Leaking rub rails on A27

[packham]

I am experiencing several leaks in my A27 which I believe are associated with leaking rub rails. Just wondering if anyone has experienced the same and pulled off the rub rails and resealed, and if so any advice, comments, photos you can share? Thanks, Roger

[johnvb1014]

Roger

I replaced mine - here is a summary of the steps. Unfortunately no photos. Its not a minor job.

- pulled off old rub rail and with it in various pieces came the plastic insert which will break off as you pull the rub rail off.
- drilled the pop rivets holding the insert, removed all of the insert and cleaned off all the caulk (a tedious job).
- what you're left with is an edge that is full of holes from the pop rivets, with possibly damaged sections from collisions with stuff
- I fill all the holes with epoxy (put painters tape on the lower side and fill with liquid epoxy) and made simple forms and lined with plastic wrap and then poured in eplxy to repair damaged sections. On my boat, both the corners at the stern were banged up. I then ground down areas that where there was too much epoxy.
- After I had a clean edge all around I installed the new insert, putting a bead of caulk on the inside, pushing it on the edge, drilling new holes and pop riveting it in place. I'm not really sure the best technique for going around corners. I made cuts in the insert to do this but have read it can be heated as well. I've read that old holes can be filled with caulk but it seemed to me not filling all the old holes was asking for trouble in terms of leaking.
- With the new rub rail, I put it in the sun on a hot day and warmed it up really good, put it around the bow and had the two ends tied to a come-along which I used to stretch it. Used a rubber mallet to tap it onto the insert, moving from bow to stern. Secured the ends with several screws.

I bought the insert and new rail from Hamilton Marine.

Good luck

JVB

[DougSea]

Nice write up John. Thanks for posting.

[packham]

Hi John, Thanks for the info...sounds like a lot of work which I was expecting. Do you remember the size of the insert, and is it called rub rail insert or? Thanks again, Roger

[johnvb1014]

Roger

Its called an insert in the Hamilton Marine catalog. I think what I purchased is:

rubrail DWP-133-RB/W

insert 109282

But there are an awful lot of different styles. You might want to wait until you have removed both the rubrail and insert to see exactly what you have on your boat.

Good Luck

John

[JFOkie]

Good morning,

Roger, if possible, please post an update to your project and some photos if available. I have a leak in the rear port area and figure it must be the rub rail. My intention was to remove the headliner and use caulking on the interior along the seam where the upper deck meets the hull....but this probably isn't the best way to fix the leak.

Either way, I figure this will be a long project.

Thanks
John

M/V Nirvana

[sail149]

Hi
I've been fixing leaks and impact damage on the stb quarter hull to deck joint. Trying to caulk from the inside is not going to work. It's almost impossible to get at to do a good job. After removing the rub rail and insert I used a hack saw to clean out the joint and refilled with epoxy.i also am trying to fill the little lip or toe rail from underneath as this is a real weak place allowing to much flex and stress in the joint. Then follow johns advice on the outside. I have not tested this yet but it looks good to me,
Warren