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bow rail anchor screws pulled out of gunwale
tee crenshaw	#1  Posted on 07/26/15 - 5:07 AM
Member Posts: 3 Comments: 0 Joined: 07/26/15	on my 1983 outrage 18 the anchoring screws for my bow railing have pulled from the top edge of the gunwale and the screws will not reset, the holes are stripped out. I have this problem at several locations. What is the best product/material to fill the holes such that I can go back and reset the screws? thank you!
wing15601	#2  Posted on 07/26/15 - 6:03 AM
Member Posts: 699 Comments: 0 Joined: 07/14/12	If it were me, I would drill out the holes just large enough to clean them up then put masking tape around and fill the holes with marine epoxy. When it cures simply re-drill and use a marine bedding compound in the holes, 3M 4200, BoatLife caulk, etc. in the holes. When the fittings are replaced and screwed down they will hide the repair. I winter in Ft. Myers and summer in St. Joseph, Michigan. It’s now about 12 years since I’ve joined this group. I gave my 1972 whaler to my daughter and sold the 17’. Bought an O’Day 28 sailboat and sailed on Lake Michigan. Yesterday I bought a 2005 130 Sport.
gchuba	#3  Posted on 07/26/15 - 8:20 AM
Member Posts: 1675 Comments: 0 Joined: 03/31/13	I like two part epoxy and slivers of hardwood. Teak preferred. Garris
wlagarde	#4  Posted on 07/26/15 - 10:15 AM
Member Personal Page Project Albums Posts: 442 Comments: 2 Joined: 07/21/13	West System's Six-10 also works very well: http://www.westsystem.com/ss/six10-in...roduction/ 1976 Sport 15 w/ 2005 50hp Nissan 2 stroke
Phil T	#5  Posted on 07/26/15 - 10:40 AM
Administrator Personal Page Personal Album Project Albums Posts: 7043 Comments: 6 Joined: 03/26/05	Gorilla Glue is also good. Mask off the area and watch out for the overflow.
tee crenshaw	#6  Posted on 07/26/15 - 10:43 AM
Member Posts: 3 Comments: 0 Joined: 07/26/15	thanks all. wing 15601, I ask this simply out of my ignorance: why marine epoxy first, them marine bedding compound? what is the downside of me simply filling the holes with the 3M 4200 and then setting the screws?
wlagarde	#7  Posted on 07/26/15 - 11:44 AM
Member Personal Page Project Albums Posts: 442 Comments: 2 Joined: 07/21/13	The 4200 alone doesn't have enough strength. The Epoxy (or gorilla glue which is polyurethane glue) provides the holding power while the 4200 prevents the screws from backing out and seals the holes from water intrusion. 1976 Sport 15 w/ 2005 50hp Nissan 2 stroke
tee crenshaw	#8  Posted on 07/26/15 - 12:07 PM
Member Posts: 3 Comments: 0 Joined: 07/26/15	thank you very much. I have gorilla glue but I am not sure it is a marine application type, and will find the 4200. one final question: although this boat has been in our family since new (1983) the set screws are a mixed mess set of flat head and phillips - very few are original. what or who would be a good source for OEM (or close ) screws? is my answer as simple as buying stainless phillips from Lowes??
wlagarde	#9  Posted on 07/26/15 - 12:13 PM
Member Personal Page Project Albums Posts: 442 Comments: 2 Joined: 07/21/13	I took the local hardware store route and purchase replacement phillips screws for the entire boat (the originals were chrome-plated brass flat head screws). Edited by wlagarde on 07/26/15 - 12:14 PM 1976 Sport 15 w/ 2005 50hp Nissan 2 stroke
wing15601	#10  Posted on 07/26/15 - 12:37 PM
Member Posts: 699 Comments: 0 Joined: 07/14/12	You can get epoxy at Home Depot or Lowes but something like West System or MAS epoxied are very high quality. If you just use caulk/bedding compound the screws will surely pull out again. Using epoxy will make the fitting as strong or stronger than when the boat left the factory. There are caulks and there are Marine bedding compounds. You want to be absolutely positively sure to keep the water out and away from the stainless steel screw threads because contrary to its name, stainless steel isn't stainless and will suffer crevice corrosion if water gets into the screw hole with the screw. Also, don't use silicone, save that for the kitchen and bath. People have posted in the past that they have been successful in tightening up their rattling rails using stainless steel rivets. I winter in Ft. Myers and summer in St. Joseph, Michigan. It’s now about 12 years since I’ve joined this group. I gave my 1972 whaler to my daughter and sold the 17’. Bought an O’Day 28 sailboat and sailed on Lake Michigan. Yesterday I bought a 2005 130 Sport.
