16ft Lowe Big Jon Hull Question

[NLaudy]

Hey All! I just recently acquired a 16ft Lowe Big Jon. It is my first Riveted boat and I took it out for a float test and noticed it was leaking pretty good. I got under it to mark the rivets that needed to be replaced and saw what is in the pictures below. Not sure what the previous owner did but it definitely doesn't look right! On the top side he coated it with some kind of black stuff also?

I want to fix things correctly and not take shortcuts so what are my best options for removing this black stuff? Also what does it look like the previous guy did? Do they look like rivets he added or some kind of welds? My plan was to drill out the rivets that were leaking and replace them but now I am not sure what to do?

Thanks in advance for any assistance you can provide.

 

[MrSimon]

You are on the right track.

Remove all the black stuff. Drill out the leaky rivets. Replace them with aluminum closed end rivets with a touch of sealant on the rivet before installation.

This is a PERFECT example of why its never a good idea to try and "seal" leaks in aluminum boats. They need to be fixed properly.

 

[NLaudy]

Thanks MrSimon! I 100% agree that if you are going to "fix" something... do it right! I will start by trying to remove that black stuff. Not sure what it is or the best way to remove it but that seems like a good step 1!

Do you think aluminum closed end rivets or solid aluminum rivets would be better?

 

[MrSimon]

Either type of rivet will work fine .... its really a matter of what you have access to or experience with.

An angle grinder with a wire wheel works wonders for removing gunk from aluminum. Just be careful not to chew up the aluminum itself.

 

[wingsnhammers]

I believe most of those are actually rivets. It looks like he used an air hammer with a flat bit to try to drive a round head rivet. I bet the bucked end of the rivets under that black stuff look like garbage. When you go to drive new rivets, try to get the rivet holes as round and uniform as you can. A rip or tear in the edge of a hole and you will still have leak problems.

 

[dispo]

To remove the black stuff without gouging the aluminum you can try a heat gun, some laquer thinner or other solvents. It looks like a tar substance, is it hard or soft? If its hard it could be something 2 part and you may have to hit it with a wire wheel. If its something like tar or a one part sealant, then a volatile chemical like laquer thinner should wipe it right off. Good luck with your repairs!

On my old riveted boat I used "G-Flex" its a 2 part epoxy made specifically to bond to and flex on repaired areas, in fact, West Marine renamed it to Aluminum boat repair kit or something like that...(they are the ones who put it out on their west system line which is really good) All you have to do is bring it down to clean bare metal (stainless brush or wheel) Then mix the 2 part epoxy and apply it. This stuff has worked great for me in the past. As long as you prep it correctly you should have no problems...I'd look into replacing rivets that really need it. The ones that arent too bad or in areas that dont get submerged often could be easily fixed with some g-flex...its also relatively cheap.

 

[NLaudy]

Thank you all for the help! Sounds like it will be a fun project

I will report back on what I find and how I plan to take care of it.