Re: [VAL] Re: VAL Digest V3 #257

[Roger Moseley <rmoseley@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

The more I look at the frames, the more perplexed I am. My 1971 Caravel 
18' has a frame doubler (or lower extension, extra depth--frame member 
sticking down below the belly skin) on the street side. I never 
understood what it was for until I realized that the gray 2" drain 
perforates the frame on that side.

I look at my 1975 Sovereign 31' and it also has additional frame depth 
aft of the axles, on both sides. The 3" main drain penetrates the frame 
just aft of the axles on the street side on this one. It doesn't have 
the "whale patch", nor does it have tail droop. I'm wondering if this 
extra frame depth was an interim fix, the final fix, an after mod, or 
what? The extra depth is definitely an add-on, because it's a separate 
piece of steel the starts at the aft end of the axle mounting plate and 
goes aft. It doesn't overlap it's full depth, just a very small triangle 
about 2" on a side. This would seem to cause a high stress right at the 
meeting point of the axle mounting plate and this frame extension, so it 
seems like a bad idea to me. On the other hand, no droop.

Does anyone have photos of what the "standard" frames looked like? Pre 
1975 and post 1975? Thanks.

Roger