The guy at WicorMarine who has been doing some work for us on Delphine was looking for the source of a leak into and behind the basin in the heads and he noticed that the starboard chainplate has lifted by about 5mm. We've asked him to go ahead with getting the mast down and investigating - but has anyone had a similar problem?

Many thanks

Best wishes

Gilliane

---

Don't know about 275's but on the 27 there is a flat plate mounted on the deck with four screws which the chain plate goes through - no connection. The plate can be raised and the sealant around the chain plate where it goes through the deck can be checked/replaced with silicon. No need to take the mast down!
Best of luck
Chris / Artemis P27

Gilliane

I suspect that the plate has not lifted. If it is like ours it is fixed to the main shroud plat which goes through the deck. It is not possible to screw it down properly to seal it, which is a shame as leaks do sometimes occur.

I have tried taking out the whole shroud plate and resealing (using halyards to support the mast on one side). This worked but eventually leaked again. So now I just dig out the old sealant and stuff new sealant under the plate. This has mixed success. Recently I have finished off with an outer layer of cheap bathroom silicone sealant which has lasted for several years.

I hope this helps and should avoid the need for taking the mast down.

Tim

Dear Tim

Good advice - many thanks - I think you're right that the chain plate hasn't lifted. When we thought about it a bit more, we realised that the rigging wouldn't be as tight as it was if there'd been movement at the plate. However, we were concerned that the deck beneath the plate could have got very wet, as the leak has probably been there a long time and the wood core could have started rotting - and the only way to check was to get the chain plate off. We also wanted to inspect some of the mast fittings so we went ahead with getting the mast down. It was probably a good idea - though we have mixed feelings at the moment! - as it's turned out that the base of the mast is heavily corroded and there are stress cracks in the gelcoat beneath the mast. Fortunately, it's apparently all repairable but it may delay our launch.

Best wishes

Gilliane

---

Dear Chris

Thanks for your input. However the chain plate arrangement on the Parker 275 is different from the 27 - the cover plate doesn't come off separately. A pity - it would have made all this much easier!

Best wishes

Gilliane

---