222 Bowrail, back on after 4-5 years off.

[Ben87]

I had the bowrail off for the past 4-5 years, over time, the bolts that were welded to the bowrail had vibrated off their welds.  I had a welder weld new stainless bolts to stainless washers and then welded the washers and bolt to the base of each support rail for a nice, solid, and hopefully, long-lasting fix/modification.  

I thought for a long time that the boat looked better without the bowrail, but after not having it for so long, I now like the look of it back on the boat.  

I was on the water this past weekend but spent it on a buddy's boat, so I didn't run the boat at all, and this weekend I'm heading down to somewhere in Long Island to go out on my girlfriends brother in law's boats, he has a 51 foot Hatteras and 3-4 other boats, so I'll be in boating and fishing heaven.  

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[Tailgunner]

Looks good.

My bowrail serves a purpose that it may not have been designed for. It is the highest point on the boat and when I approach the bridge I know that if the bowrail clears, the rest will too. Comes in very handy after the bridgetender leaves for the day.

[JimCt]

The only beef I have with the hand rail on my 240, and I see the same situation in your 22-2 picture, is that the very front of the rail (at the bow) is not supported.  You can bend mine up and down with very little pressure.  Truth be told, I'd rather not even have a rail if the thing is for decoration... which mine definately is.  A real handrail must be able to support a man's weight, at the least.  It is a safety item.

[Ben87]

Good point JimCT, if you look closely at the junctions of the rail from the front up to the first support, you can see some discoloration from the weld that was needed at both points of the bowrail, they had both snapped/broken from all the vibration, just like you mention on your 240.  

The welder did a good job on rewelding though, it is now solid after he built it up some, hopefully it will last.  This was done around 98-99 and for 3-4 seasons it has held up perfectly and I expect that it will for some time now.