Keel

2 Keel
Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Your Swing Keel
Main Brace, Summer 1982, pg. 23.
Ref Part Number Description
1 D 27 02 02 – 230 Swing Keel Winch
D 27 02 02F Fastener Kit: (2) 3/8” 16” x 2¼” Slot RHMS, SS, (2) 3/8” Flat Washer, SS, (2) 3/8” Lock Washers, SS, (2) 3/8” 16 Hex Nut,
SS.
2 D 27 02 03 – 285 Shim Ring, 1T – 12
3 D 27 02 04 – 230 Winch Handle
4 D 27 02 05 – 100 Keel Cable, 7 x 19,3/16” x 10’ 0” W/Fork, SS.
5 D 27 02 06 – 335 Reinforced Black Rubber Hose, 1¾” I.D. x l’ 0”
6 D 27 02 07 – 519 # 28 Hose Clamp, SS.
7 D 27 02 08 – 900 Swing Keel Turning Ball, Brass
D 27 02 09 – 900 Turning Ball Pen, 1 5/8” x ¼”, SS.
8 D 27 02 10 – 900 1¼” x 4” Nipple, Bonded thru Hull
9 D 27 02 12 – 512 ½”- 13 x 7/8” Keel Eye Bolt, SS.
10 D 27 02 13 – 900 5/16” x ¾” Flat Head Rivet, For Keel Cable
D 27 02 14 – 740 Cotter Pin, 3/32” x 1“ SS., For Keel Cable Pin
11 D 27 02 0l – 040 Swing Keel, Iron Casting
12 D 27 02 15 – 900 Shoe Casting, Silicone Bronze
D 27 02 15F Fastener Kit: ( 1 ) 5/16” – 18 x 1¼” HHMB, SS. ( 1 ) ¾” Lock Washer, S.S.
D 27 02 16 – 900 Hanger Bolt Weldments
13 D 27 02 17 – 048 Swing Keel Washer, White Nylon
14 D 27 02 18 – 900 Swing Keel Pivot Pin, 1“ x 3 1/6”, Bronze
15 D 27 02 20 – 900 Keel Locking Handle, SS.
16 D 27 02 19 – 900 Keel Locking Strap, SS.

Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001 2-1

 Keel

Keel Bolts

Keel Bolts
By Dick King
Mainsheet, November 1989, pg. 110.
For the want of a nail the shoe was
lost, and so on until the kingdom was
lost. For some peculiar reason, several
boats in our area have recently suffered
the beginnings of lost kingdoms, namely
the fracturing of a keel bolt.
The first incident probably happened
in conjunction with a broken keel cable.
When the boat was lifted from the water
For want of a nail...
with a fork-lift and placed in chocks for
the cable repair, the skipper noticed that
of a keel bolt, in the section that is drilled piece as a guide, drill the piece in
that one of the four bolts holding the keel
enclosed by sealants. Once the "active" the boat. Remove the head and insert an
hangers was missing a head.
and "passive" parts of the stainless begin easyout. Back out the broken-off piece
The second incident occurred while
to react with each other, the result is in the boat and replace it with a new bolt.
the skipper was performing maintenance
surface or crevice corrosion, which in If you renew your keel bolts
on the keel. He had removed the keel for
time can turn keel bolts, wasp-waisted faithfully each year, you should not have
refinishing and was putting it back in the
and leave a shaft with deep crevices that any problems with corrosion and
boat. As he was tightening one of the
in turn invite cavitation and other forms breakage.
bolts, it snapped off, several threads up
of corrosion. If you do have stainless Fair winds and smooth sailing.
into the "weldment" that the bolt screws
fittings underwater, make certain that (1)
into.
they are type 316 stainless, which is
In each case, the pieces of the bolt
substantially more resistant to corrosion
Check Those Keel Bolts
showed little or no exterior corrosion, By Buz Glass
than the commoner type 304 stainless,
but the interior of the bolt looked grainy, Mainsheet, February 1992, pg. 60.
and (2) that they are frequently inspected
like a bad solder joint. What happened,
for telltale pitting that may be an
how can it be prevented, and how can it Yes, Catalina swing keel boat
indication of serious corrosion.
be fixed, if it happens to you? owners, check those keel bolts - often!
I recommend the following to prevent
One of our fleet members, Tom Hett, Better yet, take a socket wrench and
possible corrosion problems: At least
has a book that, next to the Catalina 22 periodically snug them up. The best way,
once a year, change all four bolts. Haul
technical manual, Life Savers, is one of of course, is to raise (unweight) the keel
the boat, and support the keel by
the best books I have seen on rigging and with a hydraulic jack and snug the bolts
blocking it up under the leading edge
maintenance. The book is The Optimum up tight with a socket wrench.
directly under the keel shoe casting
Sailboat, by Ronald Florence, published Why am I so full of all this good
location. Carefully remove one bolt at a
by Harper and Row for $27.50. (Time advice? Let me tell you about a little
time, and replace it with a new bolt and
for Christmas hints.) In a chapter on adventure I had!
lock washer. The bolt is a stainless steel
corrosion, I found the following: I had just retrieved my Catalina 22
5/16 x 1¼ x 18 hex head machine bolt.
Stainless steels appear twice on the from the ramp at Clearlake State Park
They cost less than fifty cents apiece
galvanic scale. In their "passive" state, after a 10-day vacation when I
with stainless lockwasher. Certainly
stainless steels are just below the discovered one of the two plates that
worth the price for peace of mind.
precious metals. In their "active" state support the forward end of the keel was
If you should be so unlucky as to
the stainless steels are below lead.... angled downward and one of the bolts
have one of the bolts break off as you are
Stainless steels are normally in the was missing. The plate on the opposite
trying to remove it, use a mechanic's
passive state when a continuous supply side of the keel seemed secure and not
trick which was passed on to me by Tom
of fresh oxygen is available at the surface having the proper equipment to fix it I
Hett. Clamp the head of the broken bolt
of the metal; when oxygen is denied to decided to drive home as carefully as
in a vice and drill a hole using a cobalt
the surface, the metal will revert to its possible and fix it later. This plan of
bit down through the center of the head
active state.... Underwater, stainless steel action almost led to disaster.
and broken shaft. The hole should be
is a less than ideal material, because an When I stopped in Vallejo for lunch I
sized for the right sized "easy out." Then
underwater fastening or fitting will checked the keel again and found that
reinsert the broken piece in the hole it
frequently be partially or totally deprived both plates were angled downward and
came from. You might have to use some
of oxygen and will turn "active", for two bolts were missing (there are only
caulking to hold it in place. Using the
example, under a barnacle, or in the case four bolts holding the keel in place when

Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001 2-2


none are missing). I knew I was in
serious trouble so I gingerly moved the
rig down the street and as luck would
have it I found a Toyota dealership open
within one block. They loaned me a floor
jack and some tools and gave me some
bolts and lock washers, and in less than a
half hour I had the problem corrected.
But here's the kicker. When I first raised
the keel slightly with the jack, I was able
to turn the two remaining bolts with my
fingers!
Since only about 20% of the weight
rests on the rubber "V" block that
supports the aft end of the keel when
trailering, most of the keel weight is born
by the two plates and four bolts at the
forward end of the keel. Had the two
remaining (loose) bolts let go while
towing the boat on the highway, the
forward end of the keel would have
dropped to the pavement and in all
likelihood would have torn the bottom
out of the boat. There's a good chance
this could have also caused a serious
accident. Needless to say, a valuable
lesson was learned and keel bolts will be
a priority item with me when I'm moving
my boat from now on.
Tips On Keel Bolts
There are 2 additional ways to make
fast the bolts for the keel hinge.
Tighten up the bolts and apply a dab
or two of "5 Minute Epoxy" to the bolt
heads and the surrounding hingeplate.
This 2 part glue sets up in 5 minutes and
is dry in 15 min. Work fast. To remove
the bolts just tap the glue with a hammer
and it will shatter away making it easy to
remove the bolts. "5 Minute Epoxy" is
available at any hobby shop or some
better hardware stores.
The last way is to mark and drill a
small hole through each bolt head and
wire the 2 bolts on each side together.
Use fine stainless steel wire and the drag
won't be very noticeable.
Bolts That Unscrew
On the subject of C-22 swing-keel
hinge bolts, I had a problem nearly
identical to that you reported at the top
of column 1, page 3, Fall Issue 1978,
"Main Brace."
I discovered my missing bolts about
6 months after I picked my C-22 up at Ft.
Walton Beach, Fla. Catalina Factory.
Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001
During this time, I had trailered the boat
about 600 miles and sailed it for about
300 hours.
To correct the loose-or-missing bolt
problem, I applied "LOCK 'N SEAL" to
each of the swing-keel hinge bolts'
threads. Then, after the "LOCK N'
SEAL" dried, I reinstalled the bolts.
Unless you have a cradle and jack to
support the keel, the "LOCK N 'SEAL"
must be applied to the bolts one at a
time.
This has worked well. Since I
applied the "LOCK N' SEAL" I have
trailered the boat about 1500 miles,
sailed it for two weeks in the Florida
Keys and for about 200 hours on Lake
Lanier in Georgia. I used to check the
bolts for security each time I sailed but
the "LOCK N' SEAL" has worked so
well I rarely check any more.
"LOCK N' SEAL" may be purchased
at most automotive parts houses around
the Atlanta area. The manufacturer's
address is Woodhill Permatex, 18731
Cranwood Parkway, Cleveland, OH
44128. (216) 475-3600.
Keel Bolt (5/16 x 11/4) and Lock Washer (5/16)
More On Keel Bolts
In regard to the centerboard bolts
coming loose, I reset mine in Butyl
Rubber Caulking Compound. This will
adhere to most any surface but remain
flexible so bolts can be removed for
cleaning and pointing. A scrap of shag
carpet tacked or fastened to thin strip of
wood makes an excellent brush for
painting inside of centerboard trunk.
I noticed one thing in particular that I
would like to pass on: quite a few boats,
in my opinion, were attaching their
whisker poles too low on the mast. Mine
is at least four feet off the deck and I
know that this works because I do most
of my passing of other boats down wind.
Another assist in handling the pole in
putting it out as well as jibing: put a
Keel
small loop in the sheet when you attach it
to the jib so that you can fasten the pole
to this loop. In this way, it will never
come loose when putting it out or jibing.
Bolt Wiring
In aviation, we make great use of
stainless steel safety wire, with very good
results. To safety wire the bolts, you
must remove each bolt (one at a time)
and drill a .040" hole through the head of
the bolts.
After drilling each bolt and
reinstalling, the wire is installed so as to
pull each pair of bolts tighter. Note the
wire is twisted so that the wire tends to
pull the bolts tighter, too. I would
suggest using .032 or.025 stainless steel
aircraft type safety wire.
Keel Bolt Torque Value
By Lowell Richardson
Editor's Note: The following was Lowell
Richardson's answer to a question about
keel bolt torque that was asked in the
Catalina Direct email discussion group.
Question: How tight should the keel
bolts be?
Lowell: The torque that Catalina
recommends for a Catalina 22 keel bolt
is 30 foot/pounds. Be sure that a torque
wrench is used to check the bolts. Be
cautious to not over tighten. Stainless can
be sheared off by a surprisingly small
amount of torque. If you check the keel
bolts a couple of times a year by simply
tightening them a bit each time, you
WILL break them off. Use a torque
wrench and tighten to 30 foot pounds
only. Replace the keel bolts every few
years... They're cheap!
2-3
 Keel

