Practical Sailor's gear and boat reviews take the guesswork out of your buying decisions.

Volume 31
Number 4
February 15, 2005

Chainplates Revisited

Chainplate failures aren't common, but when one occurred on a new boat during its inaugural sail—with our reviewer aboard—we knew it was time to investigate. Here's the result of our initial probing.

This stainless shroud chainplate, bedded and fastened to the topsides of a Hunter 44, represents the traditional approach to chainplate attachment.

Following our review of the new J/133 (PS Oct. 1, '04), in which we recounted a chainplate failure aboard hull No. 3 on its maiden voyage, a reader's letter prompted us to review the manner in which manufacturers design and construct the critical connections between mast, shrouds, and a boat's structure. In the case of the J/133, we concluded that the construction method—a contemporary yet time-tested approach—was properly conceived, but poorly executed.

The folks at J/Boats declined to offer specific comments, but the boat's builder—Pearson Composites, LLC (formerly TPI)—told us that ours was a fair assessment of the situation. (More on that later.)…

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