Filling old screw holes

[Capt Skeeter]

New to me 2520 with some old screw holes.

Trying to figure out what I need to purchase.

From what I researched online gelcoat only bonds to fiberglass, gelcoat, and polyester.

Plan on buying some polyester resin and adding cabosil as a thickening agent.

When I look for polyester resin it comes as laminating resin or finishing resin. Which one do I get?

Or do y’all recommend another route? I plan on going over it with gelcoat afterwards so no Marine Tex.

 

[afitzray]

For a dozen to twenty or so screw holes I’d just get the west system fiberglass repair kit for around $50. It’s epoxy resin and it comes in small premeasured pouches so no extra thinking on that part. It includes the cabosil to thicken it. Has fiberglass too but sounds like you shouldn’t need that for this job.

Overdrill the width of the screw hole to make sure you’re getting rid of any rotten wood (but don’t drill through) then fill with thickened epoxy. You can start with one pouch to mix a small batch to practice.

If it’s really rotten the drill the screw hole out then use an Allen wrench on the end of a drill to knock out additional rotten wood without making the top hole any bigger than needed. Make sure you don’t drill through any fiberglass on the bottom side if possible. If you do, you’ll need to tape the bottom hole to keep the epoxy from dripping through.

There’s more detailed posts on here you can search for to get more info on filling screw holes but this should point you in the right direction.

 

[Aheider]

I used the west system epoxy to fill holes when I rewired the electrical in my bilge and cleaned up some mounting holes elsewhere. The larger west system epoxy kit with the pump tops is super handy, used it way more than I thought I would. I added cabasil and the west system pigment dye (white) which makes the screw holes almost disappear. My boat is the newer bright white color.

20ml syringe without a needle (10 pk from amazon) a 2 ounce graduated mixing cups (also amazon) make everything super easy. I mix the epoxy in the 2 ounce cups, suck it into the 20 ml syringe, and put the nose of the syringe into the hole. Use a piece of clear packaging tape over the hole to keep everything in place and pull it off when it's cured. Sometimes I use a toothpick or similar to make sure the epoxy is getting into the hole, stir it around, then add more epoxy.

Depending on the size of the holes, easy to get 10-20 screw holes filled by using one two ounce mixing cup and one syringe. You are going to think you got them all and then realize you have 4 more to do, and the kit with the pump tops make it no big deal to mix another batch.

 

[Andy]

I used the west system epoxy to fill holes when I rewired the electrical in my bilge and cleaned up some mounting holes elsewhere. The larger west system epoxy kit with the pump tops is super handy, used it way more than I thought I would. I added cabasil and the west system pigment dye (white) which makes the screw holes almost disappear. My boat is the newer bright white color.

20ml syringe without a needle (10 pk from amazon) a 2 ounce graduated mixing cups (also amazon) make everything super easy. I mix the epoxy in the 2 ounce cups, suck it into the 20 ml syringe, and put the nose of the syringe into the hole. Use a piece of clear packaging tape over the hole to keep everything in place and pull it off when it's cured. Sometimes I use a toothpick or similar to make sure the epoxy is getting into the hole, stir it around, then add more epoxy.

Depending on the size of the holes, easy to get 10-20 screw holes filled by using one two ounce mixing cup and one syringe. You are going to think you got them all and then realize you have 4 more to do, and the kit with the pump tops make it no big deal to mix another batch.

When I've had just a couple screw holes to 'fill', a quick painless solution is to use a larger, very-short screw and a finish-washer, sealed with butyl sealant to fill/fix it. This solution won't be to everybody's taste, but it suits me ok for some applications.

 

[Andy]

When I've had just a couple screw holes to 'fill', a quick painless solution is to use a larger, very-short screw and a finish-washer, sealed with butyl sealant to fill/fix it. This solution won't be to everybody's taste, but it suits me ok for some applications.
View attachment 38693

I meant to reply to Capt. Skeeter. Not sure how I messed up.

 

[Aheider]

No worries. Screw/finish washer is a good idea. Although the epoxy fill never rusts!

 

[Andy]

No worries. Screw/finish washer is a good idea. Although the epoxy fill never rusts!

You're spot-on about finding non-rusting stainless steel fasteners. I take a strong magnet with me to the hardware store, and I don't buy the s/s if they even stick a little bit to the magnet. I know that's an old trick/hack that everyone knows about, and that it's not a 100% reliable, but it works most of the time. I have no rusted fasteners on our Parker, mainly because I replaced the few that were starting to show signs of rusting. I see folks here on Classic Parker say that some of the newer Parkers have a bigger issue with rusted fasteners. (China junk?) Our 2013/2014 has had very few.

 

[Bodick93]

Fwiw, I took a drill to the few holes I fixed in my SeaPro and tilted the drill back and forth slightly and fishmouthed the holes. The hole is now hourglass shaped. Plug probably wouldn't come out anyway, but drilled like that, for sure it's locked. I always ended up with patches that were slightly recessed when the tape was removed though. Maybe slightly overfill, push the inner tape so the excess bulges slightly to the outside, then cut with a razor blade before it cures totally. You can tell the cure by your mixing board/cup and stick. I would try it on a test board first to see if you can get a clean cut.

