I did a similar repair on my 35 MK I and I think it is pretty much the same. On the 35 there are flat areas on either side of the bilge sump and the bilge sump was spanned by a piece of wood. The mast step was aluminum and not very wide. The structure was essentially a beam with supports on each end and the mast step in middle. This was - IMHO – a really bad way to design this structure and drilling a hole to drain water did NOT help at all! Like many other 30s and 35s, the wood on my boat got softer and softer and the step gradually pushed the wood down. I repaired my boat with two pieces of ½ or ¾ ply laminated together (been a long time) and then a ¼” aluminum plate *the width of the wood* with the step fitting welded in the center. My mast step does not try and push the wood down into the empty space under it anymore. The center part of it could probably rot away with no ill effects.
Joe Della Barba Coquina C&C 35 MK I
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