www.iFourWinns.com

Hello all,

I finally bought a 2003 Funship 214! There are a couple of dings/issues but that is to be expected on an almost 10 year old boat. One of the issues is the latch on the changing room door. The fixed piece that the latch connects to (on the fixed part of the room, not the door) is comming loose. The screws are no longer anchored. Any ideas on how to fix this? I have never worked with fiberglass before.

Thanks.

Jim

With out pics, its hard to say. You could use, 3M 4000 or 5200 fast setting adhesive.

There is a epoxy from West Systems, that is GREAT for glass work. They have fillers so it can be sanded.

Go to thier web sites and it will show you how both of them work. I know that they have V-clips that exlpains this.

http://www.westsystem.com/ss/

http://www.3m.com/product/information/M ... alant.html

When possible avoid using screws with fiberglass. Use bolts with nuts instead. Fiberglass is really not the best material for screws, especially not ones that are going to be holding something that gets used a lot. A common way to fix fiberglass holes is to drill them out a little larger and fill the hole with marine epoxy. Let it cure and sand it smooth to the surface. Then pre-drill that a bit for screws. The epoxy will hold the screw threads a bit better than fiberglass. But I'd still try to use bolts instead.

And for adhesives, be CAREFUL about3M 5200. It really is permanent. You'd rip apart the fiberglass layers well before you get anything unstuck from it. Their 4200 is 'less permanent' and is often a better choice than 5200.

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-Bill Kearney, 2005 348 Vista