Nuts are off........Seacock Woes!!!!

[Poignard]

That's interesting. Still, it wouldn't be surprising if Blakes had changed the product during the many years it has been in production. (The addition of grease nipples, for example)

Here's a link to the Blakes website that will show the OP what he is dealing with:

http://www.blakes-lavac-taylors.co.uk/blakes_seacocks.htm

The OPs Blake is clearly an old one and my experience of removing a 20 year old Blakes seacock was that the shanks on the retaining bolts were matched to the outer retaining plate.

 

[NormanS]

I can't believe that after all this time, and 80+ posts, the OP hasn't just punched the bolts out.

 

[Poignard]

Or given the boat away!

I can't believe that after all this time, and 80+ posts, the OP hasn't just punched the bolts out.

 

[thesaintlyone]

Or given the boat away!

Not been that much stress yet. I did try to punch them out from inside but no room to swing the hanmer so will take the advice given and either try and wrench them off or just "drift" them out tho not quite sure what that quite means yet. ????

 

[Fr J Hackett]

Not been that much stress yet. I did try to punch them out from inside but no room to swing the hanmer so will take the advice given and either try and wrench them off or just "drift" them out tho not quite sure what that quite means yet. 

Once you actually break the adhesion they will virtually push out.

You could construct a slide hammer to grip the outside heads and effectively use it to pull them out.

Or even as suggested now that you own an angle grinder take the heads off and punch / drift them into the boat.

It really shouldn't have taken this long

 

[bignick]

So yesterday I went up to the boat and attempted some of your suggestions. Unfortunately, there is not a lot of space to allow the application, of said hammer on the mounting bolts.
I did however clean off the bolt heads on the outside and cut slots to allow the insertion of a screwdriver but still no luck getting them to turn move etc

View attachment 60610

You won't be able to turn them as they are coach bolts. There is a square on the bolt that fits a square hole in the external plate.

You will need to punch them out from the inside, using a "drift" (parallel pin punch) like others have said.
To explain, you get a metal punch, place it on the end of the bolt on the inside of the boat and hit with a hammer. If there is enough of the bolt left you might not need the tool and could just drive the bolt out.

 

[Poignard]

Once you actually break the adhesion they will virtually push out.
(...)
Or even as suggested now that you own an angle grinder take the heads off and punch / drift them into the boat.

(...)

That makes more sense; not so far to drive them, and room to swing the hammer.

Or, he could put the nuts back on the inside threads (assuming they haven't been mauled) and jack the bolts out.

 

[bignick]

Or even as suggested now that you own an angle grinder take the heads off and punch / drift them into the boat.

It really shouldn't have taken this long

Please Do Not do it this way.
The square on the bolt is bigger than the diameter of the hole, so you will damage the glassfibre and make a big ugly mess.

 

[Fr J Hackett]

You won't be able to turn them as they are coach bolts. There is a square on the bolt that fits a square hole in the external plate.

You will need to punch them out from the inside, using a "drift" (parallel pin punch) like others have said.
To explain, you get a metal punch, place it on the end of the bolt on the inside of the boat and hit with a hammer. If there is enough of the bolt left you might not need the tool and could just drive the bolt out.

Have you read any of the thread?

 

[bignick]

Most of it.
Some good ideas, some less so.
The pics indicate plenty of room to hit it with a hammer from the inside, IF he uses an appropriate punch/drift.

 

[Fr J Hackett]

Most of it.
Some good ideas, some less so.
The pics indicate plenty of room to hit it with a hammer from the inside, IF he uses an appropriate punch/drift.

If he does that he is better off just backing the nuts off and hitting them direct with a club hammer, a punch would only decrease the room above the nuts.

 

[ghostlymoron]

I'd use a heavy lump hammer and use a socket set extension bar or steel rod as a drift. Spend more time on hammering and less on asking advice. Don't try to hammer them from outside, as has been said, they are coach bolts with a square on the shank so won't go.

 

[bignick]

Just to be clear, has the OP removed the Blakes valve from the inside of the hull before trying to remove the external plate?
I haven't seen a pic of the inside of the hull with it removed.....

 

[Fr J Hackett]

Just to be clear, has the OP removed the Blakes valve from the inside of the hull before trying to remove the external plate?
I haven't seen a pic of the inside of the hull with it removed.....

I think without going back through the thread that the valve has been removed and just the bolts are left. The external retaining plate has been removed already which is the reason in part for the thread.

To answer Gmorons point the suggestion was to grind off the square shanks prior to drifting them inside. A club hammer is a heavy short shafted hammer and as for using a socket set extension bar as a drift I give up for at least the reason that the ends are domed and likely to slip off the bolt ends and every tool has a designed purpose and function socket set extensions do not fall into the category of drifts.
I am constantly amazed at the amount of bodging that people do or suggest and often wonder what their projects end up like.

 

[bignick]

I saw that the OP had removed the nuts, I haven't seen him comment anywhere that he has removed the valve.
The external pics (post #63) show the centre spigot through the decimated external fixing plate which indicates that he hasn't.....

 

[Fr J Hackett]

I saw that the OP had removed the nuts, I haven't seen him comment anywhere that he has removed the valve.
The external pics (post #63) show the centre spigot through the decimated external fixing plate which indicates that he hasn't.....

Good point, but that could be dried back inside the boat using a big block of wood and it may help in loosening the bolts.

 

[bignick]

Good point, but that could be dried back inside the boat using a big block of wood and it may help in loosening the bolts.

Exactly!
Except I think you mean driven not dried and suspect that auto-correct has got you.

 

[RichardS]

I am constantly amazed at the amount of bodging that people do or suggest and often wonder what their projects end up like.

Haha .... I'm not surprised at your amazement .... but I regard myself with some pride as having a First Class Honours in bodging. However, what I also believe I have is 50 years experience in knowing how to do a job properly but, when stranded without the right tools or parts, I can draw on that experience to come up with a workable bodge.

This is why my "toolbox" (I have many!) is filled with "modified" standard tools which now fulfil a role which they were never designed to do.

It's all part of the fun!

Richard

 

[Fr J Hackett]

Haha .... I'm not surprised at your amazement .... but I regard myself with some pride as having a First Class Honours in bodging. However, what I also believe I have is 50 years experience in knowing how to do a job properly but, when stranded without the right tools or parts, I can draw on that experience to come up with a workable bodge.

This is why my "toolbox" (I have many!) is filled with "modified" standard tools which now fulfil a role which they were never designed to do.

It's all part of the fun!

Richard

I accept in extremis that improvisation is required and necessary, I use the term bodge in the sense of misuse of tools and doing a less than adequate job. My pet hate for example of adjustable spanners that round off nuts so the next time you need to undo them or when the AS has failed you can't. Or one that appeared recently of suggesting that a screwdriver be inserted between a nut flat and loose fitting spanner jaw when there is no need to make such a bodge as the correct spanner can be bought to fabricated.

 

[thesaintlyone]

I saw that the OP had removed the nuts, I haven't seen him comment anywhere that he has removed the valve.
The external pics (post #63) show the centre spigot through the decimated external fixing plate which indicates that he hasn't.....

Nope the Valve is still in place as there is sealant on the bolts and on the inside backing plate which has been there 40 odd years so has set rather well.