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[Peter T]

Just one word if I may, if you do use the pruning saw method, I would be very careful to keep well away from the pivot bolt area as there could well be rubber seals each side and you would not want to chop them out. Also, be careful to angle the blade towards the centreboard as much as possible as you wouldn't want to tear into the gel coat of the centreboard case sides. It might be gentler to use a hacksaw blade on a handle for same ( finer teeth) ? Or the other thing you could do was to hammer the set out of the blade to stop it tearing the gel coat as much.
There is another possibility that you might try. I wonder if the centreboard lift rope has gotten loose in the centreboard case and that might be the cause of it being stuck ? If that was the case, you might be able to free the centreboard by a sharp pull on the rope to free it if it has actually looped down and jammed between the board and the case ?
If the boat is out of the water, you might be able to use high pressure hose or a kartcher to blast up in there and see what comes out, but don't go too hard
Just my thoughts on it. Cheers

[Ozzie]

Good points from Peter. The saw I have is quite short plus old and blunt so can’t reach the seals or do much damage. You could if you have an old one dull the points with a file or angle grinder. It’s the serrations that cut through the critters and shells. (Or loose rust if you have that) They don’t have to be sharp. I have another one with the teeth almost ground off for cutting expanded foam without too much mess.

I find a pruning saw cuts through marine growth faster than a fine hacksaw. Speed is essential when you are a senior citizen holding your breath an old blunt bread knife might do the job as well. Trim it if it’s too long.

[IanS]

I first used an old bread knife but I found that an old fibreglass batten around 500mm in length works much better and is less likely to cause damage. Plus, it fits nicely up the front edge of the centreboard which is where I found most of the barnacles stopping it from coming down were living.

Now I just have to pluck up the courage to go diving in the cold to release it AGAIN!

[Peter T]

Hi Ian, I really like your thinking. Great solution mate. Certainly the kindest on the fibreglass. You could even carve a hook into the end of it which would help yank the old growth out also
Cheers

[IanS]

PS. you MUST wear gloves when battling barnacles underwater! I got a scratch on a finger that never really healed. Finally got the doctor to cut a chunk out of the finger before it came good.

[Ozzie]

https://nshsa.org/Safety/Barnacle_Safety.html

Plus one Ian . Great advice, I should have remembered. I wear full steamer, gloves and boots when diving on the hull. Years ago I cut my hand on growth while clearing the board. I remember it well as we were two days before taking the Spirit over for ten days In Tassie. By the time we rolled off into Launceston my hand had swollen up badly and hurt like hell. I asked the border inspector bloke where the nearest pharmacy was and high tailed it there. He gave me some thick goop that looked like soldering flux paste and it took a few days to draw out all the infection. He said such things can go nuts if not treated.

My mate (70) cut himself while cleaning out his gutters about six months ago. Same deal with leaf litter. He got blood poisoning and finished up in hospital for two weeks on I.V. high grade antibiotics and a pump in his chest to suck out the puss and infection. His doc told him he was 24 hours away from that great Bunnings in the sky.

[Ozzie]

Just an extra thought on that. I think I mentioned before my general barnacle tool is a long handle Dutch hoe (with suitably dulled blade and rounded corners). Not much use for cb but allows me to stand in the shallows with no protection and breathing normal air and clean the hull of crepe at a safe distance.

You can pick these up from gummy and garage sales for a song. Or new from the green shed for around 15 bucks but I’m sure canny 563 owners won’t waste money like that

Now if I could weld my pruning saw to the Dutch hoe…. and attach my GoPro……

[Paddy]

I finally had a win! and I see now that Peter was on to it. Where the lifting rope was whipped to wire was frayed and jammed up in the S bend.
I had to jack the trailer up to get under it (my boat sits really low on the trailer. It's on the todo list) but I could move the plate with my hand. Came in from the top and found problem. Centre board looks good as does the glass around it, bar one spot where it sits on the trailer looks soft, I will get to that.
Thanks for all the support

[Peter T]

Great result Paddy. Pleased to have been of help mate.
Enjoy both the boat and the forum.
All the best.

Cheers

[Ozzie]

Good you had success Paddy. It is a common problem, as is the stainless/cordage main halyard inside the mast and many, myself included, have gone to full spectra for both installations. It’s not a design fault as such when you consider spectra wasn’t an option forty years ago when KS designed these boats. Look forward to your sailing reports