Repairing leaky rivets

[Hemlock]

Who's got first hand experience (or at least think they do with repairing leaky rivets. What is the most durable, effective leak stopper out there for aluminum? Where can I buy it?

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Hemlock
"Throw'm back"

[Hemlock]

uffdapete,

Is that spray on stuff, or ....? I was actually thinking of doing that, but was told by "Rhino Liner" in Grand Forks that it wouldn't stick to aluminum. How did it turn out for you, does it look good?

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Hemlock
"Throw'm back"

[IFallsRon]

The rivets are aluminum and look like a stove bolt. The rivet set is about the size of a cig lighter. It has a hole on one end and an indent on the other. You have someone back the rivet and use the hole end to snug it up. Turn the set around and pound the rivet until it mushrooms and spreads in the hole. You can get enough rivets to redo your boat for a dollar. The rivet set probably runs $5-10 depending on where you buy it (part store, iron/steel supply, Fleet or Menards). The liner stuff is nice but you're still left with a leaky rivet sometime down the road.

[uffdapete]

Here's a link to their HSOforum.
http://www.herculiner.com/instruc.html
This should answer most of your questions. I didn't know they even had colors other than black.

I was very pleased with the results. The only thing I would do differently would be to use gray and do the perimeter more carefully to make it look more professional.

[This message has been edited by uffdapete (edited 05-01-2003).]

[Hemlock]

Thanks Uffdapete. I printed off a bunch of that info. How did you prep the floor of your boat. I'm assuming you put it on the inside of the hull? Did you prime it? Roughen the surface?

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Hemlock
"Throw'm back"

[deadeye]

I think that you would probably want to do the inside of the boat first then see if it leaks anymore. JB Weld is pretty serious stuff so I would be that would be all you need to do, but if it still leaks after that then I would do the outside too. I think the JB Weld might be nice because you could sand it down to smooth it out.><>
deadeye

[Hemlock]

Who's got first hand experience (or at least think they do with repairing leaky rivets. What is the most durable, effective leak stopper out there for aluminum? Where can I buy it?

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Hemlock
"Throw'm back"

[Deitz Dittrich]

been there, done that, tried it all!

If its in an area where its not going to be hit by anything, you can try bath and shower caulk. But that only works if its not going to be hit or anything. The best thing you can do is get 2 people and re-pound each of the leaky rivits!

Good luck.. its not a fun job!

[deadeye]

I am not to experienced with the rivet thing but I do know that JB Weld works good on aluminum. I would give that a try on my boat before anything else. ><>deadeye
p.s. you can get it at auto parts stores(i work at one so that is how I know about it), and hardware stores.

[This message has been edited by deadeye (edited 05-01-2003).]

[IFallsRon]

It's best to drill out the loose rivets and replace with new rivets. A handful of rivets and a rivet set don't cost much. With the pounding your boat can take on the water, rivets will get more loose even if they don't leak because you've used a caulk. More rivets could loosen as a result. It's a two-man job to replace the rivets but it's worth the effort.

[Hemlock]

I've been there, done that, with the hammering of rivets. I think the problematic rivets are flush with the hull of the boat, from so many attempts at trying to fix them. If we were to try JB weld, would you put it on the inside or outside of the hull? Or both?
IFalls, do you know a specific brand for a rivet gun? Are they all the same, or do you need a special one for aluminum?

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Hemlock
"Throw'm back"

[uffdapete]

After removing as much paint as I could (interior hull only) I used a steel brush, and then the scratch pad that came in the kit. Only approx. 1/3 of the treated area was down to the bare aluminum. I concluded if the paint wouldn't come off with paint remover, steel brush and scratch pad, it probably wouldn't loosen with Herculiner on top of it. After vacuuming the particles and dust that resulted from that, I cleaned it and did the surface prep with a rag and the solvent they recommend in the instructions and then rolled the Herculiner on before it got any dust on it. I also used a paint brush to get the areas hard to do with the roller, which wasn't much.

[wishing for walleyes]

jb weld worked great for me.i had about 10 leaky rivets...not anymore thanks to jb weld

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Dan

[Hemlock]

Well, there are two easy solutions here: One, is to replace bad rivets with new ones. Second is to use JB weld to patch up the bad ones. The third option, that doesn't sound quite so easy is either a roll on or spray on rubber liner. I have three aluminum boats and might try each method on a different boat and let you know how it goes. Thanks for all the help.

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Hemlock
"Throw'm back"

[Dennis Steele]

I used JB Weld on a leaky old '69 Starcraft I had and it held for five years.I beat the heck out of the boat on big water and started getting hairline cracks in the hull but the JB weld still kept the rivets dry!

[92python]

I had an old Alumacraft that had suffered through many rough days on big water and had numerous bad rivets. I tried silicone then JB weld and the boat still leaked.

I sold the boat to someone I knew and he and a friend welded the problem areas then put a coat or 2 of the spray on bedliner on the boat. That seemed to fix the leaks.

[Dennis Steele]

When you apply the JB you must first sand all around the leaky rivets to get all the paint off.I worked a fine wire brush around the rivets to get under the loosest ones.Then use miriatic acid to etch the aluminum.Be carefull working with the acid and only use a very small amount.Wear protection for your eyes,hands and lungs.Apply the JB and work it into the leaky rivets and she will be leak proof.

[AaronM]

I used Lexel a few days ago, and just got done giving her a test run today, and boy oh boy were my feet dry! Its not gonna win any prizes for best looking, at least I wont need my bailing can much anymore. Good luck and Happy Fishing!

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"I cut it twice and its still too short"