Conference unifix::sailing

1571.0. "Scratches in Stainless--" by SALEM::KLOTZ () Wed Aug 01 1990 10:08

    Hi,
    	Another boat made an error in judgement while pulling out of
    	a slip alongside me the other day and caused me to suddenly
    	awaken to alot of crashing sounds.    As I ran topsides they
    	were out of the slip and a woman aboard yelled back "We're sorry;
    	but we only hit your railings"  and sailed out of sight.
    	
	Well it looks like they hit my bow rails with their Danforth
    	in a bow pulpit (their anchor was indeed popped out of it's
        storage position by the crash) and they put some real nice
    	scratches in the railing -- not very deep; but, down to the
        'raw' metal - two lines for a little over a foot - then got
        my gel coat & rubrails a few times along the rest of the boat.
    
    	My concern is the stainless rails -- I would bet they will now
    	rust & are just a bit rough at the scratches.  I can't replace
    	a section as the rail is a one piece unit around the boat &
    	pulpit (~40' in total)
    
    	So the question is --
    
    	Any thoughts on how to repair scratches in stainless rails?
    	and/or the best way to avoid having further problems due to
        the scratch in the outer coatings?
    
    	Any thoughts appreciated,   Take care,
                                              Lou

    I'd just file away any burrs that might catch a sail or skin.  Then
    just forget about it.  The pulpit shouldn't rust any more around the
    scratch than it has anywhere else.  Stainless steel doesn't depend on a
    plating for its rust resistance.  The alloy itself is rust resistant in
    the presence of air.  I cut, grind, bore, etc. stainless fittings all
    the time on my boat and don't do anything to them for rust proofing. 
    Otherwise, what's the point of paying all that extra money for
    stainless?
    
    - gene

    It occurs to me in re-reading the base note that what got scratched was
    not the pulpit but your toe rail.  These are usually anodized aluminum,
    not stainless.   The anodizing is a coating and, if scratched, will
    allow the metal underneath the corrode.  Aluminum corrodes slowly
    generating a whitish gray oxide.  It's unlikely that any of us will
    live long enough to see your rail loose its structural integrity due
    to corrosion.  If it's black, I'd cover the scratch with a black grease
    pencil.  If it's natural colored, fill with beeswax or other light
    colored wax.  
    
    - gene