i pulled the toe rails off my 1978 oday 23, refinished them and reinstalled. i am having a heck of a time finding the right size bungs/plugs to install back over the screw heads. What size are the plugs supposed to be? Also, any good hints on how to re-insert? what a hassle. i'll never take them off again. i'll refinish them on the boat next time.
Replacing plugs on o-day 23
- Thread starter scionrl
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The bungs on my 86 O'Day 222 are 5/16" Teak. I hope that you were careful when you removed the old bungs.
After you get the rails screwed in place, you need to glue the bungs in place so that the grain of the bung is running in the same direction as the grain on the rail. When the glue is all set up and hard, just cut the bung about 1/16" higher than the surface of the rail and sand the top of the bung down the rest of the way.
In the old days they used to take a small wood screw and cut the head off it and put it in the chuck of an egg beater drill brace and use it to remove the bung. I tried it a few times and it works pretty well, although I occasionally need to use a tiny chisel from a carving set to carefully remove all of the bung from the hole. Drilling very slow and carefully into the center of the bung with this Mickey Mouse screw bit causes the bung to rise when the screw bit bottoms out on the head of the wood screw holding the rail.
For gluing the bungs, they used to use regular spar varnish to adhere bung in place. I've used a number of different types of glues and the last time I replaced a bung on my toe rail this past spring, I used Gorilla Glue.
The old timers used to use a sharp chisel to cut the excess bung off leaving about 1/16" to sand down. Myself, I'd rather use a small fine tooth hand saw.
So there you have it. The more you do of them, the better you'll get at it. Just try to keep the holes nice and round, the grain going right, and the rest is easy after the glue sets up.
Joe
Don't use counter sink screws! They will split the rails! flat head is best but takes up space for the bung to fill. if you must use counter sink screws do it oh so carefully! Traditionally, bungs are "glued" with varnish not glue. Thye are easy to make with plug cutters bought from better wood working suppliers like woodcraft. Chances are you will be using the next larger size 3/8"
Relax. Replacing bungs isn't all that hard. Assuming that you didn't tear up the holes too bad when you removed the old ones. I replaced all of the teak on my rebuild and installed all new bungs. I used a bit of varnish to glue them in. Gently seat them in place with a hammer. Then with a sharp chisel I cut off the tops about 1/16" - 1/8" proud (above) of the teak. This way if the grain is sloping down you'll still be above the teak when you cut across the bung. Actually 'cut' is the wrong term. Just put the chisel against the bung with the angled side of the chisel end down and tap the chisel handle with the palm of your hand or a small weight and and the bung should snap off. Hopefully the whole bung afterwards will still be 'proud' of the teak. Look at the side of the bung and see how the grain is running and remove the part still sticking above the teak. Finish with a little sanding. Make sure the grain on the end of the bung runs in the same direction as the teak before you install it of course. I found it to be an enjoyable and satisfying job.
You can buy bungs here- http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=1940
I think mine were 3/8 but measure yours to be sure.
This might help- http://www.youtube.com/user/brandotown?blend=1&ob=5
http://www.trawlerforum.com/t14660800/teak-deck-bung-maintenance/
http://sailmagazine.com/boatworks/maintenance/teak_deck_maintenance/index.html
http://www.capedory.org/board/viewtopic.php?t=28524&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0
Rich
You can buy bungs here- http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=1940
I think mine were 3/8 but measure yours to be sure.
This might help- http://www.youtube.com/user/brandotown?blend=1&ob=5
http://www.trawlerforum.com/t14660800/teak-deck-bung-maintenance/
http://sailmagazine.com/boatworks/maintenance/teak_deck_maintenance/index.html
http://www.capedory.org/board/viewtopic.php?t=28524&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0
Rich
That first link is a good one Rich. I put it in my "favorites." I thought that I was the only one who used Gorilla Glue to adhere the bungs, but I guess not. I didn't see him spay a mist of water to the bungs though. The only thing I omitted in my instructions was tapping the bunk in place with a hammer or mallet. I just figured that it was a no brainer.
At any rate, I install bungs the same way that he does. I used to use a chisel to knock off the excess bung until one day, a bung got knocked off below the surface of the wood and I had to do it all over again and wait for the glue to dry.
At any rate, I install bungs the same way that he does. I used to use a chisel to knock off the excess bung until one day, a bung got knocked off below the surface of the wood and I had to do it all over again and wait for the glue to dry.
Wow,everyone. Thanks for all the good scoop. i've measured and purchased a couple of different sizes but seems i'm still either too loose or too tight. I will check to see if i got 5/16ths. again. thanks for all the good scoop. i will let the group know how it goes. sail on....
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