Moving chain plates

[harbourboy]

Just acquired a 1980 Hunter 30 and starting a complete refit. The 3 chain plates are smack in the middle of the side deck and I’m considering moving them out the 9” to the outside of the hull. Would lengthen the spreaders accordingly and realize I would be giving up a bit of jib trim. Any other thoughts - pro or on?

[psk125]

Hunter built quite a few of the 30 footers and probably worked out the loads and put the chain plates where they are on purpose. Attaching them to the hull at a place that might not be strong enough for the load may cause the hull to distort and (possibly) lead to dismasting. The strain may do things to the hull/deck joint as well. Is there a Hunter group you could ask about this?

[bobnlesley]

[QUOTE=psk125;2759441]Hunter built quite a few of the 30 footers and probably worked out the loads and put the chain plates where they are on purpose.../QUOTE]

My thoughts too.

[CSY Man]

Sure, if you are a naval architect, move the chainplates because the designer and the factory was way off.
Otherwise, I would leave “em in place or just remove and replace in the same spot.

[Jim Cate]

Not a simple job to do well, expensive when you fold in the cost of patching the old access deck penetrations and fabricating new knees or other attachment points and making new spreaders as well. While do-able, the gains in deck access (I assume that is what you are hoping for) seem pretty nebulous to me.

I'd advise against it, YMMV

Jim

[a64pilot]

Yes it can be done, with enough money most anything can be done.
The cost however may exceed the value of the boat and is likely to decrease as opposed to increase the resale price.
Ask a pro for a rough order of magnitude of the cost to do so, then when you get that number you can make an informed decision.

[sailorboy1]

redesign of an old boat, what could go wrong with that

[billknny]

"Giving up a bit of jib trim" is NOT an insignificant thing. When it comes to going upwind you'll be gelding your stallion. OK, it's a Hunter, so it's more like gelding a pony, but you get the idea.

Every boat is a compromise. The design of a good Naval Architect is to consider those compromises and come up with something that is useful and fun.

Amateurs are rarely able to make useful improvements to a good design, and this boat is a good design for what it was designed to do.

You are new to this game. Stop trying to "improve" your boat and just GO SAILING. When you actually see how much time you spend working your boat upwind (Hint: A lot!) you'll forget this dumb idea.

[Benz]

If it was my boat, and I was doing the work myself, I wouldn't hesitate to do it. But I wouldn't incur the cost of paying someone else to do it for a boat that, no matter what you do to it, will still be a Hunter. Some things just can't be fixed.

As for moving chainplates outboard in general, as long as their new attachment can be made strong enough, it's almost always a good idea. There's so many reasons that inboard chainplates are stupid that it boggles the mind it was ever done at all.

[KeelMe]

Originally Posted by Benz

no matter what you do to it, will still be a Hunter. Some things just can't be fixed.

.

BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

[Stu Jackson]

It's not only where they come up through the deck.


It's what they are attached to down below.


Don't do it.

[harbourboy]

Originally Posted by Benz

If it was my boat, and I was doing the work myself, I wouldn't hesitate to do it. But I wouldn't incur the cost of paying someone else to do it for a boat that, no matter what you do to it, will still be a Hunter. Some things just can't be fixed.

As for moving chainplates outboard in general, as long as their new attachment can be made strong enough, it's almost always a good idea. There's so many reasons that inboard chainplates are stupid that it boggles the mind it was ever done at all.

Originally Posted by KeelMe

BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

You might notice I chose to let that sleight just sail on by. Everyone’s entitled to his opinion. Besides, it is pretty funny.

[Island Time O25]

Originally Posted by CSY Man

Sure, if you are a naval architect, move the chainplates because the designer and the factory was way off.
Otherwise, I would leave “em in place or just remove and replace in the same spot.

I have a similar situation and have contemplated putting the chainplates outward. My good buddy who IS a naval architect and a boatbuilder with 45+ years of experience (and 300 boats built over those years) said the only negative would be a loss of a bit of upwind pointing. Unfortunately for me he moved to the left coast a few years back and I just don't have the time to DIY or $ to hire out someone to do it.

My other (minor) concern would be back dating the already dated design, almost 40 years old. Although since I am not contemplating selling her this would not bother me much. The pluses of the clear decks far outweigh the dated cosmetics of top side plates.

As a safety issue, running to the bow in an emergency with shrouds impeding one's way would be of great concern to me in an offshore situation, especially at night. But since I am a coastal day/weekend sailor at most, I can live with it for now.

[roverhi]

Moving the chainplates outboard reduces the angle of the shroud at the mast which reduces the load on the wire and should be the strongest anchor point for the chain plate. Except for the sheeting angle it's a plus as you get rid of deck leak potential with all the problems that brings. If you are worried about the strength of the hull, lay up a few more layers on the inside overlapping onto the deck and/or add knees glassed to hull and deck but doubt they'd be needed.

The question is do you want to go the trouble to do the modification. If you move the lowers as well as the cap shroud chainplates out it may not make maneuvering around the easier.