The rivet is not the problem - the joint between the deck and hull is broken. Drill out enough pop rivets (without going thru the bottom of the trim!!) so you can pull the trim away from the lip of the deck/hull joint. If it is not completely obvious where the leak is, do another air test. But probably you will need to use a cutting disk on a dremel tool to open the crack between the hull and deck up wider. You can also work in a cut off hacksaw blade to do the same. You are trying to clean out the crack and enlarge it a bit so there is room for epoxy in there.
Once that is done, use a West syringe that you bought at West Marine to squirt a lot of epoxy in there, then clamp the deck and hull together. Once it hardens, reattach the trim with pop rivets. Use stainless or aluminum - it does not matter. Someone on here can tell you the right size of rivets. .
I don't really know, but the boat was built with the equivalent of epoxy, not 5200. That said its a small repair so 5200 probably would work.Hey Beldar,
I reputable youtube blogger, a boat builder in the Northeast, speaks of usi g 3M 502 to seal up and hold together that deck/hull joint. He speaks of it as possibly a better choick than usi g resin. I obviously jave no experience, but have been researching it a bunch since I know someday I will make this repair. What are your thoughts? Will 502 do a better job sealing back up this joint than expoxy resin?
Whitecp
Countersink down through the gelcoat to the layer of existing (clear-looking) fiberglass. Special countersinks are available (at up to $30) as below, but a ½-inch drill bit works fine.Good to know.......... Thanks for the info guys. That repair is a ways off.....Ive got time to think it over. That 5200 is strong stuff from what I'm reading (and watching) Btw..... What is the most effective way to plug up two old cleat holes that were neaver correctly sealed off? I cant seem to find any examples of such an easy project. What do you guys think? -Whitecap
Coating the screws with 4000 will make them secure, but will the screws be removable later?
Careful use of a heat gun would do the trick if you want to remove the screws.
a soldering gun might do it.
There could be more than one leak, but the most serious leak would be towards the bottom.While I'm waiting for the last of the conversion stuff to get here, I might as well try to tackle that daggerboard trunk leak. Can any of you guys explain how I "isolate" the leak. We know its leaking - the leak test showed us that. But what is the best way to determine where the leak is, and how to fix it once we find it? Any ideas? Might as well knock it out while Im waiting. Thanks again for all the advice,
Whitecap