While we're talking about

Keel Cable
Winch
By K. E. Richter
Engineering Manager,
Fulton Manufacturing Corp.
Mainsheet, Summer 1983, pg. 43.
A work winch can be your best
friend. It will hold a load for you and
never let go due to its built-in disc brake.
However, like all of your other
equipment it requires care to ensure its
appearance and long life.
If you're using it in or around salt
water, clean the winch by rinsing with
fresh water after each use. Better yet,
coat it with a protective coating such as
L.P.S.3. Do not under any circumstances
ever allow any lubricant or protective
coating to get into the brake system.
This will result in excessive slippage and
defeat the braking action.
the brake, keep an eye on the
friction discs. If the discs are
worn to less than 1/16-inch
thick replace them.
Some areas of the winch
should be kept well oiled,
others well greased. Oil
ratchet pawls and all bearing
locations with a good grade
of 10W30 oil.
Grease the gear teeth with
a good grade of Molybdenum
disulfide grease. Use this
same grease to lubricate the
drum bearing at least once
each season. To accomplish
this, it is necessary to remove Fulton K-Series K1051 (Brake Winch)
the drum bolt, noting which
way it is assembled into the frame, and the same orientation that it was
slide the drum spacer out of the drum. disassembled. You're finished!
Liberally grease the outside diameter of Always watch for any abnormal wear
the drum spacer and reinsert it into the of the various parts and replace them
drum using a rotation motion. with the manufacturers service parts for
Reassemble the drum and drum bolt in proper fit and maximum life.

Keel Winch 1. Clockwise rotation of the

By Dick King
Mainsheet, November 1986, pgs. 53-54.
Has your winch been giving you
problems lately? I mean the one on your
boat. I mean the one that makes your
keel go up and down. Please note winch
is spelled with an "I".
If your boat isn't new, you may want
to take a hard look at the keel winch
assembly. You can get a first impression
by sticking your head into the quarter
berth area to see behind the drop panel
below the companionway. However, to
get full access to the winch you should
remove this panel. The new boats have a
removable handle. On those prior to
13000, the handle can be unscrewed by
holding the shaft it turns, while you turn
the handle in the keel down direction.
You may be shocked at what you find;
RUST!!!! Unfortunately, the thing is
made of steel and steel and moisture
make a great combination for rust.
When I replaced one several years ago, I
replaced it with what I thought was a
galvanized one. If it was galvanized, the
plating must have been very thin! So
what do you do after you take a good
look at the keel winch?
handle tightens drive
shaft gear against disk
and ratchet gear and
rotates the drum to raise
the keel.
2. Counter clockwise
rotation of the handle,
allows slipping of the
drive shaft gear which in
turn allows the drum to
lower the keel.
However, rotation of the drive shaft
screws it into the handle and again
tightens the clutch disk against the
ratchet gear. Since the ratchet gear
cannot turn in the "down" direction,
the winch drums stops, unless the
handle continues to be turned.
If the winch shows any signs of rust, I
recommend you remove it and do some
major corrosion control on it. If it looks
too far gone, order a new one from the
factory. DO NOT USE A TRAILER
WINCH AS A SUBSTITUTE. It is not
the same design and can severely injure
you, if you try to lower the keel with it. I
had a winch like that on a different boat,
and it took several months for my three
broken knuckles to heal. Before you
remove the winch, you must put the boat
on a trailer and/or lower the keel until the
support cable is slack. How does the
cable look? You might want to consider
replacing it with your spare keel cable
and ordering a new spare. What do you
mean, you don't have a spare? Order one
before proceeding any further. You need
about ten feet of 3/16 7x19 stainless
cable with an aircraft jaw swaged to one
end. I don't recommend using a thimble
and nicropress sleeves to make a loop in
the end of the cable. The nicropress
sleeves may catch on the bottom of the
keel slot and damage the hull. Order two
cable assemblies if you don't already
have a spare. Remove the two bolts

Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001 2-4


supporting the winch and pull the winch
out from under the bottom of the
companionway. Be careful not to let the
winch fall on the hose below it. More on
that later. Unwind the remaining cable
from the cable winch and disconnect the
bitter end from the winch drum. Make a
sketch of how the cable is connected, so
you know how to put the cable back on
the drum. Thoroughly wire brush all
rusty areas and treat with any number of
rust treatments. For best results,
carefully follow the makers directions. I
have had very good success with
"Extend" made by Duro. If you remove
the drum, you can get better access to the
drum and the rest of the winch assembly.
The newer drums have a larger spindle
(approx. 1.5 inch diameter). Therefore it
takes less turns to raise and lower the
keel and creates less wear and tear on the
keel cable. To build up the diameter of
the drum spindle, simply wrap the
spindle with 2 inch fiberglass cloth tape
saturated with epoxy resin, until the
desired diameter is achieved. Remove
the circle clip in the drive shaft. This
will allow you to slide the drive shaft to
one side to clean and regrease the
bushing at the other end. To gain access
to the bushing at the other end, you must
knock out the small bushing so the drive
shaft can be removed from the winch
assembly and must be pressed with a pair
of water pump pliers. Make sure the
drive shaft is reinserted in the small
bushing before it is pressed into place.
Do not allow any grease to get on the slip
clutch surfaces! Grease the bushing and
axle on the drum as well. Paint the
whole winch assembly, except the
bearing surfaces, with a good quality
epoxy paint. When the paint is dry,
reassemble the winch.
While the paint is drying, go back to
the keel cable and the hose I referred to
earlier. The hose allows the cable to go
through the bottom of the boat but keeps
the hole above the waterline. Make sure
the top of the hose has not been worn by
the keel cable. To prevent wear on the
hose, measure its inside diameter and
obtain a short section of schedule 40
PVC pipe which will fit snugly into the
hose. Before you reattach the keel cable
to the keel winch, thread a one inch
length of the schedule 40 PVC pipe over
the cable and into the end of the hose.
Hold it in place with a hose clamp.
Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001
If you decide to replace the keel
cable, I highly recommend you find a
friend with a trailer, if you don't have a
trailer of your own. If you can hold your
breath for a while or have SCUBA, you
can detach/attach the jaw on the end of
the cable to the screw eye in the keel.
However, its a lot easier with the boat
out of the water. If the keel cable is
badly kinked or has lots of broken
strands, cut it off about one foot above
the end of the hose. Tape a piece of
strong cord, no larger than the cable, to
the end of the cable, being careful to tape
it securely while keeping the taped joint
to the smallest diameter possible. The
joint must pass through a slotted ball at
the bottom end of the hose. Pull the old
cable out from underneath the boat and
disconnect it from the cord. Tape the
end of the new cable to the cord and
carefully pull it back through the hose. If
the boat is in the water, I suggest you
make the cord long enough to reach back
into the cockpit, so the end of the new
cable can be taped to the cord out of the
water. When you attach the new cable
jaw to the keel, inspect the clevis pin and
replace it if it is worn. ALWAYS USE
A NEW STAINLESS STEEL COTTER
PIN! Attach the end of the cable to your
refurbished winch and carefully wind the
cable onto the drum, as tightly as you
can. Be sure to rotate the whole
assembly to remove any kinks that begin
to form in the cable. Bolt the winch in
place under the companionway, being
sure to caulk the screw heads to prevent
moisture from getting into the holes.
Before you reinstall the drop panel
over the winch, put the boat back in the
water, if it is not already there. Lower
and raise the keel a few times to let the
cable wraps settle properly on the winch
drum. If all works well replace the drop
panel and go sailing. You have earned it.
If not, curse me, then call me and we'll
try to figure out where the process went
wrong.
We recently received a letter from
Ridge Gardner whose friend, Kathy
Landis, had a problem on a related
subject which you should be aware of.
Check the bolt which holds the ratchet
pawl to the side of the winch assembly.
"The nut retaining the 5/16 hex bolt
which is the axle for the ratchet
mechanism backed off, allowing the
mechanism to fall apart. If the swing
keel had been up serious problems could
Keel
have resulted from the board crashing
down. What we didn't know until then,
was that when Kathy took delivery of the
new boat two years ago, the retaining nut
had been filed down and the end of the
hex bolt cut closely to allow room for the
plywood trim panel ... I have replaced
the bolt with a longer one, and an aircraft
type lock nut to secure it. Then I cut the
bolt flush with the head of the locknut. I
had to cut out a small piece of the trim
panel next to the winch handle, thereby
exposing the nut. Cathy and I feel this is
a small price to pay for a much safer
operation, and suggest that everyone
check their boat and make the proper
modifications if necessary."
Thanks for the input Ridge! You all
keep those cards and letters coming.
Fair winds and smooth sailing.
When The Keel Cable
Breaks
I'm lucky I don't need to buy a
funeral for the diver who got hit by my
swing keel when the keel cable broke. A
friend of mine was knocking off the big
barnacles and mussels and told me to
crank the keel up while he watched it
from below. At the top of the arc I gave
it one last crank to snug it in. The cable
parted at the swags and fell with a
terrifying double thunk – the kind that
makes you feel sick. I assumed that I
should get out before it sinks. Then I
remember the diver! Bubbles were still
coming up and in a minute so did he,
kind of wide eyed and breathless. Yes,
the keel hit him but only a glancing blow
and wonder of wonders the boat hadn't
sunk. The diver told me that six months
ago he had run his hand up and down the
cable looking for the telltale burrs and
had not found any. On this occasion he
had found one but didn't think it
important enough to tell me. The cable
on the winch looked fine and I had kept
it greased and made sure it rolled up
evenly. For others who might wonder
how to jerry-rig in order to get the boat
out, here is how I did it. I ran the parted
end thru the U-shaped fitting still
attached to the keel and secured it with a
double nut (35 cents) cable a clamp –
probably a good article to carry around
for special occasions.
2-5

Keel Hose
How To Sink A C-22
I accidentally sank my boat at the
dock because I had a loose wire coming
from the hose at the keel winch. This
wire had been frayed for a couple of
months but I had not done the proper
maintenance by cutting off this loose
wire. I was even warned: It had tangled
in the winch cable 3 or 4 times before.
This time, as I docked, I gave the winch
"one more turn" to get the keel all the
way up as I was about to depart. The
Boatyard called me early the next
morning with the "good news". The hose
had pulled off the neck of the tube where
the cable passes through the bottom of
the boat!
Keeping Your C-22 From
Sinking
Just before entering our cove, we
raised the keel on our C-22 since the
water depth is only about 4 feet at the
entrance.
The following day was equally as
nice and we had invited guests to enjoy a
day on the water. After everyone was
aboard, I arranged our gear and opened
the cabin step to put beverages in the
cooler. I was absolutely shocked to see
that my keel cable hose had pulled loose
from its connection to the hull, and a 1
¼" stream of water was gushing into our
boat!
Immediately, I tried to put the hose
back in place but It wouldn't budge, the
Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001
top of the hose was caught in the winch.
So I cranked the winch down 3 or 4 turns
and this freed the hose, but it still
wouldn't fit over the neck of the hull
connection until the lower clamp
loosened. The hose was then slid into
place and secured with no further leaks.
Evidently the hose had just now pulled
off since only an inch or two of water
had accumulated in the bilge.
Being a mechanical engineer for a
small company, I have had quite a lot of
experience diagnosing malfunctioning
equipment and went to work on this
problem the first chance I had.
I believe that over the years the keel
was raised and lowered many, many
times. Each time the cable moved up or
down it wore away some of the rubber at
the top of this hose. Eventually the steel
hose reinforcing became exposed and
being like a compression spring under
some load extended itself up beyond the
end of the hose. As we raised our keel
on the previous day this steel reinforcing
coil from the hose got caught under the
S.S. cable in the winch. This winch is so
powerful that it could pull both the keel
and the hose up without it being that
noticeable to anyone. The magnitude of
stress on the hose at this point was so
great that it pulled 2 ½ turns of steel
reinforcing out the top of the hose and
stretched the rubber all the way up to
where it had just entered the grip of the
winch. Even though the hose clamp at
the bottom was tight it was fighting a
loosing battle against all of this force,
Nylon ring to prevent hose reinforcing wire from pulling out.
Keel
and finally pulled off.
Looking at the height of the
fiberglass neck on the hull and since it
has a spherical roller inside, one might
think that only a little water could get in
there, but I assure everyone that the
water comes in fast.
To try and prevent this condition
from repeating at a later date I have
designed a split nylon ring that would fit
in the top of the hose and act as an
excellent wearing surface beside the S.S.
cable. So far it works great and I can
relax without sticking my head under the
hatch every time the keel is cranked up.
I feel that we were very lucky that the
hose remained attached to the lower
connection under such stress until we
apparently rocked the boat while
climbing aboard.
We kept thinking, suppose we had
decided to sleep aboard that night and
the hose had slipped off about 1 AM and
silently began flooding the bilge. Or
suppose we had put our C – 22 on the
trailer that day and the hose slipped off
(under all that stress) as we traveled
down the highway. This would not be a
problem at the moment however it would
if it went unnoticed the next time we
launched and we got 3 or 4 miles out
from the nearest point of land and
discovered that we had been taking on
water. The leak might not be that easy to
find especially if we were on a cruise and
had all of the hatches stuffed with food &
clothes.
2-6

Keel Pivot
Retractable Keel
Modification
By Catalina Yachts
Mainsheet, Fall 1983, pg. 50.
After extended use, some retractable
keel Models 22 and 25 may develop play
in the retractable keel assembly.
When the retractable keel makes a
thudding or gentle banging sound when
the keel is up or when tacking, this may
indicate that the hole through the keel
casting at the pivot point is worn and
enlarged, or that the keel is moving
laterally in the trunk.
Retrofit kits are available for
installing centering spacers to stop lateral
movement and new design hanger blocks
are available to repair worn keel pivot
holes.
Centering spacers (see illustration)
restrict movement of the keel laterally
and stop it from contacting the side of
the trunk. Centering spacers are
available for retrofit in existing keels.
Centering spacers may be installed on
existing boats without removing the keel
from the boat.
A fairly simple method has been
devised for correcting play in the keel
hanger assembly. This repair requires
Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001
New Type Keel Hanger Castings
Note the gap between the keel and the old-
style keel hanger castings.
replacing the keel hanger block castings
with larger castings which are then
ground to a close tolerance fit to the keel
on installation.
The larger hanger blocks will help
stop the keel casting from moving
laterally on the pin and minimize
movement at the keel tip.
Both centering spacer kits and new
hanger casting kits may be ordered
through your Catalina Dealer or directly
through Catalina Yachts, Parts Dept.,
P.O. Box 989, Woodland Hills, CA
91367.
New-style hanger casting eliminates lateral
movement on keel pin.
The price for each kit is as follows:
Centering spacer kit $12.00
including all Parts,
adhesives, handling and
freight
Hanger casting replacement $65.00
kits including parts and
instructions – plus $5.00
for shipping and handling
Please include your hull number in
all correspondence. Prices are subject to
change without notice.
Keel
That "Bonking" Sound
At night, when the boat pitched in the
waves, the swing-keel made a "bonking"
sound which we thought odd. We
contacted the previous owner and he
said, "that's the way it is and you have to
learn to live with it". Foolishly, we did.
Well, about a month later we pulled into
port and found the fiberglass around the
keel lockpin bracket cracked and the
boat was taking on water!
Ultimately, it turned out that the keel
pin spacers were missing (they probably
were missing when the previous owner
bought it) and that caused excessive wear
of the keel and pin. After speaking to a
Catalina engineer, we had the keel hole
bored out, a silicon-bronze bushing
welded in (you must use bronze welding
rod!), a new pin made, and replaced the
missing 90¢ spacers. After patching the
fiberglass around the lock pin,
everything seems fine.
Keel Wobble Repair
The trunnions are too far apart and
allow the keel to wobble and work on the
pin and the trunnion bolts. My solution
and/or partial remedy is to install 2-2"
dia. bronze washers on each side of the
keel. This seems to cut down on the
wobble. I suggest by slight production
modifications the factory could
overcome this.
The second weakest point is the keel
lock down bolt. If you tighten it down
tight enough to hold the keel you are
putting side stresses on the keel trunnion
and pin. There should be a pad on the
starboard side of the keel trunk so that
when the pin is tightened, it has
something to bear against.
2-7

