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Other Activities => Fishing => Topic started by: Martinhunter on May 22, 2009, 09:11:44 PM

Title: leaky rivets
Post by: Martinhunter on May 22, 2009, 09:11:44 PM: Hello all, just wondering how to go about fixing my 16 ft sled. I was out on Mayfield lake a couple of weeks ago and the lake was pretty rough and stupid me I continued flying across the monstrous waves, :bdid: and about a hour later I had a lot of water in my boat, alot more than usual. I,m certain that I popped a few rivets loose. So I'm going to fill it up with water and try to find the worst ones, but not to sure of the best way to fix them. Do I seal the old rivets some how? I really don't want to put new ones in but I did hear that sealing pop rivets work good and are much easier to install. I,m kind of lost on what to do. I need to do something fast cause the fish are in and the weather is awesome. Please any help is appreciated. Thanks alot!!
Title: Re: leaky rivets
Post by: shoot-em-dead on May 22, 2009, 09:17:37 PM: I have the same question for my boat. Seems like I have the bildge pumping out a couple gallons an hour.
Title: Re: leaky rivets
Post by: stumprat on May 22, 2009, 09:38:14 PM: J.B. Weld dabbed over them works really well.
Title: Re: leaky rivets
Post by: bow4elk on May 22, 2009, 09:48:52 PM: maybe try some Marine Goop if they aren't really loosey goosey. Make sure you clean the area really well with MEK or Acetone first to get good adhesion.
Title: Re: leaky rivets
Post by: mkcj on May 22, 2009, 09:51:30 PM: Get someone from Boeing or anywhere else the drives rivets to come down drill out enough to get seal in under the then rivet them back up
Title: Re: leaky rivets
Post by: Huntbear on May 22, 2009, 09:54:30 PM: I have actually drilled them out, and replaced them with aluminum bolts, washers and nuts. sealed it all good with some marine silicone inside and out. never leaked again.
Title: Re: leaky rivets
Post by: markts on May 22, 2009, 09:59:38 PM: 3M has some two part epoxy that I use to glue bedsides, quarterpanels, and roof panels on with. It is the $hit. Check any automotve paint supply store and they will hook you up. Mark
Title: Re: leaky rivets
Post by: Da stump on May 23, 2009, 05:48:16 AM: I had a line of rivits that where bad. Just a little loose. Went ahead and drilled them out. along with a few extra. Squeezed a sealant into the seam and then got the right tools and myself and my dad rivited them with a hammer and the tool. I was the back up inside the boat. It did a great job and i left the tool in the boat for emergency. it was just a small punch like tool with a convex head for the rivit that was the proper size. :)
Title: Re: leaky rivets
Post by: SkookumHntr on May 23, 2009, 11:10:40 AM: Quote from: Huntbear on May 22, 2009, 09:54:30 PM
I have actually drilled them out, and replaced them with aluminum bolts, washers and nuts. sealed it all good with some marine silicone inside and out. never leaked again.
--I have a 16' smokercraft and have to do this all the time. Fast and permanent! I will check to see exactly what I use because its been alittle while.
Title: Re: leaky rivets
Post by: sisu on May 24, 2009, 04:13:14 PM: Fix leaking seams in aluminum boats with West System G/flex 650

By Randy Zajac

We wanted to experiment with using G/flex to fix leaking aluminum boats. I was quite surprised to find that every aluminum boat owner I talked to said they had some sort of leak. Within 3 hours, I had several co-workers volunteer their aluminum boats for the experimental fix using G/flex.

Finding the leaks

The first step is to find the leak. This is fairly easy:just fill the inside with water up to the waterline. To reduce the possibility of destruction or distortion, I tilted the boat and only filled one end at a time since filling the boat up entirely might have done more damage to the seams.

On each boat I repaired, I found many rivets that merely seeped water. However, I also found at least one that poured a constant stream. These bigger leaks were the main cause of water inside the craft during normal use. One boat actually carried a bilge pump to help keep up with the bailing. I circled any leaking rivet or seam with a black marker.

Making the repair
With the leaks identified and marked, here are the techniques used for the repair. Flip the boat over for easier access to the bottom and prepare the surface for bonding. For the seams, clean out any debris that might still be stuck inside. On the rivets, I used a wire brush in a circular motion to abrade the surface. A wire brush attachment on a cordless drill made the job even easier. Once everything is clean and well scuffed, gather the needed materials: a handheld propane torch, a heat gun, an 804 Syringe, paper towels, and G/flex 650 Epoxy.

Mix the G/flex 650 Resin and Hardener together and fill the syringe. I cut the tip of the syringe to enlarge the hole to about 1 16". Heat the repair area with a propane torch (a heat gun will work) up to 180-220F to dry out the repair area. The heat drives moisture from the seam and thins out the G/flex, allowing it to flow more easily into the seams and rivets.

Then fill the seams and rivets in this area while the aluminum is still warm. Use the heat gun (do not use a propane torch for this step) in one hand while applying the G/flex from the syringe with the other. The forced air from the heat gun keeps the repair area warm and lets you direct the G/flex where it needs to go. This lets you do the repair without flipping the boat over.

After you have applied enough G/flex, pull the syringe plunger back slightly and lay it on a paper towel for the next rivet or seam. Keep applying heat until the G/flex has gelled and no longer moves with the forcedair from the gun. Then, you can either let the G/flex® cure at ambient temperature or continue using the heat gun on a lower setting until the epoxy is fully cured.

Complete heating and filling each rivet or seam section before moving on to the next to avoid too much heat loss.

Testing the results

Once the epoxy is cured, you are ready for an immediate water test. The boats I repaired in our shop were taken right out to the water and thoroughly abused. After repeated beaching and thermal cycling, the G/flex still holds strong

I hope this link works so you can check out what I copied and pasted

http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/document.do?docId=409&title=Fix+leaking+seams+in+aluminum+boats+with+West+System+G%2Fflex+650

Here is the link to the basic products that epoxy systems sells.
http://www.epoxyworks.com/
Title: Re: leaky rivets
Post by: kingsalmonkllr77 on May 25, 2009, 09:27:34 PM: If you locate the leaky rivets you can have someone hold a hand dolly which is used for body work on the inside of the boat while you peen the outside with a hammer. I had a 12' smokercraft that had a free sign on it when I was a kid and I soon learned why it was free. I took it to my neighbors and he showed me how to fix it. It worked just fine but took a few trips to get all of them.