 

[Billyjack20]

Screw and finish washer great idea when just a couple here and there .

 

[pelagic2530]

You're spot-on about finding non-rusting stainless steel fasteners. I take a strong magnet with me to the hardware store, and I don't buy the s/s if they even stick a little bit to the magnet. I know that's a old trick/hack that everyone knows about, and that it's not a 100% reliable, but it works most of the time. I have no rusted fasteners on our Parker, mainly because I replaced the few that were starting to show signs of rusting. I see folks here on Classic Parker say that some of the newer Parkers have a bigger issue with rusted fasteners. (China junk?) Our 2013/2014 has had very few.

I buy all my fasteners from MarineBoltSupply.com. They have a huge selection of true 316SS fasteners in pretty much every type and size (no metric though, unfortunately). Prices are good and quality is fantastic. You can buy anywhere from one screw to entire assortment kits; I’ve put together a box of all their assortment kits that covers me for 99.9% of all my fastener needs, and I can just order individual refills when I get low.

I never buy stainless at a hardware store if I can help it; you’re not getting 316 and it’s far more likely to rust out.

I’m not affiliated with MBS, they’re just a fantastic resource for fasteners that I thought I’d share.

 

[Andy]

I buy all my fasteners from MarineBoltSupply.com. They have a huge selection of true 316SS fasteners in pretty much every type and size (no metric though, unfortunately). Prices are good and quality is fantastic. You can buy anywhere from one screw to entire assortment kits; I’ve put together a box of all their assortment kits that covers me for 99.9% of all my fastener needs, and I can just order individual refills when I get low.

I never buy stainless at a hardware store if I can help it; you’re not getting 316 and it’s far more likely to rust out.

I’m not affiliated with MBS, they’re just a fantastic resource for fasteners that I thought I’d share.

Thanks for the info! I used to buy a lot of s/s fasteners online at Bolt Depot.com. I'd buy boxes of 100 and occasionally more. At that time they were selling high-quality 316. I have a couple boxes of 316 1/4" nuts and washers still in my stock. The last order I got from them was NOT the same quality as it used to be, so I no longer use them. Back when Overton's (RIP) had their brick-and-mortar headquarters, warehouse and retail outlet in Greenville, NC they used to carry 316, and I got a lot of fasteners from them in the past (still took along a strong magnet to verify). I'll try your suggestion of Marine Bolt Supply.com next time I need to restock... Thanks for the heads-up!

 

[Aheider]

I buy all my fasteners from MarineBoltSupply.com. They have a huge selection of true 316SS fasteners in pretty much every type and size (no metric though, unfortunately). Prices are good and quality is fantastic. You can buy anywhere from one screw to entire assortment kits; I’ve put together a box of all their assortment kits that covers me for 99.9% of all my fastener needs, and I can just order individual refills when I get low.

I never buy stainless at a hardware store if I can help it; you’re not getting 316 and it’s far more likely to rust out.

I’m not affiliated with MBS, they’re just a fantastic resource for fasteners that I thought I’d share.

Appreciate the info! But, it just cost me a couple hundred bucks...

 

[pelagic2530]

Appreciate the info! But, it just cost me a couple hundred bucks...

Believe me, I know your pain… Here’s my fastener box:


By the way, should your addiction grow, the assortment boxes fit nicely in a Dewalt Tstak storage box. However, this may also lead to a new addiction to buying Dewalt Tstak boxes for all your tools.

 

[Aheider]

Believe me, I know your pain… Here’s my fastener box:
View attachment 38734

By the way, should your addiction grow, the assortment boxes fit nicely in a Dewalt Tstak storage box. However, this may also lead to a new addiction to buying Dewalt Tstak boxes for all your tools.

Sigh.... it won't take me long.

 

[Dferrier]

I buy all my fasteners from MarineBoltSupply.com. They have a huge selection of true 316SS fasteners in pretty much every type and size (no metric though, unfortunately). Prices are good and quality is fantastic. You can buy anywhere from one screw to entire assortment kits; I’ve put together a box of all their assortment kits that covers me for 99.9% of all my fastener needs, and I can just order individual refills when I get low.

I never buy stainless at a hardware store if I can help it; you’re not getting 316 and it’s far more likely to rust out.

I’m not affiliated with MBS, they’re just a fantastic resource for fasteners that I thought I’d share.

 

[Dferrier]

I’m in the process of removing the carpet in my 2007 2520xl and decided to remove all overhead and side bolts and while doing so have found 2 bolts that the heads just fell off, picture attached. By not having done this and just trimming around them before painting, I can only imagine having someone grabbing a handle and having it give way in any condition. I’m sure the sealant was compromised allowing water to corrode the bolt.
So, replacing all bolts (not hardware store quality) and sealant is in order.