Swing Keel Maintenance
By Dick King
Mainsheet, May 1988, pg. 72-73.
Tired of hearing that annoying thump
every time you tack? When you're
anchored out sipping a little wine and
watching the sunset with the one you
love, is the mood destroyed by the
banging about of the keel? When you
haul the boat, does your keel resemble
the pendulum of a grandfather clock? If
you suffer from any of these or other
maladies, you are in the "worn out keel
pin hole zone."
The swing keel requires so much
maintenance that Frank Butler was
prompted to design a fixed winged keel
for our beloved boat. (Competitive
pressure from other builders aside, of
course.) The winged keel offers almost
the same keel-up draft without the all of
the maintenance problems of the swing
keel. However, I am not trying to sell
you a winged keel model, but rather to
tell you how to restore serenity to the
sunset watching.
The pivot pin hole gets the outside
edges worn, creating a rounded pivot for
the keel (Figure 1).
In extreme cases, the hole can be
worn to the point where it is also
elongated (Figure 2).
Figure 1.
Figure 2.
Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001
Keel
Wearing of the hole is caused by the
rocking and rolling of a boat at dockside
or mooring. It can also be caused by
towing the boat with the keel suspended
by the cable, instead of supported by a
keel block or chock on the trailer. Lots
of sailing hours can also contribute. The
fix, of course, involves restoring the hole
to its original cylindrical shape by
Figure 3.
drilling the hole oversized and installing
a bushing. The bushing in my keel has
lasted four years with barely noticeable
wear.
To gain access to the keel pin hole,
the keel shoes that retain the keel pivot
pin must be unbolted from the bottom of
the boat and the keel lowered about 4 to
6 inches. Depending on how bad the
hole is worn, it may be need to be drilled
from 1¼ to 1½ inches in diameter.
Check with your local machine shop,
marine yard, or tool rental to obtain the
drill motor and bit. How do you get the Figure 4.
necessary clearance above your trailer to
applicator is a cotton rag wrapped
lower your keel that far? Send a stamped
around the end of a dowel. A friend
($.39) self-addressed envelope, and I will
happened to mention that his keel was
send you a detailed procedure for raising
"fully down" after ten tens. He was
your boat off its trailer.
wondering why he couldn't point very
Once you have the boat about five
well. When he bought the used boat it
inches above the trailer, support the
had fresh "bottom job". However, the
forward end of the keel with a hydraulic
trunk had never been painted. We found
floor jack and remove the four bolts
a barnacle buildup so bad, it prevented
which hold the shoe castings to the keel
the keel head from rotating fully into the
well. If you have the old style casting,
keel trunk. Buyer Beware!!!
(inside edge flush with the sides of the
2. Inspect the keel cable! If it is
keel trunk) you will need a thin wall
worn or kinked, replace it with the spare
socket to remove the 5/16 inch hexhead
one you ordered from the factory. If you
bolts. When lowering the keel, make
don't already have one, order it now and
sure to lower the aft end with or before
keep it on board. It is a lot easier to do it
the forward end so that the aft end of the
now, than diving under the boat. An
keel does not rotate up into the bottom of
easy way to replace the cable is to thinly
the boat and damage it. The keel cable
tape a five foot piece of cord to the upper
will help keep the keel from falling over,
end of the old cable and pull the old
but a 2 x 4 or 2 x 6 against each side of
cable down out of the boat. If the old
the keel and clamped to the trailer will
one has lots of kinks or fish hooks, cut it
also help (Figure 3).
off just below the winch drum. Tie the
A five foot 4 x 4 with a piece of
other end of the cord to the winch to
slotted plywood nailed to it can be put on
prevent it from falling out of the boat.
top of some concrete blocks to hold the
Tape the end of the new cable to the
keel in a vertical position after it is
piece of cord, and pull it back through
lowered (Figure 4).
the keel cable hose. Make sure the wire
While you have the keel lowered,
seats properly in the groove of the ball at
there are four other things to do.
the bottom of the hose. Attach the new
1. Check the area of the keel trunk,
cable to the winch and wind it on the
which is normally inaccessible. Clean it
drum while a helper pulls tension on it
thoroughly and apply a couple of coats
from below. When the fork on the end
of bottom paint, even if you sail in fresh
of the cable is at the right height, attach it
water. It will prevent marine growth
to the keel eye bolt with a new clevis pin
from forming where you can't clean it
off. An effective (albeit messy)
2-8

(if it is worn) and a NEW STAINLESS
STEEL cotter pin.
3. Install the keel spacer kit (which
you ordered after reading this article) on
the head of the keel. The spacer kit
consists of some fiberglass wafers which
are bonded to the head of the keel. As
the head of the keel rotates up into the
keel trunk, it is centered and prevented
from moving sideways by the spacers.
The kit is easiest to install when the keel
is lowered. Detailed instructions and
bonding materials are provided in the
factory kit.
4. Clean the part of the keel that is
normally up in the keel trunk. If you are
a salt water sailor, paint it with bottom
paint. Now comes the hard part! The
keel pin hole must be drilled to a
standard oversize for a 1 inch I.D. oillite
bronze bushing and the bushing pressed
or driven into the hole. Order the
bushing slightly longer than the length of
the pin hole. After the bushing is
inserted, it can be ground off flush with
the sides of the keel. Make sure to
protect any exposed surfaces of the keel
Keel Pin Wear
By John C. Grogan
Mainsheet, May 1990, pg. 99.
The adage "If it's working, don't fix
it," does not apply to sailboats. I've
always done my own annual maintenance
work on my 1976 (#5679) swing keel,
Irish Mist, and every year I've postponed
dropping the keel for an in-depth
inspection of the keel pin and hanger
fittings. This year, fortunately, I dropped
the keel and discovered that the 1"
diameter silicone bronze keel pin was
severely worn to a diameter of about
1/2". (See Fig. 1). The keel in the area
of the pinhole was badly corroded,
forming an elliptical hole. The remainder
of the keel pin assembly was in excellent
shape with no apparent evidence of wear.
It is my opinion that this keel pin
Figure 1.
Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001
to prevent rust and corrosion. The
process of driving the bushing in will
likely compress it slightly, so that a brake
hone will be needed to restore the 1 inch
I.D. hole. Inspect and replace the keel
pin if it is worn. I replaced mine with a
piece of 1 inch propeller shaft cut to the
same length as the old pin.
If you have the old style shoe
castings, I highly recommend you
replace them with the new design. The
old ones have a wide gap between them,
which allows the keel to move back and
forth on the keel pin with every tack
(THUMP!) The new castings are wider.
In fact they are made so wide that they
have to be ground off to allow the keel to
fit between them. Mount the shoe
castings in the boat and measure the
minimum clearance between their inside
faces. Subtract the maximum thickness
of the keel within a 4 inch radius of the
pin hole. If you plan to use the Delrin
keel pin washers (I recommend you do),
subtract an additional ¼ inch. If the
remainder is negative, divide it by 2 and
remove that amount of material from the
wear was due to galvanic corrosion of
the keel, producing an almost knife-edge
surface bearing on the pin. (See Fig. 2)
In galvanic corrosion, a current is
generated between two dissimilar metals
immersed in an electrolyte (fresh or salt
water). This current flows from the least
noble cast iron keel to the bronze pin. In
the process, iron particles are corroded
away, producing the damaging sharp
edges around the keel pin hole.
To better evaluate the pin damage, a
brief history of the boat should provide
some measure of comparison of
corrosion and pin wear for other swing
keel boats. Irish Mist has been a very
active boat for all of its 13 years. The
boat was in fresh water for about 6
months a year for 9 years, and in salt
water 12 months per year for the last 4
years. Total sailing time is calculated at
Keel
inside face of each casting. In this case a
little too much is better than a little too
little, because the holes of the shoes
won't line up with the threaded holes in
the boat if the shoe, spacer, keel, spacer,
shoe assembly is too wide. In case this is
all very confusing, the factory provides
detailed instructions with the shoe
casting set.
To reinstall the keel, insert the pin in
the keel, and put a Delrin pin washer and
shoe on each end of the pin. Jack the
forward end of the keel up into the keel
slot, while raising the aft end of the keel
with the keel winch. Use a pin punch to
align the shoe casting holes with the
threaded holes in the keel trunk. Make
sure the flat side of the castings with the
countersunk holes are facing down. The
flat sides of the castings should be flush
with the bottom of the boat, when they
are fully seated. Use NEW STAINLESS
LOCK-WASHERS AND DO NOT
OVER TORQUE THE BOLTS.
Reverse the boat raising procedure, and
plan a quiet romantic sunset party.
Fair Winds and Smooth Sailing.
about 3000 hours, along with at least
5000 miles of trailering.
Sacrificial zincs were installed on the
keel for the last 4 years, during all of the
Florida salt water exposure. I feel that
the zincs are effective in minimizing
corrosion due to the fact that my two
(one per side) 4', diameter, R-3 zincs are
just about completely dissolved after 12
to 15 months in salt water.
My zincs were installed with the keel
fully retracted by drilling a 1/4" hole
Figure 2.
through the 2" thick keel at a point 7.5"
below and 5.5" aft of the keel pin
centerline. The keel's protective coating
2-9

