repairing screw holes in fiberglass

[strokeoluck]

We just purchased a 2005 Bayliner 185. The previous owner had a few items screwed into the fiberglass: 1) a trolling motor mount with four screws on the front of the boat, and 2) two "Scotty" rod holders on one side near the driver's seat, and two of them on the other side near the passenger seat. I'd like to remove these items. But upon removing them I'll be left with the screw holes. How do I repair these properly? The boat is mostly white.

Thanks.

 

[reelfishin]

Re: repairing screw holes in fiberglass

I would just clean up the holes as best I could, (sand down or slightly drill them till the hole is flush or below the surface), then fill them in with some white Marinetex epoxy. You can smooth the final coat over by applying wax paper to the surface. The result should look pretty good without any major body work.
I just did a set of holes like that on a buddies boat on his transom. You couldn't hardly tell they were there unless you got really up close and looked for them.
If your really picky, then it's a matter of sand, fill, and either paid or get a gelcoat repair kit and try to match it as best you can.

 

[bear_69cuda]

Re: repairing screw holes in fiberglass

Would you be interested in selling the trolling motor mount? Do you have any pictures of it? I have a new remote motorguide w55 I need to install, and I'm still in the fabrication process...

Regards

 

[strokeoluck]

Re: repairing screw holes in fiberglass

Let me take a few snapshots and send them to you (post them here?).

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: repairing screw holes in fiberglass

Would you be interested in selling the trolling motor mount? Do you have any pictures of it? I have a new remote motorguide w55 I need to install, and I'm still in the fabrication process...

Regards

Let me take a few snapshots and send them to you (post them here?).

Gentlemen... we do not allow selling in the forums..... I suggest you limit all discussions of this nature to the Private Message system to stay within the guidelines....

FYI images work in the private message system.

 

[Frank Acampora]

Re: repairing screw holes in fiberglass

I take a bit of home insulation (think pink) and soak it in resin. I stuff it into the holes leaving it a bit low so I can later fill with gelcoat. You would be surprised at how large a hole you can fill this way. I have filled some 2 inchers using a piece of cardboard on the back to keep the glass in position.

 

[ziggy]

Re: repairing screw holes in fiberglass

i've got a few extra screw holes in my boat too.
the PA speaker mounted to the back of my boat i just removed the horn and put the screws back in the holes. pan head screws..
the horn that was mounted on my bow that i moved left me with three screw holes. i went to the hardware store and got three plastic plugs, i used clear plugs, shoulda used white.. put a dab of sillycone on them and put them in the holes... has worked ok so far... maybe not totally pretty, but effective..

 

[This_lil_fishy]

Re: repairing screw holes in fiberglass

I used fibreglass bondo, sanded, and painted with Krylon Fusion gloss white paint. It is invisible...hull repair no less!! If figured the paint would peal off eventually, but I must say, it's a hard and flexible as the gel coat. Course my ol' boat ain't worth much, I just needed to fix the leak.


Ian

 

[wildmaninal]

Re: repairing screw holes in fiberglass

I would just clean up the holes as best I could, (sand down or slightly drill them till the hole is flush or below the surface), then fill them in with some white Marinetex epoxy. You can smooth the final coat over by applying wax paper to the surface. The result should look pretty good without any major body work.
I just did a set of holes like that on a buddies boat on his transom. You couldn't hardly tell they were there unless you got really up close and looked for them.
If your really picky, then it's a matter of sand, fill, and either paid or get a gelcoat repair kit and try to match it as best you can.

I did the same thing on my bass boat a while back, used black marinetex. It also comes in different colors.

 

[bear_69cuda]

Re: repairing screw holes in fiberglass

Sorry about that!

I'll use PM...

Again I totally understand and apologise!

 

[chiefalen]

Re: repairing screw holes in fiberglass

I used white sillycone. Held a piece of wood under the the fiberglass and shot the holes.

Did this when i was doing other repairs with the same tube.

Then i just wiped off the excess with my finger and had it flush with the top.

Looks good and you got to really look for the holes close to see them.

Took all of 5 seconds, did a bunch on my dashboard where a old fishfinder was, before i got the boat.

I've used marine tex also, not as easy, as sets up fast , so mix what your gonna use, and apply it fast. But alot more money.

My 2 cents worth.

 

[Plotus]

Re: repairing screw holes in fiberglass

Not wanting to hi-jack this thread, I have a couple places where the screw holes have stripped where the trim here and there is, so they just spin, the only thing keeping them in place is gravity...lol Would this 'Marinetex' work in reducing the holes so the threads would then have something like a virgin surface to screw into, of course with a tiny pilot hole as a starter??

I'd add that all the locations will be covered and not vissable after a repair.

 

[sqbtr]

Re: repairing screw holes in fiberglass

SS carriage bolts work great for larger holes, add a SS fender washer and you can cover a huge hole, don't forget the 4200 behind it.

 

[109jb]

Re: repairing screw holes in fiberglass

Not wanting to hi-jack this thread, I have a couple places where the screw holes have stripped where the trim here and there is, so they just spin, the only thing keeping them in place is gravity...lol Would this 'Marinetex' work in reducing the holes so the threads would then have something like a virgin surface to screw into, of course with a tiny pilot hole as a starter??

I'd add that all the locations will be covered and not vissable after a repair.

Hey cadet, just a tip. Changing the font color like you did made it very hard to read. I hate to be harsh, but I didn't even try to read your post because of this.

 

[JoLin]

Re: repairing screw holes in fiberglass

Not wanting to hi-jack this thread, I have a couple places where the screw holes have stripped where the trim here and there is, so they just spin, the only thing keeping them in place is gravity...lol Would this 'Marinetex' work in reducing the holes so the threads would then have something like a virgin surface to screw into, of course with a tiny pilot hole as a starter??

I'd add that all the locations will be covered and not vissable after a repair.

Yes- drill the holes oversize, pack them with epoxy, then redrill to the correct size after it hardens.

(please change your font color- it's nearly impossible to read)

 

[rwidman]

Re: repairing screw holes in fiberglass

We just purchased a 2005 Bayliner 185. The previous owner had a few items screwed into the fiberglass: 1) a trolling motor mount with four screws on the front of the boat, and 2) two "Scotty" rod holders on one side near the driver's seat, and two of them on the other side near the passenger seat. I'd like to remove these items. But upon removing them I'll be left with the screw holes. How do I repair these properly? The boat is mostly white.

Thanks.

Since this is a relatively new boat, you may want to have a proper, invisible repair. You would be surprised how many shades of white there are. Having the holes repaired by a professional gelcoat repair person will result in the best repair.

If looks are not so much a concern for you, fiberglass/gelcoat repair kits are available at marine retailers. Buy one and follow the instructions.

Further down on the list are epoxy and marinetex.

Silicone or other caulking materials will work to keep moisture out, but wouldn't be much of a "repair".

 

[MacPointMan]

Re: repairing screw holes in fiberglass

The pink fiberglass insulation soaked in resin is an interesting concept. I have not read about it anywhere. It does sound like it would work well for minor fixes such as this.

MacPointMan