[Public-list] Bow chocks

[FINNUS505 at aol.com]

In a message dated 9/19/2005 7:02:51 PM Eastern Standard Time,  
zira at bellsouth.net writes:

All  -

I lost one of my bow chocks and a chunck of toe rail to Hurricane  Ophelia. 
I was very surprised to find out that the chocks are not  through-bolted. 
Anyway, does anyone know where I can get either an exact  replacement, or 
else 2 similar chocks to replace the set?  Used is  okay.  Mine is an 
early-style boat, if that matters.

David  Swanson
Strayaway Child
Alberg 30 #229 




Hi David,
 
When I got Stargazer, #255, years ago, the bow chocks had already been torn  
from the toerails, the teak visibly split where the old fastenings were. The  
prev. owner had refastened the chocks about a foot aft, using drift screws  
again. The chocks were too far aft in the new place, and I didn't use them. I  
lashed the mooring lines, and anchor line when cruising, to the stem head  
fitting, protected with chaffing gear. Big Pain. Replacing the chocks  correctly 
was one of the jobs I knew I had to get when other priorities were  done.
 
I found a set of realy nice bronze chocks in a Nautical consignment shop  
near Newport last winter. They are the kind that are supposed to be set in to  
the toe rail; if you are not familiar with this type, look at Hinckleys and  
other similar boats; the chocks are let in to the toe rail. Very strong. 
 
Cutting the wood acurately to take the chocks is a very ticklish job. I  made 
a pair of practice pieces that worked out, but since I plan to replace  
Stargazer's toe rails eventualy, I didn't want to spend the time necessary to  ship 
these chocks now.
 
What I ended up doing was cutting the toe rails back about 8 inches  from the 
stem head, and bolting the old chocks right to the edge of the deck. I  set 
them on a teak pad of 1/4 inch thickness to get them to lead fairly over the  
deck edge. I gave the forward edges of the toe rail a bit of rake and rounded  
them a bit. I chose the place to cut them based on the postion of the next 
bolt  that secures the rail so that it would still be fastened well. It looks 
'right',  and the chocks are much stronger.
 
If you decide to go this way, just keep in mind that the topsides have  
significant flair at this point, and so the chocks have to be set inboard enough  
so that you can get nuts on the ends of the bolts going through the deck. That  
is why I set the chocks up on the teak pads, to compensate for the inboard  
position of the chocks.
 
Hope this helps,
Lee
 
 

 1127233600.0