has to be removed under the zincs to
insure an electrical contact between the
cast iron and the zinc. Needless to say,
cast iron is very hard, and the drilling is
difficult.
Based on the severe environment and
the boat's usage, it is hard to default the
design. Catalina Yachts claims they
have no knowledge of any failures of the
keel assembly, the exception being
failures due to the loss of the four 5/16"
diameter by 1.25" stainless steel keel
retaining bolts, because of improper
safety of the bolts. Has anybody heard
differently?
My fix was considered temporary and
consisted of grinding the sharp knife-
edge area of the keel hole to provide
sufficient bearing area to minimize pin
Swing Keel Swing
By Ted Wiley
Main Brace, Spring/Summer 1983, pg.
12.
Many Catalina 22 owners who have
older (6 to 10 years) swing keel boats
become annoyed with the thumping and
clunking that generally takes place when
sailing a rolling sea, especially on a run.
Several quick-fix ideas have been tried to
alleviate this aggravating thump, but
most do not succeed. The problem exists
because the hole in the keel which the
brass hanging pin fits through has
become larger, elongated, ovaled,
beveled, or in short, worn (See Figure 1).
If you trail your boat a lot, the hole
becomes elongated from the long hours
of vibration over bumpy roads. If you
Figure 1.
Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001
wear. A new factory-supplied pin was
installed and will be checked
periodically for wear. There was
adequate keel material above the hole, so
that edge distance strength margins are
high. No other safety problems were
evidenced.
The recommended repair, of course,
is to install a bushing. This procedure
was described by Dick King in the May,
1988 Mainsheet. He also discussed
procedures for dropping the keel in the
same article. Keel wobble has been
reduced by the installation of a spacer kit
offered by Catalina Yachts.
As mentioned above, keels have been
lost when the 5/16" keel retaining bolts
have backed out. My fix has been to fill
the area around the recessed bolt heads
sail rough water a lot, the hole will be
rounded on the edges and usually larger.
Regardless of how you use your boat,
just like a person, it changes with age.
Do not despair. There is a cure.
However, unless you own a boatyard and
machine shop, you can't do it yourself.
Before I discuss the fix, let me convince
you that many problems (all worse than
the thumping) can result if you do not fix
your undulating keel. The lock down
bolt will receive extreme pressure if you
use it to tighten the keel to the starboard
side of the keel well. Eventually this
pressure will cause the lock down bolt to
leak from stress cracks.
Some people have tried using large
spacers to stop the side to side swing.
Spacers will only help slightly and will
not take care of the problem. As the
problem gets worse, added strain to the
keel hinge bolts can cause stress cracks
in the well area which in turn will leak.
In some boats, steel plates have been
bolted to each side of the keel with holes
just the size of the hinge pin to extend
the hinge pin hole. These put added
wear on the brass hinge pin and cut into
the pin.
In short, none of the backyard fixes
are very successful. I recently discussed
the problem with Mr. Butler from
Catalina Yachts and he assures me they
are aware of the problem. Catalina
Yachts is considering several options to
correct the thumping and Mr. Butler's
plans are to share his best thoughts with
the Main Brace in the near future.
Keel
with Marine Tex. Only 1/2 of the bolt
head of each bolt is filled, to help
removal. A small woodworking chisel is
needed to remove the hardened epoxy --
a time-consuming method, but effective.
I would not trust the lock washers by
themselves.
As a point of interest and a credit to
Catalina Yachts, there is no sign of
osmotic blistering from the 13 years of
extensive water exposure.
I hope this discussion promotes some
serious thought regarding the inspection
of your swing keel assembly. Your
inspection timetable will depend upon
boat usage, time in salt or fresh water,
use of zincs, and the age of the boat, etc.
If in doubt, drop the keel and INSPECT!
Figure 2.
However, if your problem is urgent
enough and you want to make a
correction now, consider the following.
Remove the keel or have it removed
by a shipyard. If you try to remove it
yourself, be sure to have on hand one
adult amazon, two gorillas, and one large
wolly-wolly. It weighs 550 lbs. Take it
to a machine shop that can square it to a
drill press and ream the hold to a 1-½
inch in diameter. Then insert a ¼ inch
wall sleeve or bushing that is made of
iron or brass. The bushing should fit
smoothly over the hinge pin (See Figure
2). With any luck, the bushing will last
another 6-10 years at which time you will
begin to experience the old thumps
again.
2-10

Replacing a Swing Keel
Pin
By Frank Embon
Mainsheet, February 1993, pg. 72.
Listening to the "klunk-klunk" of the
swing keel on my 1977 C-22 on her
mooring made me wonder whether or not
the keel pin needed replacing. With the
help of Backyard Boats, our Chesapeake
Catalina dealership, I purchased the
bronze keel pin and the four stainless
steel machine bolts and lock washers. I
was surprised to find the keel pin was
only 1" in diameter.
I modified my Shoreline trailer by
adding two 2" x 6" x 8' carpeted runners
about 6" on each side of the keel. This
gives much better support to the boat as
it rests on the two outside carpeted
runners, which are about 1' below the
waterline. However, in order to work on
the boat bottom, I "float" the boat off the
trader runners onto a cradle made of 4" x
4" timbers. Then I remove the carpeted
runners to get at the keel.
I next bolted four 2" x 4" pieces onto
the runner supports so the ends of the
2x4s were perpendicular to the keel and
about 1/4" away from the keel. These
are necessary to keep the keel in proper
vertical position as you lower it. I then
lowered the keel until the back of it was
about 4" lower than the front. Using C-
clamps, I clamped a piece of 2" x 4"
scrap between the two rear runner
supports, to keep the back of the keel
immobile.
I then placed a 2-ton hydraulic trolley
jack exactly under the keel pin and raised
the keel 1/8" - just enough to take the
pressure off the keel pin. I removed the
four stainless steel machine bolts and
very slowly lowered the keel to expose
the keel pin. The keel was then level
with the ground, and I placed another
piece of scrap lumber under the front of
the keel to immobilize it. I lowered the
hydraulic jack and removed it.
The bronze keel pin was quite
chewed up but would probably have
lasted a few more years. There was a
5/8" wide by 1/4" deep void where the
keel had been wearing on the pin. The
top of the pin was also worn down about
1/4". The previous owner had
apparently rotated the pin rather than
replacing it.
Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001
What really bothered me was the fact
that there was an elongated hole through
the keel itself. I had to smooth out this
hole, or the new pin would have worn
through faster than the original. I Everyone who owns a C-22 more
decided to enlarge the hole and place a
bronze bushing in it. It took some time,
several 1 1/4" circular grinding bits in
my electric drill, and a circular metal file,
but I finally enlarged the hole to a 1 1/4"
circle. I forced a bronze bushing (1" ID
x 1 1/4" OD x 1 3/8" long) into the
opening. The new keel pin then fit
perfectly.
One inch keel pin alongside bronze bushing
(1” ID x 1 ¼” OD x 1 3/8” long) used to
restore the shape of the keel pin hole.
There was at least 1/4" of space on
either side of the keel, so I cut two
rubber washers 5" in diameter from an
old tire sidewall, drilled holes in the
washers, and fit them into both sides of
the keel pin assembly to act as spacers
and shock absorbers. The result? No
more "klunk-klunk".
Lastly, I put the hydraulic trolley jack
back under the keel and slowly raised it
back into place, replaced the stainless
steel bolts and washers, and the job was
done. The last time I pulled the boat out
of the water, the pin was perfect.
Keel
Real Keel Fix - Spacers
By Dennis Slaton
Mainsheet, November 1987, pg. 55.
than a few years old has heard the
"clunking" of the keel in rough water or
while tacking. I was no exception. I
repaired the keel the way a 1986 article
in Mainsheet suggested. Upon
completion, I sailed the boat and was
unhappy with the job, as the keel still
made some noise and didn't sail the same
on both tacks. So I set out a fix of my
own...
With the boat on the trailer, I used a
jack to support the front of the keel while
I loosened the hanger and dropped the
keel down a few inches. I measured the
difference between the keel and the keel
trunk at the hanger pin, and from these
measurements I made nylon spacers for
each side of the pin.
Next I removed the lock-down pin
and took a measurement through the
hold. Then, back under the boat, I
measured the thickness of the keel at the
lock-down spot on the keel. Taking the
difference in the two measurements and
dividing by two produced a thickness for
two spacers (2 inch x 10 inch x desired
thickness).
I used Teflon, but almost any suitable
material will work. Then I pop riveted
the spacers, one on each side, just above
the lock-down spot on the keel. I also
countersunk the rivets so as not to scar
the keel trunk.
Now the boat sails the same on both
tacks and does not " clunk. " It works so
well that I never used the lock-down
bolt, and the keel has no play at all in the
down position.
2-11

