One of the first items to be done on Renegade when we first bought her was to replace the bowsprit and repair the bob stay. These are two important components of a boat and we felt it was best tackled by people who knew what they were doing. Basically the bowsprit is a pole extending forward on the bow of the boat that provides an anchor point for the fore stays and thus needs to be strong. If not, it can spell disaster and cause your rigging and mast to come down. Ours is about 12 feet long so its not an easy job to take on.
The Bowsprit is the wooden beam with the bow pulpit (metal railings) above
On our first inspection of the boat we noticed there had been a previous repair done and a bracket installed for strength. Anytime you drill holes in wood there is always a possibility of water intrusion if not bedded properly or re-bedded when needed. This is the problem we were seeing along with the wood de-laminating. We made a trip down to the boat to check on the progress and pull more items off the boat for organizing and cleaning. It will be much easier once we get on board to start with a clean slate with lockers emptied, and can I tell you, there are a lot of lockers. Wow is it hot down here right now. Dirk & I both bought extra pair of clothes to change into once we were done and boy did we need them. Dirk was actually creating a puddle from the sweat dripping from his shorts. Once we loaded the car with what we could, we changed and headed over to the boat yard office and wood shop to check on the progress of work.
Looking from above and below at the bare bow of Renegade after the pulpit & bowsprit were removed
Here you can see rot and de-lamination
Here is the old and new bowsprit side by side
The new stainless steel bracket we had to have made due to the old one being cracked. This is where the two fore stays attach
Once the bowsprit is complete it will be epoxied to seal it and then painted white. Along with this we are also having some work done on the bow pulpit as the underside had some rot in certain places. These areas were cut out and will be repaired, sanded and painted white also.
The underside of the pulpit
The rot removed and ready for repair
There are a couple other things being worked on such as a few through hulls being replaced and some realignment of the engine that is being looked at right now. We shall see what kind of project that turns into. Dirk and I will be heading out to visit his family in Hamburg Germany this next week and were hoping that when we return next month that she will be ready to splash and we can move her to a marina a couple miles away. Till then....
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