42 DS keel

[mastic]

ok

[Zanshin]

I can't quite see what has happened from the picture, but this might be a case where it would make sense to talk to a surveyor to look at the keel before the boat goes in the water to see what he says, the costs should be low as he is just offerring an expertise and not a full survey.
Did your boat get sailed on her own hull from the Carolinas to Florida or was she shipped and then commissioned in Florida?

[johnnyboy]

My new 2010 42 ds was commissioned last month. It did not have such a gap or problem with keel. you definitely need a surveyor to analyze it. If it is a problem, insist that the dealer or Jeanneau fix it, plus reimburse you for the survey.

[krawall]

I think it doesn't matter if the dealer insists that the boat came like this from Jeanneau but this looks definitely to be concerned.

It's difficult to see clearly because I think we need a shot from further away as well as more close-up shots but from my first impression this looks like a call to the lawyer if he meant "the boat came like this from jeanneau and because of this it's fine".

Wow, and I had my dealer give a run for his money because the boat strip was damaged during lift down and a 0.5mmx0.3mm strip has broken off....

Having said that, purely repainting a keel isn't a big reason for concern as keels often get damaged during transport (when they are unattached to boats, hopefully)

And even so if the boat was sailed down or transported down, which would satisfy our interest to know what happened - if you bought a new boat, you can expect to get a new boat.

Cheers,

Tom

[MartyB]

This guy/gal complained here and in at least one other forum, but so far no replies as to "IF" the dealer or J-USA is going to do anything. It was bought with 70 hrs new on the engine meter, it was a Boat show boat. So it could have been preped REAALLY quick by dealer or yard that did the work to ready it in too little time for the show, then motored some many hrs, in the mean time, what was quick to only work on a temp basis, turned into a permenant, or some other potential equal.

It would be nice to know what the end result is or was. I would be surprised if the dealer or J-USA would want this to be normal new boat look!

Marty

[mkremedy]

mariamia
I believe your keel is iron, which will show signs of rust, my 36i gets rust on the keel & at the joint, we just paint over it with a rust inhibitor. If you belive there is too much space between the keel and the bottom of the boat, you should have the keel bolts tightened, but I can't imagine that the keel isn't set in all of the way.
Happy Sailing,
mkremedy

[rxc]

Hmmm... If this boat was a Catalina about 5 years old, the cry would go up: "Catalina smile!", and a lot of people would tell you that it is common and not to be worried about.

However, I don't think that a new Jeanneau should show a smile like this, and with my experience with dealer prep, it would set off all sort of alarm bells about what else the dealer did not do right as part of the commissioning.

This is not an easy thing to fix. Tightening keel bolts will not do it because the keel bolts are embedded in epoxy slush, and the threads are really holding the keel on the boat, not the nuts. It would require dropping the keel, cleaning all of the surfaces properly, and re-bedding the keel. It is a job for a professional yard, and not cheap.

You should also check to see whether your electronics are set up the way the manufacturer said they should be, and the rigging properly aligned, including all block locations and running rigging alignments. Look closely at engine/shaft alignment. Ask for a copy of the commissioning procedures that the dealer is supposed to follow, and then check to see that they were all done.

In fact, I think that it would be worth it to hire a marine surveyor to do a full survey, like the one you would have done for the purchase of a used boat. And the dealer should reimburse you for the cost - you pick the surveyor and pay him yourself. first.