Keel Pins and Hangers
By Pam and Dennis Slaton
Fleet 58 Newsletter, September 1998
“Our Old Boat #7 Keels, Parts is Parts”
In the "Our Old Boat #6" we
discussed the fairing and refinishing of
the keel surface and this is a very time
consuming and ever ongoing issue,
however without information on how to
remove the keel (applies to swing keel
only) from the boat one tends to have a
huge problem. The swing keel is held in
place with a keel pin that is fitted
through the keel and into a keel hanger,
which is in turn held in place by four
bolts threaded into the keel trunk. The
bolts should be routinely checked for
corrosion and proper tension. Note the
bolts should never be over tightened!
Should the head of the bolt ever be
twisted off, life as you know it will never
be the same. No seriously, the bolt would
have to be drilled to remove and then the
threads chased or re-tapped, but that's
another subject altogether.
Figure 1. Keel pin wear.
The first step in removing the keel,
whether to do refinishing work or simply
inspect the hanger pin, is to prepare a
plan of action to enable you to handle a
500 pound object safely. We will
describe the process we go through and
you can formulate your own from there.
The process of removing the keel or
doing an inspection normally takes place
while the boat is off the trailer and
suspended between the two infamous
pine trees, (a sling under the front of the
boat attached to a come along on each
tree, and stands under the transom),
however it can be done with the boat on
the trailer, but will take more ingenuity.
Place a floor jack under the leading edge
of the keel approximately six inches aft
of the hangers, and raise the jack to
contact the edge and take all the pressure
Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001
Keel
a picture of a boat found in dry storage
and was not staged for this article!
(We would like to thank Pete Everill
for the use of his trophy keel pin. This is
what he found on hull # 2383, his new,
old boat when he did an inspection!!)
Figure 2. Keel hanger mounted upside
down.
off the hanger assembly. Now with the
jack in place, you can loosen each of the
four bolts and gently lower the keel to
expose the keel pin. What you hope to
find is a smooth unworn pin, but what
you do not want to see is a pin that is
dangerously thin from wear, (see photo
#1) . It's easier to replace the pin than
lose the keel!
A large part of the wear on the pin is
generated from the slack fit of the keel in
the keel trunk, allowing lateral
movement of the keel while under sail or
in the slip. Prior to lowering the keel you
should inspect for proper spacing and be
prepared to add spacer kit if needed. The
wear on the pin is not the only problem
generated from this movement, it also
wears at the through hole in the keel. If
this area is showing signs of wear, be
prepared for an extended repair project
(we will talk more in depth on this
subject in the next article).
After all repairs and inspections are
complete, you are ready to raise the keel
back into position and refit the pin into
the hanger assembly and tighten the
bolts. Do you remember which way the
hanger came out. Obviously the sailor
whose keel hanger is pictured in photo
#2 was confused - this is NOT correct.
The hanger should fit flush with the
boat's bottom (see photo #3). Photo #2 is
Figure 3. Keel hanger mounted flush.
2-12

Keel & Leakage
Problems
Enclosed is a discussion of my
opinion on the cause of Dunlin's keel and
leakage problems as described in the
Summer MainBrace edition. I've had a
similar problem with my boat (Irish Mist
5679) with the keel pin washer spacers
intact and in place. It is difficult to
attribute this damage to the absence of
the washers.
I would take exception to Mr.
Padwa's diagnosis of his keel wobble
problem as mentioned in the summer
1981 edition of MainBrace. He
indicated the absence of the 2 keel pin
spacer washers was the cause of the
enlarged keel pin hole permitting
excessive keel wobble. In my opinion
the oversized keel hole, was due to
galvanic corrosion between the 1 inch
diameter bronze pin and the cast iron
keel. The contact of two dissimilar
metals with different inherent potentials
immersed in water (salt water aggravates
the process) will produce an electric
current (a battery) causing a loss of
material in the metal with the higher
potential. For our case this is the cast
iron keel causing the enlargement of the
keel pin hole.
The installation of sacrificial zincs
attached to the keel as close to the pin as
possible is the recommended fix to
minimize this metal corrosion
phenomenon. This fix is specified in the
owners manual for boats that are kept in
the water for extended periods of time.
It is very unlikely that the leakage
problem around the keel down lock bolt
in the side of the keel cavity resulted
from the above mentioned keel corrosion
problem. This damage probably
occurred as a result of trying to "winch"
the keel up or down with the keel lock
bolt torqued down or going aground with
the keel lock engaged. It is noted that
the down lock hole in the keel cavity is
located above the water line hence
leakage occurs only when the boat is in a
heeled attitude.
Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001
Keel Lock Down Bolt
By Dale Mack
October 14, 2000
Where To Find It. On my 1987
C22, the swing-keel lock down bolt is
located in the compartment beneath the
forward dinette seat. If you stick your
head into the compartment and look at
the keel trunk, you should be able to see
the lock down bolt. The 1977 and 1987
owner manuals include a discussion
about the lock down bolt.
My practice is to use the bolt
whenever the keel is down. I slowly
screw the bolt in until it presses firmly
against the keel. A visual inspection on
my boat shows that the end of the bolt
physically makes contact with the keel.
I've mistakenly retracted the keel a
couple of times when the bolt was
engaged, and the keel has a scare where
the paint was removed.
To Lock or Not to Lock. From
following the C22 email discussion
group, I've learned that there is no
consensus on the use of this simple
device. One camp recommends that the
bolt should never be used because of its
potential to crack the keel trunk in the
event of a grounding, while the other
camp argues that the boat's self-righting
Keel
ability after a knockdown depends on the
bolt preventing the keel from retracting.
With each camp citing actual instances
that help reinforce their point of view, it's
difficult for a boat owner to know what
to do. My boat came from the
manufacture with a sign mounted next to
the keel-winch that reads "Keel Must Be
Locked In Down Position When
Sailing." While I've chosen to use the
lock down bolt, it's clear from the lack of
consensus on this topic, that each boat
owner needs to seek a variety of
opinions, including those in the 1977 and
1987 owner manuals, and weigh the risks
themselves.
Stopping the Leak. Until I started
coating the threads of the bolt with a
waterproof marine grease, I used to
experience a slight leak through the
threads of the bolt. Since using the
grease, the compartment has remained
dry. As a part of my regular
maintenance, I completely remove the
bolt, clean off the old grease, and reapply
new grease.
How's It Shaped. The lock down
bolt on my 1987 C22 is a 3 inch bolt
with a handle. The handle can slide back
and forth through the end of the bolt,
which aids using the bolt in the tight
confines of a 1987 model where the seat
of the dinette meets the back.
2-13

