[C320-list] Leak at Instrument Pod Support Tubes

[Troy Dunn]

Dave-

No real help here, but figured I'd respond since I have experienced this
leak and because you have a yahoo account your posts will be flagged as
spam by anyone using gmail; hopefully my response will at least bump your
question into the daylight for all the gmail folks.

My fix for this leak was to buy a brand new chartplotter and autohelm and
let the yard install it.   That's a really expensive way to fix the leak.
I suspect these leaks are created not by the guard attachment bolts, but by
the relatively large hole that has to be drilled to accommodate the cabling
and the poor design of the guard attachment to protect this hole from water
intrusion.    Water can find its way to through that hole through a variety
of paths.   I did find that with a properly tensioned and newer bimini that
actually sheds water, and a well fitting helm cover this issue would go
away.   That didn't mean I always had the foresight to ensure these things
were up before retiring for the evening...

Good luck, hopefully someone with a lot more experience at fixing your
issue will reply.

Troy Dunn
Hull #514

On Wed, Apr 24, 2019 at 2:37 AM Dave Hupe <hoopdtwo at yahoo.com> wrote:

> I've developed a slow leak related to one of my stainless steel tubes for
> the instruments/engine control panel wiring that extends into the cockpit
> floor.   This just showed up after uncovering the boat. The leak is evident
> by a trail of seepage down the back inside wall of the aft bedroom
> (apparently dripping into the pan above the bed that covers the steering
> idler pullies, with the water then slowly working its way out the aft end
> of the pan).
> Each stainless tube has a bracket at the bottom secured with 2 vertical
> bolts (Philip head) extending into the cockpit floor and one horizontal
> bolt on each bracket that seems like a "set screw".
> Does anyone have experience dealing with leaks related to these tubes that
> can give advice? Are the vertical bolts each thru-bolts with nuts
> underneath accessible thru the pan covering the idler pullies in the aft
> stateroom, or are they screwed into plates in the cockpit floor?  Have you
> packed the holes with butyl rubber and then reinstalled the brackets?
> Thanks in advance for the advice.
> Dave Hupe
> 1994 Cat 320 (#32) "Mayan Sun"
> Holland, MI
>