Center board stuck up

[mikehennessy]

Greetings All,

Several weeks ago I sailed a fine afternoon outing.  Raised and cleated the center board line before putting the boat on the trailer.

Over the past two weeks, I put the square plastic floor covering on the cockpit.  To do this I uncleated the center board line with the boat still on the trailer .  I did not re-cleat the line when finished cutting the squares to fit the cockpit contours.

Drive to the lake today, launched off the trailer and went to drop the center board.  It is stuck in the trunk.  Chose to sail anyway somewhat hoping it would drop.

No Luck.

Any suggestions on why it would be stuck?  What is the best way to get it down?

On a positive note, I was able to sail upwind (broad angles) to get in a sail with my dad.

[alsantini]

My response is based on my experiences with my Eclipse, but perhaps a centerboard is a centerboard....  Last year my centerboard would not drop while on a bit of a sailing vacation in Southern Illinois.  I went into a large hardware type place and bought a metal rod that would just fit through the hole in the floor.  I was able to tap firmly on the edge of the board and it dropped.  Later, I was sailing in shallow water and did not realize that the board had slipped and was down.  The mud pushed the board into the trunk and I could not budge it, even with my newfound tool.  I had a marine company raise Off The Wind.  They clamped on a pair of vice grips and pulled it down.  The knot at the board end was much larger that would slide easily into the trunk.  Age had caused it to swell.  They also found a bit of Zebra Mussels.  They replaced the line and voila - all fixed.  I had a similar problem with a Precision 21 after it spent 10 years or so on a can all summer.  I guess if you have clear water and a good set of lungs, you can dive under the boat with the vice grips and get the board down and replace the line.  Good luck and sail on.     Al

[bruce]

Mike,

I've done something similar to Al using 1/4" rod with the end peened flat and notched so the rod keys on the edge of the CB well and doesn't slip off to the side. I think your CB is 3/8" so you might need to size up.

I have experienced problems with the pendant jamming. I believe it was around one of the zincs when the pendant was slack, but a floppy bulky knot could do it. If I'm raising the CB and I feel the pendant tightening before I hear the CB clunk in the trunk, I drop the CB back down a few inches and try again. I need to hear the clunk.

No all SCs have zincs, here's Tom Ray's former SC with a couple of sets. I don't know if all SCs have the zincs positioned in this way.
https://forum.trailersailor.com/post.php?id=1390218

In the second photo you can see the zincs are quite tight to the trunk, on a PC anyway.

[DanM]

On my SC I had the opposite problem- the board came up and down but it didn't feel right when I raised it. Finally I realized that, in our weedy late-summer mooring field, every time I raised the CB, it dragged weeds up and jammed them in the top of the CB trunk. I knew that if I put her on the trailer with the CB not fully withdrawn, it would be some kind of disaster. So I put a small right-angle hook in the end of a light steel rod and was easily able to swim under and clear "lake salad" from the CB trunk. Just mentioning this to say that with a mask and snorkel, it was really easy to get under there and see what's going on, and maybe you want to try taking a swim and see if you can pull or pry your board loose. Good luck.

[Renae]

On my SC I had the opposite problem- the board came up and down but it didn't feel right when I raised it. Finally I realized that, in our weedy late-summer mooring field, every time I raised the CB, it dragged weeds up and jammed them in the top of the CB trunk. I knew that if I put her on the trailer with the CB not fully withdrawn, it would be some kind of disaster. So I put a small right-angle hook in the end of a light steel rod and was easily able to swim under and clear "lake salad" from the CB trunk. Just mentioning this to say that with a mask and snorkel, it was really easy to get under there and see what's going on, and maybe you want to try taking a swim and see if you can pull or pry your board loose. Good luck.

I've done the old snorkel and pry method.  I keep a snorkel in the boat just for the contingency that the CB pennant fails.  I have a backup.

[mikehennessy]

So perhaps two choices: (i) go swimming with a vice grips and pull the CB down, (ii) un-jam it from the top.

The cleat sits atop a block of wood with six screws.  What are those screws anchored into and if I undo them what sort of problems may I encounter?

First rule - do not make the problem worse...

[Renae]

IMO a stuck board isn't going to be easily loosened from the top, and removing the cleat block doesn't really expose anything besides a few inches of the pennant tube.

I've only had to unstick mine once--it somehow managed to get stuck in a loop of its own pennant.  I pulled it out by hand, bracing my shoulder against the bottom of the boat.  It took a surpising amount of force, but it hasn't failed me in nearly two years since.

[bruce]

The rod is slid down the tube, with the pendant in place, until you feel the CB. The notch helps it register on the CB. Then you can push or tap on the rod as you feel is reasonable.

If you can't get to the pendant tube easily, then this won't work. The photos I've seen, with and without cockpit grates, seem to show you can access the tube on the SC.

[mikehennessy]

Thanks for the advice...

I'll try a fix at noon to give me plenty of time to re-fix!  Not a 5:00 pm Friday afternoon event.

[Reighnman]

Is there a standard way to get at the centerboard while on the trailer? Car jacks?

[Renae]

Is there a standard way to get at the centerboard while on the trailer? Car jacks?

Or a hoist.  Honestly, it's going to be a lot easier in warm, shallow water.

[mikehennessy]

Well - it is finally fixed.

What happened:  When I released the line from the clam cleat (with the boat in the trailer) to install the tiles on the cockpit floor the shackle had no upward pressure so it twisted and then jammed in the CB trunk.

I tried to push it down from the top via suggestion from Bruce.  It did not work!

Solution:  Marina picked boat off trainer with a fork life and someone spent an hour with a screwdriver maneuvering the shackle until unstuck.

An envelope of $20s later, all fixed.

DO NOT UNCLEAT YOUR CENTERBOARD ON THE TRAILER.

[bruce]

Glad you sorted it out, Mike. It was good they could reach it with a screwdriver, an advantage of a shallow trunk.

For folks with chronic sticky CBs, something I've done to help right our boat if it capsizes and turtles, as catboats tend to do quickly, may be helpful. I've mounted a small shackle and lanyard at the accessible corner of the CB, to grab if the 75 lbs board has slid back into the trunk, for possible self rescue.

Vice grips can work, if you have a pair handy, but having a shackle to haul on could make the difference. A bit more drag for sure, I could take it off for race days.