Strut Material

[scourge]

I have a 1976 32ft. The strut is a little loose. I know that there is no good way to firm it up. Inside, the gas tank sits directly over where the strut is, and from what I gather, everything is buried in material. My thought was to drill a couple of holes through the bottom of the strut from the outside, run a couple of screws into the material, then glass over the strut.
A.) Will this work
B.) What material is the strut made of?
Thanks
Len Buchanan

 

[tenders]

The strut on my '69 is made of bronze, and there are perhaps six bolts that go through the hull and are held on with washers. Maybe eight.

This is going to be a bit of a project but might not be as bad as you think; you might not have to take the shaft out. The fuel tank is a bit involved to disconnect from the fill hose but once that's accomplished it's easy to get out through the lazarette. You could cut out the platform on which the tank rests with a Sawzall--and just glass it back on when you're done, it isn't a precision fit by any means. That should give you pretty good access to the strut bolts. Cut them off and replace them, reinforcing whatever's wrong now that's making the strut loose. While you've got the strut free of the hull, take the prop off, slide the strut off the shaft, and replace the Cutless bearing.