Hole repair...below waterline

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tripleup05

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Grayson, Ga
Hey guys. My steelflex is supposed to be delivered tomorrow (ordered it yesterday. props to Fasco for the fast service!) Anyways, I'm anxious to put on the steelflex, but I need to do some hull repair before I apply it. I know I have a tiny leak, and hopefully I will be able to fill the boat with water over the holiday weekend and see where the leaks are. I have a feeling that it may be coming from one or more of these bolts I have circled in red. I have no clue what purpose they serve, or served. Whether they are the cause of my leak or not, I want them gone. They are just four random bolts that run through the bottom of the transom. They have a phillips head outside the hull, and a regular hex nut on the inside. There doesn't appear to be any sort of sealant around the inside or outside of the bolt. What options do I have for filling in the holes that will be left behind after the bolts are removed? I'd like to avoid welding, but if that is the only option, can one of my Gwinnett brothers hook me up with a good welder?

Thanks!

stern.jpg
 
fiberglass resin, jb weld, similar epoxy will seal them up nicely. supposing you will be covering that area with steelflex, all this stuff will sand flush and never be seen again
 
crazymanme2 said:
I'm not a fan of any of the above since I'm a welder.As long as it doesn't flex you may be OK.


Since its on the transom it shouldnt flex to bad on that small of a boat. I have used the water weld and steel weld on my transom with good results. You can always put a screw, rivet, or bolt with some 5200 around it as well.
 
Troutman3000 said:
crazymanme2 said:
I'm not a fan of any of the above since I'm a welder.As long as it doesn't flex you may be OK.


Since its on the transom it shouldnt flex to bad on that small of a boat. I have used the water weld and steel weld on my transom with good results. You can always put a screw, rivet, or bolt with some 5200 around it as well.

You would be surprised. That transom will definitely have a decent amount of flex to it. Just the nature of a tinny.

I'm a TIG welder, and were that my personal boat, I'd probably just stick a rivet in it, and be done. For me, at least, the time spent welding that up wouldn't be worth the gain over a rivet, unless the aesthetics of the rivets bother you. The rest of the boat is held together with rivets, so 4 right there would be no different, as far as durability is concerned.
 
Probably should have just riveted my spots but the waterweld was a lot easier and the transom board was in the way in some of the holes.
 
Thanks for the info everybody. I will probably go with Bassboy's advice and stick some rivets in the holes. I think the diameter of the bolts are about 3/16". The only problem is...I know nothing about riveting. I can run a good bead with a MIG welder, and do ok with an acytelene torch and brazing rod, but I've never held a rivet gun in my life. What should I look for when I select a gun and rivets? I know I've seen them for sale in my local Autozone, and I have $40 worth of store credit there. Think an Autozone house brand would serve my needs, or is it like most tools where you get what you pay for?
 
You need solid rivets. Chances are, the rivets at Autozone are going to be pop rivets. I've used conventional pop rivets (and sealant) below the waterline, but the solid rivets are loads better. You can get closed end pop rivets (which won't leave a hole if the mandrel pulls free), but I'd still get the solid rivets. I get all my solid rivets from Grainger.
 
tripleup05 said:
Thanks for the info everybody. I will probably go with Bassboy's advice and stick some rivets in the holes. I think the diameter of the bolts are about 3/16". The only problem is...I know nothing about riveting. I can run a good bead with a MIG welder, and do ok with an acytelene torch and brazing rod, but I've never held a rivet gun in my life. What should I look for when I select a gun and rivets? I know I've seen them for sale in my local Autozone, and I have $40 worth of store credit there. Think an Autozone house brand would serve my needs, or is it like most tools where you get what you pay for?


Thats good to know about welding. I live in Grayson too so I may neeed your services at some point.
 
You can simply drill out to make a clean hole. Put proper size bolt/screw/rivet in with some 5200 sealent and it will not leak. Many of us have screwed brackets in our hulls with no leaks. If you do need a welder I know a reasonable one in the Lilburn area. He has worked on my tin.
 
Troutman3000 said:
tripleup05 said:
Thanks for the info everybody. I will probably go with Bassboy's advice and stick some rivets in the holes. I think the diameter of the bolts are about 3/16". The only problem is...I know nothing about riveting. I can run a good bead with a MIG welder, and do ok with an acytelene torch and brazing rod, but I've never held a rivet gun in my life. What should I look for when I select a gun and rivets? I know I've seen them for sale in my local Autozone, and I have $40 worth of store credit there. Think an Autozone house brand would serve my needs, or is it like most tools where you get what you pay for?


Thats good to know about welding. I live in Grayson too so I may neeed your services at some point.

Anytime!
 
Howard said:
You can simply drill out to make a clean hole. Put proper size bolt/screw/rivet in with some 5200 sealent and it will not leak. Many of us have screwed brackets in our hulls with no leaks. If you do need a welder I know a reasonable one in the Lilburn area. He has worked on my tin.

I plan on putting a rivet in there. I just don't know where to start with riveting. If I go buy a gun and some rivets, will it be self explantory?
 
Not sure it will be self explanatory enough to expect it to be right the first time on the boat. You keep referring to a "rivet gun". The rivet guns I see are for pop rivets only.

For solid rivets, you can use an air chisel with a rivet attachment that has the same shape on the business end of the tool as does the head of the rivet you use. Both the tool and rivets can be purchased from Aircraft Spruce online or in person in Peachtree City. You use the tool on the outside of the boat, while someone else presses a heavy weight "like a sledge hammer" on the other side. You could also get by with using a hammer (ball peen would be better if you use a rounded head rivet) instead of the air chisel, but if you already have an air chisel, I'd just buy the attachement.

In either case, I'd practice on a couple pieces of scrap first.
 
A air chissel will work but you dont want to have alot of pounding going on because you could crack the aluminum around the rivet and be in worse shape that just a hole you could have a couple cracks as well. If you dont have a air chissel I would find a 3x or 4x air rivet gun, that should be all you need. Make sure your rivet set is the right diameter for the head of the rivet, if it is to big it could crack the aluminum as well, if it is to small it could split the rivet. If you are buying the stuff you might as well get a heel and toe bucking bar that way the shop head of the rivet will look good and not be sloped. You dont want to shoot the rivet to flat, this could cause the rivet to leak or let water seep in. To be safe take some sealent or silicone and put on the shank of the rivet and then shoot it, this will seal both sides and make it water tight for sure. A good rule of thumb we use in the aircraft maintenace world is the shop head of the rivet which is the side of the rivet you will have your bucking bar on should be no more than double the diameter of the original rivet but no less than half. If you have anymore questions let me know and I can help you out.
 
I recommend using aqua mend.
I bought a tube at Home Depot and it works great.
I put my boat in the water then mixed the putty and finally smeared the putty over the leaks.
I did this several years ago and haven't had any leaks.
You can google aqua mend.
 
Hmmmm the riveting thing is a bit more involved than I thought...

I checked out those 3x and 4x air rivet guns that castinandblastin recommended, but dang, those things are expensive! Air chisels aren't that costly, but by the time I buy the chisel, the rivet attachment, and rivets, I'm well over $40 there, too. I think I'll give the JB Marine Weld a try.
 

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