Filling holes in fiberglass

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Phil V25

Phil V25

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May 26, 2004
204
Macgregor Venture 25 Trailer Sailor
Last summer in the Apostle Islands I destroyed (don't ask) my Garelick motor mount. I've decided that when replacing it I will lower it several inches. What is the best way to close the old bolt holes that are approximately 1/4"?
 
timebandit

timebandit

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Jun 3, 2004
1,863
Macgregor 25 So. Cal.
I use JB Weld but it is dark gray.

A bit of electrical tape on the back side stops it from running out esp. on horizonal serfaces.
 
Nik

Nik

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Mar 15, 2008
247
MacGregor 26D Valparaiso, Indiana
Either thickened epoxy or polyester (regular fiberglass resin). Fill the hole, clean up your MESS and then tape over it to keep it in place. When cured dish the area out slightly and put on new gelcoat. An almost invisible fix.
 
B

beamreach

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Jun 30, 2007
277
Macgregor - Spring Creek, FL
Assuming your holes are through the transom and the inner transom is wood, I'd use 1/4" dowels, cut them about a half inch short, coat them with epoxy and push them into the holes leaving about a 1/4" either side, let them set up and fill the resulting 1/4" holes each side with marine tex, covering them with a patch of waxed paper and a larger piece of duck tape. When you pull it off, everything is smooth. This is easy and fast. I've done it before and it works fine.
 
Gregg9020

Gregg9020

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Apr 25, 2005
410
Macgregor Venture 25 My Backyard
I moved mine last year, and I filled the holes with 100% marine tex. simple and a really quick fix. Can't even tell I did anything.


Phil V25 said:
Last summer in the Apostle Islands I destroyed (don't ask) my Garelick motor mount. I've decided that when replacing it I will lower it several inches. What is the best way to close the old bolt holes that are approximately 1/4"?
Click to expand
 
Phil V25

Phil V25

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May 26, 2004
204
Macgregor Venture 25 Trailer Sailor
Greg and Beamreach

I had kinda planned on your approaches. And since I don't have a clue to where I might find Marine-tech around here I'm going to use the wood dowel and epoxy approach and I have some gel-coat scratch stuff laying around. All holes will be covered by the mount frame so I'm not as concerned about appearance.
 
Sumner

Sumner

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Jan 31, 2009
5,254
Macgregor & Endeavour 26S and 37 Utah's Canyon Country
Phil V25 said:
.......since I don't have a clue to where I might find Marine-tech around here ...........
Click to expand
It looks pretty versatile.....

http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wc...21?&cid=chanintel&ci_src=14110944&ci_sku=6221

.... kind of like the JB Weld, but in white. I might get some of that stuff to have on the boat for emergencies.

Cheaper at Defender.....

http://www.defender.com/product.jsp?path=-1|10918|12212|309318&id=149057

Sum

Our Trips to Lake Powell, UT - Kootenay Lake, Canada - Priest Lake, ID

Our Mac Pages

Mac Links
 
MrBill_FLL

MrBill_FLL

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May 4, 2005
4,062
Macgregor 26d Ft Lauderdale, Fl
IMHO, marine tex is good for a lot of cosmetic patches, but tends to be brittle if over 1/4" thick. (not unlike jbweld). shatters if hit hard.

- but not a bad thing to keep aboard for emergency repairs.

IIRC, it will fire off underwater, setsup fast (~4hrs), and sands pretty easy. and its white!

plus its shelf life is longer than most alternatives like 5200, 101, or lifecalk.
 
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