Mast step came off

[tuntini31]

Hey guys, my mast step came off the other day on my daysailer II. One of the holes seems as though there is nothing for the screw to hold on to. It also looks like the mast step was glued down with something.

How should I fill the hole, and what should I use to glue the step back down?

I have waterproof 2 part epoxy putty. Would that do the trick? Also polyester resin and hardener.

Thanks!

[jdoorly]

Is your step like mine, a stainless "U" shape with 7 holes on each side with a 1/4" pin to position the mast base casting?

I had a similar problem except 4 out of 5 screws would not hold. I found the plywood underneath to be totally rotten and in need of replacement.

I had to cut away the cuddy floor around the mast to get access and remove all the rotten wood from the floor (the plywood had been encapsulated in fiber-glass and glued to the floor). Underneath that is the inner mast step which is made of 2 different sized PVC pipes one inside the other but the small inner one is taller and supports the wood (the 2" diameter PVC pipe has a matching hole cut out of the wood and is glued into the hole. The other end of the 2" pipe is glued into a larger PVC pipe which is glued to the fiberglass keel. The overall idea being to support the cuddy floor near the mast and provide something to screw the mast step into.

I replaced the plywood with hardwood and fitted that to the 2" PVC pipe. I glued some scrap wood to the edge of the cut-away portion, to hold up the cut-away piece, then fiber-glassed the piece back in. I screwed the step back in and done.

[tuntini31]

Mine does not look like that, but rather this:

Only two screw holes. One of the wood holes must be rotted through allt he way. I think I am going to fill them with the epoxy putty and then glue the step down with it and screw it in. I bought thicker screws so they will hold better in the worn holes.

I don't think I can replace the wood now. I don't want to cut another hole, especially around the mast step there.

This is my mast step from the bilge.





Thanks!