Forum - Keel and Centre Plate

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Strange retro Drain Plug in Aft Cockpit Deck Has anyone got a drain plug fitted in the centre aft of the cockpit deck? Not the open drain in the transom but one that has been fitted vertically in to the deck moulding for some reason by a previous owner. I ask, as I am currently getting a small amount of water entering the port locker and have established it is coming form a small hole in the moulding under the deck right aft (only accessible by looking aft in the port locker). The cockpit deck appears to be the top part of a sealed void which extends across the centre of the boat between the side lockers and it is in this void where the water is collecting. I am pretty confident it is coming through the poorly fitting drain plug in the aft well. The plug is a standard screw plug similar to those found on the transoms of many dinghies but I cannot understand why it was fitted in the first place? I can only suck out some of the water and not completely empty it. The forward void bulkhead can be seen behind the keel locker in the cabin and I intend to drill a hole in it to remove the remaining water from in there. Has anyone had any similar experience or can shed any light if the void should be full of air or foam for buoyancy?5Tue 11 Jun 2024 10:23:50
URGENT QUESTION - water ingress We have water leaking into the cabin through the white bung here (see pic). It goes into the keel compartment. Any advice? Should this be sealed? If so, how? Or should there not be water behind there in the first place?15Tue 11 Jun 2024 10:08:54
Help: Sailing without lowered centreboard I’ve just posted this on ‘For Sale’ board by mistake. Trying again… Red Herring’s centreboard is again jammed in the raised position. Banging doesn’t release it. Reading many entries on this site (including from my boat’s previous owner) and the real challenges of raising the boat on shore to gain access I have this question: How many of you Manta sailors give up on lowering the centreboard and sail purely with the keel box as a ‘keel’?7Mon 10 Jun 2024 21:05:08
Lifting eye bolts on a Manta 19? Has anyone ever succesfully installed lifting eye bolts in the cast steel ballast keel for crane hoisting?1Tue 30 Apr 2024 16:00:35
Bilge Keel Dimensions Having recently acquired my second Manta 19 (In 10 years) I wonder if anyone has any information as to the distances apart the bilge keels are on this bilge keel version. It would be helpful to know how much spare room I have on the trailer before the keels slip over the edge!! Any info most gratefully received.Wed 18 Oct 2023 12:24:26
Bilge Keels or drying out legs Hi all, Can anyone point me to pictures of these "keels" please? I know that they're unballasted & so not sure if they're called keels at all but I hope you all know what I mean.6Wed 09 Aug 2023 22:00:01
keel lifting chain my boat sits on a mooring in a lake and I leave the keel down all year. When I set up the boat after winter I tried to lift the keel and the chain just came free and disconnected from the keel. This is no problem providing the keel rests on the restraining lug and doesn't drop right down, how secure is this restraining lug I have read here that sometimes the keel lug can fail3Sat 08 Jul 2023 21:50:50
Keel chain broken, can I leave it for now? So my chain for lifting keel has broke. Boat is in the water, so my question is, can I leave it like that for next few months until i pull it out of the water and fix it later? I pull up keel only when I'm in marine, otherwise keel is always down. It can't drop full down right? there is little part that keeps keel to fall down?2Sun 11 Jul 2021 09:10:54
Un-sticking a Swinging Keel Red Herring is finally afloat on the River Cam. As expected, her swinging keel doesn't want to swing down; not surprising as she hasn't been on the water for 3 years and I'm not sure whether the owner before that ever bothered to lower the keel. I thought I would try to shift it by tapping on a long rod through the hole in the SS plate where the chain goes. First attempt was with a wooden rod 18 mm in diameter; that got so firmly stuck that it took me a long time to get it out. Next was an iron rod 15 mm in diameter; as soon as that started to stick I gave up. So advice please: - how wide is the slot in the ballast keel through which the centre plate swings? This will determine the maximum diameter of any rod I use at the next attempt. - am I on the right track, or should I stop this approach for fear of causing damage? Ultimately, I would rather sail with only the ballasts keel to counter lee way that break something that I can't see and don't really understand. Help please! Charles20Thu 29 Apr 2021 21:51:38
Checking keel area before buying Hi all, We have been looking at various 18-20' trailer sailers and one which has particularly caught our eye is a Manta 19. I know it has been on the trailer for quite a while so one of my concerns is the lifting keel. As we're viewing it on the trailer there isn't really the option to look at the keel before buying without spending a fortune framing (so if we buy we'll assume the worst and set aside money to sort major problems if necessary), but could anyone tell me what we might be able to check in the keel area? How do you get at the pivoting bolts for example? Are there any ways of getting a glimpse of the keel and if so are there any danger signs we might be able to spot? Anything inside or under the hull we should particularly be looking at? That doesn't just go for the keel actually - are there any common Manta issues we might need to look for (above and beyond what you'd look for in any other boat)? The boat is priced to include some work so I don't mind too much if there are a few issues, but it would be good to know as much as possible! Hoping to join the ranks of Manta owners soon!4Wed 18 Sep 2019 21:50:36
Ballast keel help please Hello, if there's anyone out there with experience of the ballast keel I'd be very grateful for your opinion of the following please. I've been talking to an owner/seller who tells me that the keel slot on his boat was welded closed before he bought it. He only ever used it as a motor boat and knows very little about the boat and nothing about the potential for opening up the slot again. So my questions are: - What is the ballast keel made of? Cast iron, mild steel, something else. I've heard of ballast keels being concrete encapsulated in GRP but then you wouldn't be able to weld it closed. - Is the ballast keel bolted through the hull? If it has been welded then I'd much rather drop it off the bottom to sort it out. I'm wondering whether the previous owner really meant rusted closed with the drop keel in place. Unfortunately the boat's a day's drive away so having a look myself is very difficult. Thank you for reading this far, any thoughts gratefully received. T3Sun 10 Mar 2019 16:26:53
