Flybridge ladder

[crusin_canuk]

Hi all,


I'm in the process of refinishing the brightwork on our Monk 36. As much as possible, I've been removing bits of teak to take home to my shop to do the work. The next bit I want to do is the ladder (a.k.a stairs) to the flybridge. I can see two bungs at the base of the stringers that cover the two screws that hold the base of the stringer to the deck. However, there is no obvious way that the top of the stringers have been attached to either the underside of the flybridge deck or the main cabin aft bulkhead.


I have attempted to access the area inside the main cabin where I estimate the fasteners would be, but to completely expose the area would require removing the cabinetry above and around the refrigerator. Something I am not keen to.



So, before I dismantle half the interior of the boat, I thought I would ask if anyone knows exactly how the top of the ladder stringers are attached to the boat?


Thx,


Paul

 

[Comodave]

Can you post some photos of the top and bottom with different angles?

 

[crusin_canuk]

Hi Comodave,


Here are a few photos.


As you can see, the base of the stringer is screwed to the deck.


But there is no indication how the top of the stringer is secured.


I suspect that the tops of the stringers are either fastened from the inside through the bulkhead or flybridge deck, or adhered to the underside of the flybridge deck and the ladder is anchored at the base of the stringers.

 

[Comodave]

Well, it certainly isn’t obvious how it is attached, is it. I might just refinish it in place. The only easy way I can see to remove it would be to use a multi tool to cut through the top and/or the vertical edge. But that would likely do some damage.

 

[fgarriso]

Refinish it in place.

 

[SIBERNUT]

Well, if'n it was me, I'd take out the bottom screws & see what happens. It's possible the top has pegs that go into holes you can't see, held in place by the wedge action jammed under there. You're gonna refinish it anyway, all that costs ya is a couple of plugs

 

[Benthic2]

Longshot advice:

Sometimes a magnet will find fasteners but stainless is iffy and brass is a no-go

Sometimes you can use a thin wire like dental floss to slide between the wood and fiberglass.

A brief search turned up a dozen year old thread about TF member Birdsong doing some pretty intensive rebuild of his decks.

 

[crusin_canuk]

Thanks for your thoughts. Yeah, I've considered both options, refinish in place or remove the two anchor screws. The problem with removing the anchor screws and hoping that the ladder is just wedged in is that, like many other projects I've started on my boat, there are unanticipated consequences and a messy can of worms may pop open. I think I'll just contend with the gymnastics of refinishing in place. Thx again.

 

[Comodave]

Probably the best approach. It will involve a bit of gymnastics but remember it is a boat…

 

[hmason]

My 2 cents is to leave the ladder steps unfinished. If you stain or refinish them with varnish they will be VERY slippery when wet and could well cause a serious accident. After 25 years of GB ownership I've learned to never refinish ladder steps.

 

[Comodave]

Agree on slippery steps. Maybe finish the ladder then put something like SeaDek on the steps for nonskid.

 

[crusin_canuk]

OK, I was trying to avoid stirring up a hornet's nest. When I say "refinish," I mean paint. I didn't say so at the start because I know that some folks think it is sacrilegious to paint teak, but I am getting tired of maintaining the varnish in high traffic areas. As an experiment, two years ago I painted the bulwark cap. I think it looks good. So much so that many people don't even notice that it is painted, as opposed to being varnished, until I point it out to them. And, I haven't had to look at it since. So, this last winter, I removed and painted the swim platform. I refitted it this spring and painted the transom steps at the same time.


I agree that finished surfaces can be slippery, so when I painted the transom step treads, I mixed in an anti-skid additive. I did the same when I painted my dinghy deck about three years ago. It picks up a bit more dirt, but works great. So, I will use the same approach for the flybridge ladder. For those that are curious, I used Epifanes Yacht Enamel #11 and Interlux Intergrip Nonskip Compound.

 

[Comodave]

If it were my boat I would paint it too.

 

[RichHurst]

Monk Owners assn
Get on the MOA website. Lots of people with specific nohow
Monk36owners association

 

[PM]

I painted mine. First I sanded and re varnished them at least twice then said "screw it" and painted.

pete