The only piece of advice the her previous owner, Mr. Horace Sylvester, gave me was to tighten the toe rail year yearly. He was very insistent on this point. I have followed the advice--but usually only before an offshore adventure. Before the Mexico trip in 2001 Desiree Trujillo and I spent a afternoon tightening all 200 of the 1/4-20 bolts that hold the deck to the hull. We found many loose, broken, or even missing bolts. It was a very rewarding day.
Today we covered the same ground. This time nothing was broken or missing. Each bolt usually required only a quarter or half turn. Some bolts near the center (widest) part of the boat needed a full turn or more. I broke two Phillips head #3 screw driver before I backed off to about 20 foot pounds of torque. It was tedious work and required patience of both the bolt turner (me) and the nut holder (Jan).
The chore seems odious but is so necessary. It keeps out the sea by squeezing the 5200 sealant between the deck and the hull. But it also adds potential energy to the boat. A quarter turn on 200 1/4-20 stainless steel bolt is equivalent to screwing in one bolt a full 5 inches. This is a tremendous gain in potential energy that can be translated into kinetic energy for sailing.
Thank you Jan and for everyone with a toe rail: tighten those bolts!
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