On Mon, 28 Nov 2005 09:24:46 -0500, Matt Colie
wrote:

If the core is not rotted, there is no reason you cannot open the area
up, dry it out and relaminate it.

While this is technically correct, once you've opened up an area I see
no point in "recycling" old balsa, given that balsa WILL wick up water
given the opportunity. It was used back in the day due to ease of
handling (cut into little tiles it will conform to complex curves in a
resin matrix) and low price.

But it's a wooden sponge. Lithium is the lightest metal, but you don't
see girders of it because its other properties are lousy for
structural applications.

Use marine plywood, encapsulated, for through deck mounting points,
and then use CoreCell, Airex, whatever for the core. They don't wick
up water and won't rot if wet. You may still have delamination if your
deck is leaky, but that's a function of the job you do next.

Along with others, I question the economics of doing this, but if you
like and want to sail the boat, you might as well do the best job
possible if you go to the trouble of taking the deck apart, which is
labour-intensive and a dirty, tedious job. The payoff is that when
it's all back together and the deck gear is backed by load-spreading
backing plates and sealant-covered bolts through epoxied holes in
encapsulated plywood, you feel very confident that the cleats will
give before the deck does, that you can jump on the deck without it
"giving" and that it will be dry and safer below, irrespective of the
weather.

I used to have fender washers. Now I have custom-cut (by me) 1/4"
backing plates on all through-deck gear. Nothing moves and only the
portlight (this winter's project!) leak. From that perspective, the 32
year old boat's "better than factory", because we have a very good
historical idea of the benefits and problems of balsa coring. And by
the way, there are some boats where thanks to attentive owners, the
balsa has never been wet, and the through-bolts pass through
water-proof epoxy "bushings". Those boats are absolutely sound.

But doing what is necessary won't add a penny to the resale value.
That's why in some cases it makes more sense to buy a beat-up bigger
sailboat with a delaminated, sad deck for a few grand and just strip
the top layer off the bugger and go for a total redo.

R.