Refixing screw fitting in transom

[Men a vaur]

Hi everyone

Bit of a basic question but I’ve had one of the screw fittings on the transom to clip my cockpit cover come loose and fall out. Wondering what the best solution is to replacing it. Is the best option to fill the hole with epoxy, drill a smaller diameter hole into the epoxy and screw the fitting back into this or will this crack the expiry and potentially the surrounding gel coat?

I’ve attached a couple of pictures to show what I’m trying to repair.

thanks in advance for any advice!

 

[john_morris_uk]

I’m not sure I’d wait for the epoxy to go off. Stick some thickened epoxy into the hole and put the screw back in. Let it go off with the screw ‘in situ’. It’ll be stronger than it was before. If you want to be very very clever and might want to take the screw out one day, put a light coat of release wax or grease on the screw threads. Personally I wouldn’t bother with such finesse.

 

[anoccasionalyachtsman]

Hi everyone

Bit of a basic question but I’ve had one of the screw fittings on the transom to clip my cockpit cover come loose and fall out. Wondering what the best solution is to replacing it. Is the best option to fill the hole with epoxy, drill a smaller diameter hole into the epoxy and screw the fitting back into this or will this crack the expiry and potentially the surrounding gel coat?

I’ve attached a couple of pictures to show what I’m trying to repair.

thanks in advance for any advice!

Can you get behind it to fit a nut and washer onto a machine screw? Self tapping screws into grp (whether polyester or epoxy) are an 'only just' solution. The pilot hole needs to be perfectly-sized otherwise you get either the cracking you fear, or it's too loose. The only reason they're used in production boats is economic.

Edit. @john_morris_uk's suggestion isn't something I've actually tried - but I like the idea!

 

[MADRIGAL]

I’m not sure I’d wait for the epoxy to go off. Stick some thickened epoxy into the hole and put the screw back in. Let it go off with the screw ‘in situ’. It’ll be stronger than it was before. If you want to be very very clever and might want to take the screw out one day, put a light coat of release wax or grease on the screw threads. Personally I wouldn’t bother with such finesse.

I’ve tried that, and it is certainly strong. So far, I have not tried to get the screw out again, because I haven’t wanted to muck with it, although the possibility remains. I used a thin coat of petroleum jelly on the threads.

 

[john_morris_uk]

Can you get behind it to fit a nut and washer onto a machine screw? Self tapping screws into grp (whether polyester or epoxy) are an 'only just' solution. The pilot hole needs to be perfectly-sized otherwise you get either the cracking you fear, or it's too loose. The only reason they're used in production boats is economic.

I agree. A washer and nut behind would be much stronger. If it was an area with sandwich construction it gets rather more complicated though…

 

[Men a vaur]

Thanks All, this is really helpful. Will take a look to see if I can get a washer and nut behind but either way I very much appreciate the advice!

 

[KompetentKrew]

I use WD40 on the fastener when using it to mould a thread in thickened epoxy. I thought this was recommended by the Gougeon Brothers, but I cannot now find it.

When it's done right and left to cure for 24 hours you can put quite a bit of load on the bolt - the only reason I'm hesitant to say "you can put your full weight on it" is because I've usually done it in confined spaces, in which it would be hard to apply my full weight. No need for a backing plate if you're doing it this way - it's plenty solid enough.

With 404 filler this usually works first time, but occasionally pulling on it will strip out the thread - just clean out the hole and redo it with a new mix of thickened epoxy.