Mast & Keel work

Work Day 2

No pictures today, but we did work on the keel and mast. The keel is badly corroded in places through the epoxy coating. We chipped some of the old coating away with a putty knife. Where it is rusty the epoxy comes off pretty easily. Then we started grinding the layer for fairing with a wire brush and sanding disk mounted on a drill. I have a feeling it will need several more days of dedicated work before it's ready to be filled in again. One of the keel bolts was also removed and soon to be replaced after we clean around it. I'll get some pictures of it soon.

The mast is also corroded, but only slightly. The aluminum was bare before and has become rough over the years. It needs a good sanding which I got through most of today. Still need more touch up around the various parts that attach to the mast. Some of the hardware will need to be replaced. Other bits just need to be cleaned. And some of the hardware can't be safely removed anymore and will need to be painted around when the time comes.