Refinishing
Maintaining Your Keel
By Steve Kostanich
Main Brace, Summer 1982, pg. 22.
As you are probably well aware, the
Catalina 22 keel is an iron casting. Iron
rusts, and if your keel is typical, reddish
brown patches are starting to show on it.
As the keel comes from the factory it has
a thin polyester coating on it, something
like auto body patching putty. When
moisture gets behind it, blisters will form
and allow rust to start. Of course any
place you've nicked or bumped the keel,
rust will also form. Here are some
suggestions on how to remedy the
problem and prolong its reoccurrence.
I assume you will undertake this
project with the boat on the trailer, so
make the job easier by elevating the boat
on the bunks with 4"x4"x15" styrofoam
blocks. Securely tape them to the very
rear of each bunk. I only elevate the
stern end of the boat, which allows most
of the keel to be dropped out of its slot
onto its rest on the trailer. The elevating
is also harmless to the hull. If you live
close to the water, the boat can be
launched, the styrofoam blocks taped to
the bunks, and the boat recovered. Then
CAREFULLY tow the boat home to
begin work. The boat also can be jacked
up to place the blocks. Or you can skip
Removing and
Refinishing the Keel
By Randy Tilly
Mainsheet, August 1991, pg. 84-85.
One of the greatest benefits of the
Catalina 22 National Sailing Association
is the wealth of experience members can
bring to bear on a problem. This past
winter, as I tried to find the source of a
leak on my boat (a 1982 model, hull
#11058), it seemed the whole Catalina
family was on board.
The engineers at Catalina Yachts
reminded me to check the obvious
sources of water, like the area around the
rudder gudgeons and the through-hull
fittings for the cockpit drains and the
swing keel cable. By drying the bilge as
Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001
elevating the boat at all and simply not
refinish the part of the keel enclosed in
the slot. Be sure to give the keel cable
lots of slack so not to lift the weight of
the keel.
Start with the blisters by chipping
them open and back until all loose
coating is completely knocked free. I
really don't recommend removing all of
the coating unless you remove the keel.
Next take a disc grinder or sander to the
spots and remove as much of the rust as
possible. It can also be done by hand
with a wire brush and aluminum oxide
abrasive cloth, but it is much more work.
The ultimate of course is to sand blast
the spots. Places where rust is bleeding
through the finish but no blisters are
present need only a good grind job down
to bare shiny metal.
Next mix up enough epoxy patching
putty. I prefer Marine-Tex, to trowel a
good coating into each blistered spot.
The idea is to fair the depression left
from the blister into the surrounding
finish. When the epoxy is fully
hardened, it can be sanded and faired
smooth. The iron edge of the keel will
not have a very thick coat of the factory
finish on it, so the cleaned up places
there need only a good coating of anti-
rust primer like Derusto or Rust-oleum.
Two coats of it wouldn't hurt.
With the preliminary surface
preparation ready, the next step is to
apply the final finish. The factory
recommends finishing the keel with
thoroughly as I could while the boat was
still in the water, I found that the leak
was somewhere under the cabin liner,
forward of the rear dinette seat.
I then called the C-22 Technical
Advisor, Dick King, who patiently
helped me to understand what the
technical manual shows pretty clearly –
that the swing keel trunk has no openings
to the inside of the boat, and that the
bolts holding the bearings and keel into
the hull go only into the hull, not through
it. Clearly the trunk was holed or
cracked, perhaps at the base of the trunk
where occasional groundings had
stressed the fiberglass. In any case, the
keel would have to be removed.
I'm sure some of the techniques
described in the C-22 technical manual
for raising the boat off the trailer would
Keel
epoxy paint. It is probably the best
choice, but it is quite expensive. I have
had good success with Rust-oleum, but I
don't keep my boat in the water, so I'm
not sure how good it is during continuous
immersion. I'd recommend four coats,
letting each coat dry thoroughly before
applying the next. The Rust-oleum wet
sands super when it gets good and hard,
if you want a good finish on it for racing.
If you are putting on anti-fouling paint
you don't need an epoxy or Rust-oleum
finish. You need to be sure though that
there is no bare metal on the keel which
might be coated with anti-fouling paint,
as the metallic toxicants will cause a
galvanic reaction when immersed in salt
water, and greatly increase the corrosion
of the keel. The best move would be to
see what primer the manufacturer of your
brand of paint recommends as a
preliminary surface preparation for
metal. When you feel you've got all the
refinishing done to your satisfaction, the
next step is lower the boat back down on
the bunk, reversing the procedure you
used to raise it.
I hope I haven't led you to believe
that all the work you've done is
permanent, 'cause it ain't! But a
craftsman like job will certainly prolong
doing it again and hopefully make it
easier when the time comes. Good luck
on the project, and good sailing when it
is done.
suffice for gaining access to the keel, but
I cheated. A friend who sells and rents
heavy equipment provided a boom truck,
a sort of crane on a truck bed, and with
nylon lifting straps positioned slightly
before and after the keel, we raised the
boat off the keel. Moving the keel
around is a three-person job, and we
found it almost impossible to lift the keel
completely off the ground.
My friend Jeff began sandblasting the
rusty, barnacle-encrusted keel, and I
searched unsuccessfully for a crack or
hole. Filling the hull with three or four
inches of water and tilting the boat
forward a bit on its lifting straps
produced a steady stream of water from
the forward edge of the swing keel trunk.
I had never gotten bottom paint on the
portion of the keel hidden in the trunk,
2-14

and some barnacles ¼" to 3/8" in height
were scattered on the keel. I was
surprised that there was so little
clearance between the keel and the
tunnel, but an area of thick fiberglass
about ½”x2" had been chafed through
about 10" from the bottom of the keel
entrance on the forward edge of the
trunk.
An air-powered die grinder and
sandpaper made short work of beveling
the hole into a repairable gap. I used
five or six layers of fiberglass cloth,
topped by micro-balloon filler and a last
coat of resin, before applying bottom
paint to the trunk.
We used the same filler (West
System Microlight) as the fairing
compound to fill the voids in the keel.
Some of them were ¼" deep, and it took
several applications of filler, followed by
a lot of sanding with an air-powered
palm sander to fair the keel completely,
but a final coat of resin rewarded us with
a first-class looking keel.
Unfortunately, our finish was short-
lived, because when we replaced the keel
in the boat, the keel would only pivot
through about half of its travel. We were
confident that we had not built the keel
The keel before refinishing.
Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001
up wider than it had been before, because
sandblasting had removed a significant
amount of rusted metal. However, we
had shimmed the left bearing about 1/16
of an inch to make the keel hang straight
down.
Before, the keel had listed about ten
degrees to port. The top of the keel had
always rubbed on the left side of the keel
trunk, evidenced by rub marks on the left
side of the tunnel, and the shims
exacerbated the problem. On further
examination, we found the keel to have
multiple curves, which must have been
there since it was cast.
Averaging out the curves by grinding
the upper portion of the keel with side
grinders and recovering with resin gave
us a keel which hung straight down and
didn't touch the keel trunk anywhere.
We also slotted the bearing bolt holes
fore and aft to slightly pivot the keel
until it was aligned with the centerline of
the boat with the keel retracted. Before,
it hung over the left edge of the
centerline recess that runs to the rear
edge of the keel.
We got pretty good at removing and
replacing the keel. Jeff cut off some 4"
long bolts at the heads, to use as locator
dowels for the bearings while we
lowered the boat onto the keel, and this
really simplified the process.
The keel looked great on the boat,
and with the keel again lowering to its
fully extended position, the boat sails a
lot better, too. I can't tell whether curing
the list of the keel has changed my ability
to point on either tack, but I know I feel
more confident with the keel hanging
straight down, smooth and protected.
Tips on Removing Your Keel
Removing your keel is a major
project, and I don't mean to minimize the
difficulties. However, I couldn't find any
boatyards interested in doing it for me,
so I offer these ideas to those of you who
might be in the same position:
Having the boat high enough to lower
the keel fully was a luxury which is
probably not available to most, but it
sure was nice. I envision raising the boat
off the trailer with floor jacks positioned
fore and aft until it clears the top of the
keel. This takes about a foot. Use the
stand made of two-by-fours in the picture
to stabilize the keel – if it tips over
before the boat is clear, you may crack
Keel
Cut the heads off 4” bolts to locate bearings as
boat is lowered onto keel.
the fiberglass at the base of the tunnel.
Support the trailer to keep it from tilting
and slide the keel to the rear off the
trailer along a stout plank.
Do as I say, not as I did! Check the
keel for overall straightness, full
extension, and any chafing in the keel
trunk, as well as for leaks or cracks
before refinishing.
Go to the trouble of sandblasting the
keel, even if you must have someone else
do it. Fairing the keel with filler and
resin is well worth the effort in terms of
appearance, protection, and, according to
experienced racers, performance. I used
West System Epoxy with their
Microlight fairing compound because I
didn't have much experience with
fiberglass, and their technical and boat
construction manuals give complete
instructions for using their own
materials. I understand there are cheaper
epoxies, but I still recommend the
manuals for those of you without much
experience handling fiberglass.
Use the pictured bolts to help align
the bearings as you replace the keel, and
use the two-by-four supports while you
work on the keel. We wound up using
just one support, which seemed stable
Finished keel with its 2x4 supports.
enough, but the keel is top-heavy, and if
it falls over, you can (as we did) mar
your finish and have to redo some work.
You may also get hurt – be sure to
adequately support the boat and the
keel during all phases of the project.
2-15
 Keel