Bilge Keels / Centreboard I have been told that the centreboard is not designed to be dropped on the Bilge Keel version. Is this correct ?3Thu 12 Nov 2015 23:09:26
keel replacement fun begains Today i got a chance to have a look at my little sailboat my keel it looks bad it looks like the drop keel has been up in side for the past 10 years or more and with very bad corrosion its going to be a very big job to try and get it down from in side dont know where to start any ideas on removing it would be great sorry i will have pictures soon i hope to start a blog here thanks kevin galway5Sat 06 Dec 2014 17:48:30
Keel position Hello! Thank you Luis! I will shorten the chain then... And yes, this little boat will sail along the Rias for a few sessions, I hope! I was looking for something with a lifting keel because I wanted to have the boat in my yard during winter and also because I thought it would be very useful in this coast and the Manta seems perfect. I will tell you... Regards, H.1Thu 05 Jun 2014 19:36:27
Keel reattachment Hello, I recently had to have the keel reattached to my Manta due to corrosion of the pivot bolt. The problem is, the people at the workshop reattached the keel while I was not there, and it appears they did so in a very strange fashion. I'm afraid the picture doesn't give provide the proper context, but needless to say the orientation of the keel is quite different from what I've seen in other photos. The front of the keel, under the pivot bolt, is obviously protruding from the hull by a few inches. Given the placement of the hole in the keel it's hard to see how else it could have been attached. Does this setup look like an acceptable alternative configuration? If not, how can I fix it? The location of the hole in the keel itself makes me think that the previous owners had replaced the original center plate, and possibly in a strange manner. Thanks in advance for your help!5Thu 29 May 2014 18:32:43
Keel Removal Before I start breaking into the vertical tube which supports the bridge deck and through which the centre plate chain runs I'd appreciate confirmation that the three aft keel bolts are located under the tube and not at the side. Judicious removal of exposed glass fibre to the side of the tube supports this view but I'd like to be sure before going further. Luis and Jakob have provided some really useful information but the matter of bolt location seems to be the last piece in the keel removal jigsaw. When complete I will post a blow by blow process for removal / replacement, with pictures. It's the least I can do to support a very helpful site. Thanks Gary3Wed 10 Apr 2013 23:24:26
Centre Plate dimensions Help! I have been able to get my employers engineering dept to plasma cut a plate to the dimensions posted on this site, but we only have 6 or 10 mm plate available. I think someone has successfully used 10mm plate but need to be sure before steel is cut. I don't really want to use 6mm as I fear the plate will have too much lateral movement. Can anyone confirm suitability of 10mm, I'd welcome opinions Thanks Gary12Sat 06 Apr 2013 12:03:38
centre plate and leeway Does anyone know exactly how important is the centre plate on the 3-keel version of the Manta 19? Does it really have a significant effect in reducing leeway, or do the bilge keels do that anyway? This winter I am planning major works on Mekicevica's keel and I wonder if it wouldn't be worth just removing the centre plate and have a solid ballast keel. Luis2Tue 06 Sep 2011 13:42:10
Centre Plate Lifting Chain Hi. When attempting to lift the centre plate chain today it appeared to be jammed. Only have had the boat for a few weeks and on my previous 2 trips there was no problem lifting the centre plate. It has never been fully lowered as I had a shackle inserted in the chain to always make sure 3 links were showing above the cockpit plate. Any tips please on releasing it. Cheers Al5Sun 04 Sep 2011 18:19:13
cost of new keel Sorry to lower the tone of this thread by talking about money! We need a new keel for Davin as the present one is too thin to re-attach the lifting keel chain. I wonder if anyone could give us a rough idea of the price to buy one and a rough idea of labour costs? many thanks ian5Fri 26 Aug 2011 18:36:21
keel material Dear Manta Sailors: Approaching the last stages of the refit of Mekicevica. Finally got to take a look at the lifting keel. Not as good as I had hoped for, but with a bit of cleaning and painting, it will do for this season. What are your lifting keels made of? I read something about stainless steel, but that is not the original, is it? It seems to me SS would only accelerate corrosion of the balast keel, which is more important and harder to replace. I am considering bolting a zinc anode to the balst keel. Although all steel boats seem to use them, I have never seen zinc anodes on the keels of sailing boats. Any ideas/comments? Luis5Tue 10 May 2011 21:30:37
Manta 19 centreplate Has anybody fitted a stainless steel keel or rudder and is it likely that this would cause problems? The advantages seem obvious. MichaelSun 08 May 2011 18:54:58
Manta19 keel Hi I have just been asked to replace the lifting keel on a Manta19 can anyone help me to obtain the size and shape of this part8Thu 05 May 2011 16:10:18
Manta Centre Plate Can anybody explain to me how the mechanism for raising and lowering the centreplate is attached to the top of the centreplate. I have a new centreplate made that is 10mm thick and a slot 12mm thick to push it into! and no access from the top to connect to the centre plate when it is in place? Regards Crumble1Wed 20 May 2009 13:58:11
Centreplate fixed Had the manta centreplate removed this week. It was jammed with rust and sand but in good condition , so a lick of keel paint and now back in and ready for a sail on Sat at rutland. Looking forward to seeing the difference in upwind performance, as i have been sailing all summer with the stub keel only.Thu 30 Oct 2008 20:51:22
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