Plugging screw holes?

[Jdege]

I'm working on a Vaitses/Herreshoff Meadowlark named Curlew.

The Meadowlark was designed to be shallow draft and narrow of beam. Because of this, L. Francis designed it with leeboards so the cabin wouldn't be cluttered with a centerboard trunk.

Which is why one of Curlew's Prior Owners installed a table exactly where the centerboard trunk would be:



I've pulled it out and replaced it with a Lagun RV table leg and a temporary folding table top I threw together. (I'll replace it with a better built top, someday, but this will serve). This opens up the cabin immensely, even when positioned to sit at, can be folded and rotated out of the way, and can easily be removed:



This leaves me with four holes through the epoxy-covered plywood where each of the two table legs was removed:



The Meadowlarks were designed as shallow-draft boats. They'll float in 20 inches of water. Combined with the low coach roof means that most lack standing headroom. Curlew is unusual in that she barely manages standing headroom by not having a proper bilge.

There's a sump further aft, near the companion way, but generally there is no bilge, just glassed-in plywood running just above the keel.

The legs were held in by coarse-thread wood screws. There's only about 1-1/2 inches from the cabin sole to the keel.

So now I'm faced with the task of sealing up these holes.

Any ideas?

My initial thought is to drill them out to 1/2", glue pieces of hardwood dowel with thickened epoxy, saw the dowel flush, then cover with a bit of glass.

Thoughts?

[psk125]

If you're planning on covering it with a bit of glass anyway, why bother with dowels? Mix up some epoxygoop & fill in the holes. Spread it smoothly across the top and you may be able to sand it and call it done without having to break out the 'glasss fiber at all.

[Jdege]

Originally Posted by psk125

If you're planning on covering it with a bit of glass anyway, why bother with dowels? Mix up some epoxygoop & fill in the holes.

That's a thought. When I've fixed screw holes in door jams, etc., I've always done the dowel bit with wood glue. But I've never fixed this sort of thing with epoxy. That's why I'm asking.

I have a bit of West System 104/205, and both 406 colloidal silica and 407 low-density fairing filler. Which filler would you suggest? 407 is easier to sand, but 406 is a lot stronger. Would I need that extra strength?

[Jammer]

You need the 406 because it is waterproof.

The 407 will wick water.

Just be careful and thorough striking it off with a trowel or scraper or whatever while it is still soft. It can still be sanded, it just takes time and eats sanding media. I like to use a die grinder with a 2" surface preparation disc for that.

[mlydon]

Either would be fine in that application. Let’s say colloidal. Fill the holes, using a small syringe, let a bit overtop the holes. After it hardens, knock the excess off with a chisel and call it done.

Matt

[Jdege]

Originally Posted by Jammer

You need the 406 because it is waterproof.

The 407 will wick water.

That's useful, thanks.

With holes this small, I expect that I'll be able to trowel them smooth, and not need much sanding.

[tkeithlu]

Holes that small could be filled with 3M 5200 without any structural loss. Don't make it more complicated than necessary.

[Jdege]

I didn't have any 5200, but I did have 105/205/406, and it seems to have worked.

I'll be sanding and painting, eventually, and with that done this should be invisible.