bcross	#11  Posted on 07/26/15 - 1:32 PM
Member Personal Page Posts: 59 Comments: 0 Joined: 08/30/07	Many of the screws holding my bow rail have pulled loose also. I always repair with West System six-10. I let it set for 24 hours, then drill a pilot hole. But instead of using wood screws, I have been tapping the holes to 10-24 and replacing the wood screws with SS machine screws. I find they hold much tighter than wood screws. I have also used this method to replace my bimini rail screws with no problems. I don't think I will ever put another wood screw in fiber glass.
wlagarde	#12  Posted on 07/26/15 - 2:00 PM
Member Personal Page Project Albums Posts: 442 Comments: 2 Joined: 07/21/13	bcross wrote: Many of the screws holding my bow rail have pulled loose also. I always repair with West System six-10. I let it set for 24 hours, then drill a pilot hole. But instead of using wood screws, I have been tapping the holes to 10-24 and replacing the wood screws with SS machine screws. I find they hold much tighter than wood screws. I have also used this method to replace my bimini rail screws with no problems. I don't think I will ever put another wood screw in fiber glass. I recently used this method for my bimini mounts as well and the result is rock solid. 1976 Sport 15 w/ 2005 50hp Nissan 2 stroke
gchuba	#13  Posted on 07/26/15 - 3:28 PM
Member Posts: 1675 Comments: 0 Joined: 03/31/13	I am with you using the SS machine screws for fiberglass but and am sticking with wood screws for wood. The machine SS screws in wood strip out if you are not careful. One of the reasons I prefer the splinter method is.....if the holes strip out again you have the option to drill out the area later. Garris
bcross	#14  Posted on 07/26/15 - 4:49 PM
Member Personal Page Posts: 59 Comments: 0 Joined: 08/30/07	I agree with you gchuba in that I would never put a machine screw into wood. However that leaves you with the only option of putting in a larger wood screw, which I believe will also pull out eventually. Wood screws have such sharp threads that they tend to eventually cut through any material under stress. Here's what I do if there is wood backing under the fiber glass: I do not enlarge the pilot hole, but I use an electric drill to excavate a cavity beneath the fiber glass that is several times larger than the pilot hole. You can do this by holding the drill bit at an angle. It does not need to be perfect, only larger than the pilot. Once you have done that you can fill the cavity just as a dentist does only with epoxy. The result is a bolus of epoxy that will not pull through. Once you drill a pilot hole into the epoxy, you can use either a wood screw or a machine screw, your choice, but at least you will have a solid base that is much less likely to strip.
wlagarde	#15  Posted on 07/26/15 - 7:17 PM
Member Personal Page Project Albums Posts: 442 Comments: 2 Joined: 07/21/13	[quote]bcross wrote: I agree with you gchuba in that I would never put a machine screw into wood. However that leaves you with the only option of putting in a larger wood screw, which I believe will also pull out eventually. Wood screws have such sharp threads that they tend to eventually cut through any material under stress. Here's what I do if there is wood backing under the fiber glass: I do not enlarge the pilot hole, but I use an electric drill to excavate a cavity beneath the fiber glass that is several times larger than the pilot hole. You can do this by holding the drill bit at an angle. It does not need to be perfect, only larger than the pilot. Once you have done that you can fill the cavity just as a dentist does only with epoxy. The result is a bolus of epoxy that will not pull through. Once you drill a pilot hole into the epoxy, you can use either a wood screw or a machine screw, your choice, but at least you will have a solid base that is much less likely to strip.[/quote Exactly what I did - its rock solid. http://www.whalercentral.com/forum/vi...owstart=20 Edited by wlagarde on 07/26/15 - 7:28 PM 1976 Sport 15 w/ 2005 50hp Nissan 2 stroke
Finnegan	#16  Posted on 07/26/15 - 10:20 PM
Member Posts: 1926 Comments: 16 Joined: 05/02/08	For years I have used the technique given to me by Boston Whaler. Drill ouot the stripped hole TWICE the diameter of the existing screw, all the way through the glass and plywood underlayment. Tape off hole and fill with White Marine-Tex (an epoxy), sand flush and re-polish area, punch exact center of hole, and re-drill for the original size screws. Fitting will still cover the repair, so the Marine-Tex filler will not show. This repair holds like iron and will last a lifetime. Caulking of the hole is not even necessary since now the screw is installed in a total epoxy plug, not susceptible to water damage. I did this repair on all of the bow rail screws on my Outrage 25 back in 1999, and the rail is still rock solid.