At MarsKeel Technology™ we to produce a number of different combinations of materials and types of fabricated keel fins. The designs built are as diversified as the boats they are built for, from fixed fins to hydraulically activated dagger board.
The range of combinations goes from a 400 lbs Stainless Steel fin with a 1,100 lbs bulb to a 5,500 lbs mild steel fin with a 44,000 lbs bulb. We have the ability to manufacture the keel fin from virtually any material that can be specified, or the North American equivalent, materials such as 316L to 2205 Duplex Stainless Steel to CHT 100 plate.
All the fabrications are constructed by Canadian Welding Bureau Certified Welders, CSA Standard W47.1 Division 3, for fabrication in Steel, Stainless Steel, and Aluminum, using MIG, TIG and Stick.
In addition to our in-house quality assurance we can offer complete NDT of all materials and welds, if required by the designer.
The design range of the fins has gone from very simple designs with side shells with a welded on top and bottom plate (made from CHT 100) to very complicate internal webbing (made for attachment of lifting cylinders) with multi part skins, all portions made from Duplex 2205 SS, and 316L SS.
Combined with the fabrication we offer a complete range of metal forming, bend forming, 1000 ton x 24’, plate rolling, 16’ x 22.5’. The quality of the technicians doing the forming is second to none. Their attention to detail allows the very highest level of accuracy in the fabrication shop.
Our complete machine shop can both post machine any fabrication or pre machine any part or assembly required by the fin or bulb. Everything from mounting plates to custom studs and custom nuts can be machined.
The finishing process of the fins will consist of (depending on the material) the following steps,
- A surface preparation, media blasting.
- Self etching primer is applied to the fin.
- Application of coats of Interprotect 2000E epoxy based barrier coat, or similar product.
- Epoxy based fairing, to a tolerance of less then 2mm. Our finishing technicians take great care to produce the best surface possible.
- Final application of the Interprotect 2000E epoxy barrier coat. There are more coats then required applied to allow for the final sanding without degrading coverage of barrier coat.
- Dry sand to remove orange peel. The surface is either dry or wet sanded to a maximum grit of Approx. 320
The bulb production very similar to the production process of a custom lead keel, offered in the previous section, Custom Keels - All Lead Keels.
The bulbs will utilize a combination of casting fixtures used to generate mounting and attachment systems for the fabricated fins. These systems can be as simple as a set of cast in keel bolts or as complicated as recesses and bolt holes.
We will generate the drawings for the required casting fixtures, based on the customer offered drawings. Therefore these parts are made under our direct oversight, with no oversight required by the designer or the builder.
The bulbs are generally attached to the fin by either horizontal or vertical bolting systems. Most of the bulb designs have incorporated a core for the fin to fit into. We have the ability to produce virtually and shape or combination of core boxes and plunger rods to allow the attachment of the fin and the bulb. These parts can be fabricated or fully CNC machined to match whatever is required.
After the casting of the required bulb it is put through our high quality finishing process. The lead finishing process is the same as the one the fin under went, except for that the media blasting is replaced by a rough grinding.
The final step in the production process is the test fitting of the two parts. At this point the mounting process is checked for fit, clearance and hole alignment.
Once the fit is acceptable the parts are sent to the shipping department where they are packaged for shipment to the customer.
