opening stern rail access

I Just bought an E26-2. We have to dock the boat 'stern first' for at least this summer. I know stepping over the transom railing will become a pain especially for members of the family and friends who were not born yesterday. I need recommendations on options to cut the rail and replace it with a cable or a hinge set-up. FYI The boat has a swing up transom ladder and I may want to do the modification just because of this feature. I like the option to keep the rail 'rigid' but will defer to those who could write a thesis on the subject. Thanks!

An aside - (still trying to figure out what the '-2' means)

Joe A. said:

I Just bought an E26-2. We have to dock the boat 'stern first' for at least this summer. I know stepping over the transom railing will become a pain especially for members of the family and friends who were not born yesterday. I need recommendations on options to cut the rail and replace it with a cable or a hinge set-up. FYI The boat has a swing up transom ladder and I may want to do the modification just because of this feature. I like the option to keep the rail 'rigid' but will defer to those who could write a thesis on the subject. Thanks!

An aside - (still trying to figure out what the '-2' means)

Click to expand...

Hi Joe,
Not sure just how to best brace your stern rail once you "weaken" it by removing the center bar, but others may have some ideas. Can you post up a few photos of the present set up? One engineering feature will need to incorporate a brace to take the force of someone pulling straight back when they grab hold of it to board.

The dash-two is easier. Back in the late 60's Ericson produced a totally different Ericson 26. The later 80's one was subsequently called the Mk 2 model.

Best,
Loren

The picture below is of a friends E26 (1988 hull 358) that had the center section of the stern rail cutout before he bought it. The rail is definitely weaker from my experience of boarding his boat from the stern vs my own which does not have the cut out. Loren's comments about bracing are well founded.

Another issue to consider will be the boarding ladder....when in the up position, the bottom rung is at the same height of the stern rail.

From online information the E26 chronology seems to be:

Ericson 26 1966-1969 Hulls 1-190
Ericson 26 II 1967-1968 Hulls 1-11
Ericson 26 III 1984-? Hulls 200-?
Ericson 26 IV (300s) 1987-? Hulls 300-?

The original E26's were designed by William Crealock while the later ones were by Bruce King. From a Practical Sailor review, the E26-IV's were apparently built on the E25+ hulls. You should be able to find out where your boat is in the series by the HIN and sail/Hull numbers.



Pat

Stern rail access (cont.)

Loren/Pat, Thanks much for your input. I attached a pic that isn't a great angle because it is off the internet from the yacht broker. I don't have a lot of personal pics yet. Pat, the set up is almost identical to your friends boat. I would not want to compromise the rail strength integrity by only cutting a section out but I was hoping that a strong hinge and latch would be available commercially that would answer Loren's multi-directional strength question. If not, I could make it with stainless tubing but I don't want to reinvent the wheel. Your boarding ladder comment also adds a wrinkle that I did not think of. Maybe that point is a deal breaker. I hope my attachment works.

FYI the boat is 1987 #313

I remember that the S2 7.9 has a open transom rail. As I recall the outer rail legs had smaller legs set at a 50 deg angle and were attached to the hull, there was a lifeline with a quick hook on one end to gain access.

If the ladder is a problem you can replace it with a telescopic one?

Hope this helps

I think I remember seeing that boat advertised....a pretty nice one...glad she's finding a good home.

A consideration in the hinge & latch option is that they would be out of play (from any structural strength contribution) when someone is boarding from the stern and that would be the point in time when the someone is relying on the rail for support. Better to brace the rails somehow.

Are a short set of plywood steps an option for the dock and cockpit? The cockpit side could be left on shore when sailing.

Pat

Well as an example of what you might design, here is what the stern rail access looks like on an E38-200. Even this does not feel rock solid if you are tugging on the top corner, but having the double row of rails and two vertical poles on either side of the gate does make it fairly sturdy.

Stern rail - final post?

Thanks to everyone who helped me figure out what to do with opening my stern rail. I'm not sure of EY.o's thank you policy but a whole bunch helped.

And now the new news... I received a call from my marina on Friday. Guess what? I was 'bumped up' to a regular slip and now I dont have to dock mediteranian style! Oh well. Thanks to all anyway. I may still put it in later but it is not as high on my to-do list. Glyn Judson had the perfect answer with pics plus an article that he wrote on the process.

Joe