Where's the Rub Rail

The rub-rail on Mariposa was chalky and brittle. My attempts to clean it up had not satisfied me so I started to think in terms of how to replace it. Numerous drawings of teak moldings and rub-strakes didn't really suit me so one morning I took an angle-grinder and removed it. The outward turning flange that holds the deck and hull together during manufacture was pretty flimsy, but it did not leak.

After removing the flange, I dished out the glass enough to do an epoxy lay-up with tri-axial cloth. I used 3 layers of glass, each one narrower than the other in order to taper the glass to avoid sudden stresses. Although the glass that I added to the outside of the joint was without doubt stronger than necessary, I also added epoxy glass over the original taped joint on the inside because it seemed relatively easy to do.

I faired both lay-ups extensively with DA air sanders until I reached a point where I required some technological help to achieve the degree of perfection that I required. I bought a simple, inexpensive in-line sander from an auto supply store and built a "shoe" on the bottom that flexed enough to conform to the contours of the hull yet bridge the low spots.

The joke around the Owen household is that it took me 3 hours to grind off the rub-rail flange and 3 years to put it all back together again. It wasn't quite that bad, but needless to say this is not a project for the faint of heart or those lacking resolve.