First Person Putting the keel back on was a We wound up taking the boat to
reverse process which took a lot longer Greg, who put it on a hoist to drop the
Experiences in than removing it. I hooked up the cable keel. Greg also sandblasted the keel for
Refinishing Swing Keels to the back of the keel and tied the lines $25, after I had tried a belt sander, a
to the bunk supports to keep the keel finish sander, and 3-inch wire cup brush
The following accounts were taken from from rolling off the jack. As I raised the in an electric drill to remove the five
the newsletter of Fleet 120 in Grove, keel slowly, I put blocks under it so that coats of paint. I couldn't believe how
Oklahoma: if it did fall, it would not go down to the hard all five coats were – there were
trailer. white, blue, and gold coats, and what
Jerry Hickman recounts his The fore and aft adjustment of the appeared to be a red primer and a black
experience: hanger bolts is a lot harder than you coat. Sandblasting was a necessity.
would think. Once the keel is up in the I used West System 105 resin and
Probably the number one reason I
trunk far enough, it really can't fall over; 205 hardener. West has five or six
didn't have major problems removing my
the cable is supporting a good portion of different products, all with different
keel is the fact that my trailer is made for
the weight. Do remember to put the keel characteristics. The first coat of epoxy
a fixed keel, with very high bunks. I
hangers up into the keel – don't leave was mixed with West 206 thickener, or
only had to support the keel while I
them upside down like I did. The hull filler, to fill in the voids and low spots in
removed the hanger bolts and hangers. I
should be smooth, not having 2-inch by the keel. The thickener is also available
used a small hydraulic floor jack which
2-inch lumps of brass hanging from the in several varieties-harder or softer-and
just fits on the runner where the keel
bottom. you can select the one to fit your need.
rests. I supported it from turning or
My keel had been filled previously but
falling off the jack by running lines
Earl Rose's Experience: still had some voids and low spots. The
around the keel and tying them off on the
My keel was in fairly good shape. It old filler appeared sound, and Greg left it
supports for the bunks. After the hanger
was fairly smooth but did have some on, so I started with some bare metal and
bolts were removed, I lowered the jack
rough spots and some voids and had some filled areas. I didn't apply the first
and used a come-along to pull the keel
begun to rust in spots, so we decided to coat of epoxy for several days following
into my truck bed. It took about an hour
remove the old coatings and smooth it sandblasting and had to remove the light
to get it out and into the truck, but some
out and recoat it. Greg Barton at Joe coat of rust which had formed. I had a
of that time was spent making trips to the
Becker's Marine Service of Oklahoma in belt sander, but a Black & Decker
cooler.
Tulsa was very helpful. Greg suggested finishing sander with coarse paper
I had the keel sandblasted at a
West Epoxy with a filler to fill in the low proved to be the best. I also used a 3-
monument company in Bentonville for
spots, then at least four coats of the inch cup wire brush in an electric drill to
$20. My keel had a coating of what
epoxy to achieve a maximum moisture get the rust out of the voids. I was told
looked like Bondo on one side, used to
barrier. Greg did not recommend gel that rust starts to form in only 8 minutes
fair it out somewhat. My guess is that it
coat or fiberglass, because neither are as after sandblasting.
was done at the foundry, because the
impervious to moisture as epoxy. The first filler coat was not quite
keel has never been worked on since the
Marilyn and I tried for four or five thick enough, and sanding went through
boat was purchased.
hours to remove the keel but gave up. to the metal in a few spots, so I put a
For fairing material, I used fiberglass
Our trailer carries the boat so low that second filler coat on some spots as
cloth and polyester resin. The fiberglass
there are no more than 2 inches clearance needed.
is not truly waterproof, but I covered the
between the keel in its fully raised After the filler coat hardened, I
keel after that with Interprotect. This is a
position and until it is resting on the sanded it down again and applied six
two-part paint which is supposed to be
trailer support just above the axle. We coats of epoxy for a moisture barrier.
waterproof. I also used it to cover the
could not jack the boat up high enough Each coat was applied with a foam roller
bottom of the boat after I repaired the
above the trailer bunks so that the keel when the previous coat was still tacky.
blisters. I followed the directions which
was entirely below the keel trunk. We The epoxy is transparent, and a coat of
call for five coats, which will give about
had five or six 2xl2s between the bunks bottom paint could have been applied for
a 10 mil thickness. I really think that
and the hull and still had about 3 inches appearance only, but I decided against it.
almost any product would work if it were
more to go, and the boat was too I brought the keel back from Tulsa to
applied to a sandblasted and clean keel.
precariously high to go any further. I Bartlesville in the back of a pick-up and
No matter which product is used, if water
also found that a very slight slope (2 or 3 found that 55 gallon drums laid down
gets to the keel and rust forms, blisters
degrees on my inclinometer) on the were almost its high as the bed of the
will eventually form.
driveway athwartship is magnified when truck. With a borrowed come-along I
All the work was done on the keel
the boat is this high above the bunks and slid the keel off the truck onto a couple
while it was supported on two sawhorses.
adds to the instability. I would of drums and put the filler coats on with
I used an old swing set as an "A" frame
recommend a trailer made for a boat with the keel on the drums. For the six coats
and the come-along to turn it over. I
a fixed keel, so the boat is much higher of plain epoxy, I put a 2x12 board across
really can't imagine working on it while
and the keel can be dropped without the two floor joists in the ceiling of the
it is still under the boat. It is just too
jacking up the boat. garage with 3/8 x 4-inch wood bolts and
heavy and clumsy.
a 3/8-inch eye bolt in the center of the

Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001 2-16


2x12. I used large fender washers on all
bolts and raised the keel from this with
the come-along. This permitted me to
roll the epoxy on the entire keel without
having to turn it. Marilyn was concerned
that the weight would pull down the floor
joists, so I braced a 2x8-inch between the
2x12 on the ceiling and the floor of the
garage, and everything worked great,
with no apparent sagging of the floor
joists.
Time will tell how effective this
treatment is for preventing rust. I did try
to sand the final coat with wet 220 cloth,
but it could have been sanded smoother
still.
Refinishing with Epoxy
By Pam and Dennis Slaton
Fleet 58 Newsletter, August 1998
“Our Old Boat #6 Keels”
Since, we last discussed rudders, it is
appropriate to move into keels, and their
maintenance problems. No matter the
type of the keel, the cast iron
composition and resulting rust is the
most time consuming factor in the
maintenance equation. We have
refinished a number of keels, and the
approach to refinishing is determined by
the current condition of the surface.
Many times if the keel has a good basic
overall shape and the rust deposits are
not deep or numerous, we would not opt
First coat of epoxy applied. Photo courtesy
Fleet 20, Portland, OR.
Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001
Keel
to expose the entire keel, but simply barrier and anit-fouling paint issues. A
grind out the problem area and do a high level of barrier paint protection
patch. But if a complete restoration is helps to prevent future moisture
required, the best approach is penetration and the resulting rust. We
sandblasting the surface to reveal all bare have heard of the fiberglass wrap
metal. Note that rust begins immediately, approach to refinishing the keel, but have
thus the need to apply a rust inhibiting never attempted it. Next month we will
paint prior to leaving the blasting booth, discuss the maintenance of the keel
if not sooner!! A good inhibitor paint is hangers, pin, etc.
Petit Rust-lock. Whatever paint you are
using check for compatibility with the
epoxy and filler that you will be applying
next.
We have always suspended a swing
keel from the cable eye and the keel pin
hole. This makes for easier handling,
(with a fixed keel you must endure
working under the boat). The next step is
to key or rough sand the inhibitor paint
and clean the surface with acetone for a
properly prepared surface to accept the
epoxy. Seal the entire keel with a coat of
pure epoxy rolled and then tipped with a
brush to remove any bubbles. Make sure
the epoxy penetrates all the holes in the
metal. Once the first coat of epoxy is at
the green cure stage, (note the
appropriate time windows for recoating
or you may have to sand prior to
preceding) you can begin the fairing
process.
Alternative method of suspending the keel
We skim the entire keel with a thick by the keel pivot hole. Photo courtesy Fleet
coat of epoxy filler (we use the West 20, Portland, OR.
Systems epoxy, 410 microlight and a
small amount of silica to prevent the
mixture from running). The consistency
should be that of peanut butter. Upon
curing we begin the tedious process of
sanding and shaping using 80 grit
sandpaper. This skim and sand process
will have to be repeated until the
imperfections are corrected and the
shape is restored. In restoring the shape,
remember that you are looking for
symmetry with the draft about 40% to
45% aft of the leading edge, but
remember that thinner keels equal less
drag and better performance. Also a
squared trailing edge is more desirable
and the performance is enhanced over a
knife blade edge. Our class rules allows
for the refinishing of our keels, and given
the crude imperfections found there is no
problem in correcting the shape to
achieve a symmetric form, however, you
can not drastically change the shape or
cord dimension measurements of the
keel.
After the process of restoring the keel
shape you are ready to address the usual
2-17
 Keel

Keel Laminate Cracking the usual conditions are such that the
surface is not very critical (winds 18 to
Your Catalina 22 swing keel was not 35). Whenever the winds are lighter,
glassed by the factory, because they under 15, I do very poorly and I choose
haven't done such a thing. They ship the to blame it partially on the surface of my
boat with only paint on the keel, so it has keel.
been done by someone else.
There are many ways of repair,
depending upon the amount of damage.
Any of these repairs will require
dropping the keel out of the boat and the
easiest way to do that is raising the boat
on the trailer by jacking under the
centerline at the transom about a foot,
placing blocks of wood (about 12 inch
cubes) on the trailer bunks by jacking
under the center line at about the forward
edge of the keel trunk. Once the boat is
blocked up it is safe to work under it.
The other way is to use a sling and hoist
the boat off the trailer, but a hoist is not
always available.
If the damage is slight, remove ALL
of the fiberglass from the area where it
has separated from the cast iron, clean
the cast iron to bare metal, and prime and
patch the fiberglass. Be sure to sand the
patch so that it is fair.
If the damage is extensive the keel
can be re-fiberglassed in its entirely.
Again, be sure to clean and prepare the
cast iron very well. If ANY moisture
gets between the glass and the cast iron,
it WILL rust and the rust WILL force
more delamination.
Other methods of treatment that I've
seen are to coat the cast iron with
"GLUVIT", to paint it and then fair it
with a filler, or, if you've got a very good
casting, to just paint it with a heavy paint
I've never seen it done, but I imagine that
a polyurethane paint would be very good
since it provides a surface similar to a
fiberglass gel-coat
If you don't race the boat, there are
protective coatings that can be used and
perform their jobs pretty well. In the
paints, RUST-0-LEUM does a pretty
good job. Again, it does require the keel
be prepared, but it is not so critical as
with fiberglassing the keel. There are
other waterproofing compounds,
including roofing tar, that will adequately
protect the keel from corrosion, but it is
very difficult to got a good surface with
them.
As for me, I have had a compound
called "tar set" applied. It works good
and is very tenacious, but the surface is
NOT very good for racing. I do race, but

Catalina 22 Technical Manual, 2001 2-18