comparing it with the external ridge to determine if the ridge will fit flush into the area of the gel coat to be removed. If not, you will need to cut into the fiberglass skin of the seat side area.
Cut along the outsides lines of the template with a Dremel tool establishing a boarder. Chip away the gel coat within the boarder lines with a hammer and sharp chisel.
Countersink each bolthole with a 1/2-inch diameter countersink bit allowing the underside of the bailer's external ridge to sit flush against the hull.
Apply a drill stop to your drill setting it at 1/4-inch deep. Use your 1/2-inch drill bit to countersink the bolt holes on the hull. Wipe away dust from drilling. Apply a light coat of oil to the screw threads inserting them into the holes. Coat the nuts with the epoxy.
Fill the countersink holes with the epoxy from bottom end -- at the boat's cockpit side. Screw the bolt into the hole tightly applying additional epoxy into the countersink at the hole. Repeat the process for each bolt hole.
Allow the epoxy 2 hours to cure and remove the screws. Removing the screws from the hardened epoxy sets a mold for the screws as they are guided back into place securing the bailer.
Installing the Bailer
Place the bailer's external ridge in place, which will resemble a door hinge. Align the bailer's bolt holes with the bolt holes in the boat.
Apply boat caulk each of your boltholes and the under bailer's external ridge -- the flange.
Affix the bailer to the boat by screwing the bolts back into place. Pay close attention to see that your bolts fit through the nut but not coming out too much. You may need to cut some of the screws. If so, measure the amount of the screw needed to be cut. Remove the screw and proceed to cut the excess with a bimetallic hacksaw blade. Make sure your nut is at the top of the screw head so you will not have any threading issues. Remove the nut and put the newly cut screws back into place.