Rod Holder Repair Question

[Snapperlr]

Having just done so much of this I would offer the following:

Marine Tex is a strong epxoy filler and works great if you are not going to drill out most of what you apply. If you have to drill out the majority of the Marine Tex to replace the screws it will fail again.
Epoxy with glass strands(rip up some chopped cloth) would be much stronger.
I would also add wood blocks to the underside while the hole is open. Two long pieces through the hole, epoxy on top of them (5200 would be good for this) where they would contact the underside of the gunnel, then screw from the top to draw them up into place while they dry. After they are dry remove the screws and fill the screw holes with the epoxy and glass, let this dry and then redrill the rod holder the correct size, then the srews.

Make sure everthing is clean, acetone works best for this.

Good luck.

[DEMON]

Definitely put some blocks under like Snapperlr said. Might want to try West Systems "Six10" to fill the holes (easy to use) and available at West Marine. http://www.westsystem.com/ss/six10-demo/

[Scoop Sea]

Well, thanks to you fellas that led me down the right path, my rod holder appears to be better than it was before. I took out the old one, sanded, cleaned, etc. and then remembered that I had won a new rod holder at the BBF.Net social. Sure nuff, it fit the hole AND the screw holes were not lined up the same as my old rod holder (although the aft one was close). I used Marine Tex to fill in the old holes and then drilled new holes for the new holder. They went on tightly and the rod holder is very secure now. Apparently when Sea Pro put in the original rod holder they did two things that weakened the rod holder: They screwed the drill hole on the aft side too close to the rod holder hole and the glass in betweekn wore out over time and they did not sit the rod holder far enough forward so that the rod holder would fit snug. By sitting it too far back, it allowed for play in the rod holder and ultimately the wearing out of the port hole. I feel pretty confident that today's repair job will work out well. And I definitely know I wouldn't have known about Marine Tex and it's use unless you guys had pointed me in the right direction. Thanks.

ALSO, a big shout out to Gordan down at AMS. I went in to get the Marine Tex and was looking at a fairly big box of it and he questioned me on my project and showed me a smaller repair kit that worked perfect. A lot of folks would have just let me spend the extra money, etc, but not Gordan. I sure like doing business down there with Gordan, Angie, and Frank, they are good, honest, folks that will help you out.

I'll be on the Wakulla River looking for manatees tomorrow with some guests. If you see a Sea Pro loaded down with folks and kids, give me a shout.

Thanks again for the advice.

Chris

[silverking]

Glad it all worked out, Chris. Wish I had been more explicit about the MT kit necessary but glad to hear the AMS folks steered you right.

It's always satisfying to complete a boat project. Unfortunately in my case, there's always another one in the wings (Fin-esse is high maintenance, but I still love her).

[Scoop Sea]

Thanks SK, your directions were spot on. I mixed up half of the MT kit, applied it, let it dry and sanded it down. It worked like a charm. I can't tell you how many days last spring/summer I went out with that "loose" rod holder bugging me. Now, she's good to go. I concur, there always seems to be one more boat project waiting for us. Have a great Sunday.