TOPIC:

Evening all
Boat is at home and sitting on its trailer , I need to take the centreboard out. I have undone the bolt already and now see a couple of issues to overcome.

How much clearance do I need under the hull to give enough "angle" to pull it out?

Is there a relatively pain free method of getting it back in place after refurb?

Thanks in advance

Tim

The answer lies in the position and height of the cradle on the launching trolley...

I used to be able to move the boat further back on the trolley, carefully remembering to tie the bow down, and then pulling the board out. As each trolley is likely to be different you'd have to experiment carefully with the distance required. It will help if you have a foredeck mast slot that's open at the back.

If you're successful, mark the position that you moved the boat to on the trolley before moving the boat (without centreboard) back to it's normal position. Then when you want to reinsert the board you can easily find the same place. The bolt hole is unlikely to be in exactly the right place, but it won't be far away. I used to wriggle the board around a little until I found the hole beginning to line up, and then put a posidrive screwdriver shaft through the whole lot and circulate it to line the holes up properly before reinserting the bolt.

If you have a brake fitted you'll need to make sure it's well slackened off before you begin any of this.

Good luck!

I did this once on an Albacore, and numerous times on the Graduate. Loads easier to roll the boat over with the mast up, either on the grass or in the water. Once out, draw lines radiating from the hole so you can see which way to move it.

Last time I did this, it was Boxing day, and I had to break the ice to launch the boat to put the board in. Not a pleasant job