Rubrail Sealant

Hey All- I have a Cal 2-25 that, like the larger Cals has a 2 part rubrail (rigid H, with insert). I would like to reseal the rigid rubrail, which is separating slightly from the hull. So my question in which sealant to use. I don't know if the rigid rubrail is plastic or vinyl. I was leaning towards BoatLife Life Seal, part polyurethane part silicone and drawing the rubrail to the hull with tape (over the rubrail). Thoughts? Mike Casillo "Invincible Summer"

Mike, I have this same rubrail on my CAL 227, it is held on with screws located under the vinyl insert that go into the flange joint between the deck and hull. It is a terrible design, the plastic is very brittle and breaks at first contact, the vinyl insert becomes stiff with age and cannot be manipulated back into position if it comes out. And to make matters worse for those of us who own it, I don’t believe it is in production any more. Your approach to fixing the gap that has developed is probably as good as any, my guess is it will only be temporary but all boat repairs seem to fall into that category. Good Luck, John Boyce CAL 227 #650 From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] Sent: Thursday, May 21, 2015 9:19 AM To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Subject: [Cal_Boats] Rubrail Sealant Hey All- I have a Cal 2-25 that, like the larger Cals has a 2 part rubrail (rigid H, with insert). I would like to reseal the rigid rubrail, which is separating slightly from the hull. So my question in which sealant to use. I don't know if the rigid rubrail is plastic or vinyl. I was leaning towards BoatLife Life Seal, part polyurethane part silicone and drawing the rubrail to the hull with tape (over the rubrail). Thoughts? Mike Casillo "Invincible Summer"

I have what seems to be the same rub rail on my late 74 3-30. It has failed multiple times, pulling screws and breaking the now solid insert. I‘d sure appreciate any thoughts on replacement as well. Fred Haas 3-30 Nemesis Tacoma On May 21, 2015, at 7:27 AM, 'John Boyce' je… [at] gmail.com [Cal_Boats] <Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com> wrote: > > Mike, > > I have this same rubrail on my CAL 227, it is held on with screws located under the vinyl insert that go into the flange joint between the deck and hull. It is a terrible design, the plastic is very brittle and breaks at first contact, the vinyl insert becomes stiff with age and cannot be manipulated back into position if it comes out. And to make matters worse for those of us who own it, I don’t believe it is in production any more. > > > > Your approach to fixing the gap that has developed is probably as good as any, my guess is it will only be temporary but all boat repairs seem to fall into that category. > > > > Good Luck, > > John Boyce CAL 227 #650 > > > > From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] > Sent: Thursday, May 21, 2015 9:19 AM > To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com > Subject: [Cal_Boats] Rubrail Sealant > > > > > > Hey All- > > I have a Cal 2-25 that, like the larger Cals has a 2 part rubrail (rigid H, with insert). I would like to reseal the rigid rubrail, which is separating slightly from the hull. So my question in which sealant to use. I don't know if the rigid rubrail is plastic or vinyl. I was leaning towards BoatLife Life Seal, part polyurethane part silicone and drawing the rubrail to the hull with tape (over the rubrail). Thoughts? > > Mike Casillo "Invincible Summer" > > > >

Thanks for the insights. I will plan to do the Life Seal and try to line up the screws, which hopefully will last me a couple of years. But, I'm willing to bet there will be little to nothing for the screw to grab considering, as noted by your comments, the design has the screws (not bolts) going into to flange joint. I agree it's a bad design, one good thing is that there are minimal through bolts (I believe it is bolted at either end) and the sandwich joint is "glassed over" on the inside. As for a permanent fix, I've seen a post in either cruisers forum or sailnet where someone replaced the two part rubrail with the a gunnel rubber rubrail for a Cal 20 (e.g. like that on a Cal 25), which you can get from Seal's & Spars. Another option is to use hardwood cut to size, which is attractive, but is a lot of fancy woodwork for the rounded edges and hollowing out for the flange joint. Best, Mike Cal 2-25 "Invincible Summer" > On May 21, 2015, at 12:19 PM, "Fred Haas ca… [at] gmail.com [Cal_Boats]" <Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com> wrote: > > I have what seems to be the same rub rail on my late 74 3-30. It has failed multiple times, pulling screws and breaking the now solid insert. I‘d sure appreciate any thoughts on replacement as well. > > Fred Haas > 3-30 Nemesis > Tacoma >> On May 21, 2015, at 7:27 AM, 'John Boyce' je… [at] gmail.com [Cal_Boats] <Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com> wrote: >> >> >> Mike, >> >> I have this same rubrail on my CAL 227, it is held on with screws located under the vinyl insert that go into the flange joint between the deck and hull. It is a terrible design, the plastic is very brittle and breaks at first contact, the vinyl insert becomes stiff with age and cannot be manipulated back into position if it comes out. And to make matters worse for those of us who own it, I don’t believe it is in production any more. >> >> >> >> Your approach to fixing the gap that has developed is probably as good as any, my guess is it will only be temporary but all boat repairs seem to fall into that category. >> >> >> >> Good Luck, >> >> John Boyce CAL 227 #650 >> >> >> >> From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] >> Sent: Thursday, May 21, 2015 9:19 AM >> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com >> Subject: [Cal_Boats] Rubrail Sealant >> >> >> >> >> >> Hey All- >> >> I have a Cal 2-25 that, like the larger Cals has a 2 part rubrail (rigid H, with insert). I would like to reseal the rigid rubrail, which is separating slightly from the hull. So my question in which sealant to use. I don't know if the rigid rubrail is plastic or vinyl. I was leaning towards BoatLife Life Seal, part polyurethane part silicone and drawing the rubrail to the hull with tape (over the rubrail). Thoughts? >> >> Mike Casillo "Invincible Summer" >> > >