Toe rail or aluminum rub rail adhesive

[Jim]

Hello,Thank you for the suggestions for adhevisive or caulk for the toe rail reinstall.As I removed the toe rails I found that the substance is not a caulk but a layer of adhesive of some kind. I t looks like it was installed in a band of about one inch wide and then the rail set in place and screwed down. Anyone know what this stuff is and where it can be found. i have not had a chance to contact Hunter yet. Any suggestions for a substitiute? I was thinking in the direction of automotive trim adhesive strips. Whatever is used it cannot harden, it must remain flexible. The rail moves and twists (not that much, but it does) with the deck and hull.Any help would be appreciated.Jim

 

[okiman]

Isobutylene Rubber

Jim,The material used to bed the toe rails is called Isobutylene or commonly known as Butyl rubber. It is very sticky and never gets hard is flexible and waterproof. It is usually grey or black. Hunter even used to tack electrical wiring behind panels/liners to keep it in place.According to Encyclopedia Britannica, "Butyl rubber is a copolymer of isobutylene and isoprene that was first produced by William Sparks and Robert Thomas at the Standard Oil Company (New Jersey) (now Exxon Corporation) in 1937."I don't know where you can buy it but I would not use a substitute. If you did, I think you would have to completely clean the old stuff off first. Hopefully Hunter will help you find some.Hope this helps. Good luck.

 

[Jim]

I found it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The stuff is butyl rubber adhesive tape. It is used a sealant in the RV industry. It never gets hard and is solvent and water proof.It is reasonable too. 1 inch wide tape, 3/16 thick and 20 feet long is $5.50. I cant buy a tube of 5200 for that, plus a lot less messy. I will post results of the redo and some pics when I recieve the tape and get the rails back on.Someone asked in the previous post if you should remove the rail or just caulk around it? In my case, some of the screws had worked themselves loose and were letting little drips under the rail. The rail screws down into a wood strip in the cabin and thats where the leaks were coming in. Also the deck is in no way flat. The deck takes a little dip everywhere it is fastened to the hull with a screw(this is underneath the rail). The adhesive has to be thick enough to fill this gap and seal out the water. Jim