Epoxying a grab rail - ye or nay?

[Sailor1970]

We own a 1972 C&C 30' which is in remarkably good shape for her age. We plan on having this boat for another four-five years, at which point we will have to move up significantly in size to accommodate our growing children.

That being said, the starboard grab rail (on top of the house) on our boat has an issue. There are four bolts at four different points holding this thing on and the aftmost one is shot. Previous owners really made a mess of it, and at this point it seems that, if pulled on too hard, a piece of the grab rail could crack right off. The wood where a new screw might go is pretty stripped.

Long story short - can I just epoxy this end of the grab rail to the fiberglass and be done with it? I recognize this could be a problem down the road if the whole rail needs to be replaced - but on a boat this old, what's the likelihood of this ever happening?

 

[justsomeguy]

snip-

Long story short - can I just epoxy this end of the grab rail to the fiberglass and be done with it? I recognize this could be a problem down the road if the whole rail needs to be replaced - but on a boat this old, what's the likelihood of this ever happening?

I think the likelihood of the rail breaking is directly proportional to the need for the rail not to break at an inopportune moment. I vote "nay".

Durned sailboats, always needing work.

 

[centerline]

the wood rail cannot be glued to the hull successfully. but the stripped hole can be epoxied and re-drilled after it cures for a couple of weeks.
it will take some preparation but it may be the only way to get it to hold if you cant get behind it to insert a thru bolt with a nut on it, which would be the most secure way to hold it.

green (uncured) epoxy is soft and can be stripped or broken relatively easy, a minimum of a week of curing time should take place before attempting to tighten a screw into it. it can be pilot drilled at ant time after setting up.. or wait until it cures so there is no open hole to let water in until you can fill it with a screw

the problem with trying to epoxy it to the deck it is that even if the wood and deck has been properly prepped so that epoxy bond does not come loose, the wood itself will break at the epoxy line or very near it when its actually used as a hand rail (or gets kicked, stumbled over or bumped in some other way), and then you will have two problems.... a mess stuck to the hull that will be difficult to clean up and the original problem of the loose railing...

the screws add stability to the integrity of the wood even if the attachment to the deck is weaker than being thru bolted....

 

[edcarter517]

I would say nay as there is no practical way to know the soundness of the epoxy/wood/fiberglass joint, except to break it. You wouldn't wand that to happen when grabbing the hand rail to save your life

 

[jibes138]

what kind of screws are holding it on now? If they are just wood screws perhaps you could tap drill and tap the wood and then use a machine screw to get fresh threads, and more of them to get a grip? Maybe add the epoxy as an additional strengthening method in addition to the machine screw? Through bolting is the ideal method as previously recommended.

 

[Picflight]

Nay, fix it the right way, it is a safety item. Don't compromise on safety.

 

[caguy]

Instead of wood screws why not drill it for through hold screws. You can recess the heads and plug them with a bung. Most handrails are done this way at least on the end holds. My Luger was done this way on each of the screws. If the wood is so weak and dried out you should replace them. Pictures would help.