Its a tight squeeze....

Posted By: Martin P '78 5.2 nr. 505
Date: 9/22/06 10:59a.m.

Report: outside forum guidelines

In Response To: Putty putty ... maybe. (Gene Bragalone - #485)

Ditto on taking off the adjacent screw plates... After I removed all screws on the Pivot fittings -- I was able to use a small chisel to "break" the seal with the putty... At that point I was able to Pri the center out enough to remove the pivot castings... but was still unable to completely remove the board without having the additional plates removed... There is not a whole lot of clearance. My 5.2 is currently undergoing major refit - and is upside down. The centerboard hadn't been swung down... let alone removed for close to 6 years.... I stradled the centerboard slot and had to "wiggle" it around to get it out. took quite some effort. Lots of compacted leaf litter, coats of paint and just plain gunk contributed to the stickiness. But even aside from all that -- didnt have much clearance room on the sides - I figure thats a good thing -- the board wouldn't have any slop room and move from side to side in light air with any sort of following sea on a run.... Currently still have board out - once I've resurfaced it, I hope it slips in much smoother. regards MPK