As an addition, being the owner of a French boat that was built in France,
getting parts from France is much cheaper, faster, and more efficient than
trying to get them in the US. We deal directly with the Kirie people in La
Rochelle whenever we have a problem and have had nothing but satisfactory
service. The cost of the part we order is generally half that of what it
costs here and the shipping is not expensive. I suppose ifyou had to order
something as weighty as a lead keel bulb that might change...

"abstrait" wrote in message
oups.com...
Ugen wrote:

So my brave little First 235 under my sloppy command hit a submerged
stone
while leaving Greenwich, CT harbor. It wasnt a very
strong hit, more like scraping, so i fugured - a scratch on a keel -
who cares.
Wrong again! Apparently beneteau in a quest for cost effectivness
glues
the wings onto the keel with something closely resembling 3M 5200.
So here we go - the boat just came out of the water and the wings are
not to be
found there. Lesson number 3 - buying imported (French) boats isn't
much
different from buying imported cars. The wings (fiberglass part,
about 1' wide,
2' long) may cost me (as per Benetau USA parts guy) about $1000.

First of all, the wing on the Beneteau First 235 is NOT fiberglass. In
fact, it is made of IRON just like the keel, and covered with
epoxy/resin to seal it. Secondly, the wing on the Beneteau F235 is NOT
glued on with just 5200. The wing is attached with THREE large bolts
and sealed. Some of the run of wing keels might be made differently;
there is still debate here. On the earlier models of the US run
started in 86/87, you can see the seam of the wing keel where the wing
is added. Some of these leave the bolt heads exposed, recessed in
bottom. Others have these anomolies completely covered with a seamless
joint between wing and fin, the bolt heads invisible.

Apparently, you hit the wing with enough force to shear the bolts off,
something I have never seen or heard of before or since.

IF anyone is interested, a view of the Beneteau F235 wing keel is seen
below, this before and after a restoration.

http://www.beneteau235.com/keel_pdf/...el_montage.jpg

Here you see the separate wing, top and bottom, along with the bolts
that are used to attach it. You notice the wing on and off the fin,
and get an excellent shot of the wing keel faired and finished with
barrier coat.

The original keels are not available any more. However, more than a
few owners have converted to the new Mars/Leif Beiley lead keel so one
could find extras this way. Mars makes the Leif Beiley lead keel
option right now, details to be found at http://beneteau235.com/

As an aside, it is far more likely your F235 was made in the Beneteau
plant in South Carolina, and NOT imported from France. 451 F235 were
made there.

This post is left for information purposes, since the original poster
has long since lived this malady down...
kh
Beneteau F235 ~ abstrait
'89 WK | Hull #327
http://beneteau235.com