Rubber Gaskets for Bedding Deck Hardware ?

[RAMGas10]

I'm not sure how much I have to contribute to some already fairly comprehensive replies.

All rubber will, eventually, corrode.

However not all neoprenes are the same. Any comprehensive gasket manufacturer should stock insertion rubber - this is rubber that has a wire or material inlay to reinforce it. It's the kind of rubber that they use for mud guards on farming machinery - and while it is more expensive than standard neoprene it will last much, much, longer.

My local supplier stocks neoprene gasket materials, and will also manufacture bespoke rubber gaskets to order.

Happy sailing,

Jamus

[S.V.Arebesque]

Nick of s/v Jedi .. After reading the posts in this thread, I have become interested if a 1/16 neoprene sheet would be something to add between the chainplate and the glassed in oak knee on my Vagabond? To the best of my knowledge the builder just bolted the plate against the glass.

[forsailbyowner]

I just posted a similiar question about bedding. The best answer i got was butyl rubber putty tape. Its cheap, stays tacky and flexible and lasts. Think of what they install car windshields with and the rarity of leaks on vehicles travelling 70mph through driving rain. It spans gaps, sticks to about anything. To do my toerail will cost about $25 and its a substantial 1/4" x 1 1/2" x 50' bead . Do some reading on it, I was pleasantly surprised. It comes in gray white and black where im getting mine.

[Stu Jackson]

Maine Sail's buytl is top quality. I got two rolls for like $16. Why buy inferior material, he did his ressearch about this stuff.

Whoops, did I say that before?

Probably. Sorry.

[forsailbyowner]

Originally Posted by Stu Jackson

Maine Sail's buytl is top quality. I got two rolls for like $16. Why buy inferior material, he did his ressearch about this stuff.

Whoops, did I say that before?

Probably. Sorry.

Because I have a lot to do. His is like 1/2"x 1/16" . I am getting a case of rolls of 1/8"x1 1/2" for $47. Doing the math... it s around 1/12th the price, can you verify any difference in composition to make it worth that much more?

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by S.V.Arebesque

Nick of s/v Jedi .. After reading the posts in this thread, I have become interested if a 1/16 neoprene sheet would be something to add between the chainplate and the glassed in oak knee on my Vagabond? To the best of my knowledge the builder just bolted the plate against the glass.

Hi, this thread seems to steer into the cheapest possible method as so many do, but the 1/16" neoprene sheet shouldn't break the bank either. My direct experience is: no leaks for 20 years with zero maintenance. For both chainplates and hull windows.

You need to oversize the holes for fasteners and add a sealant like Life-Calk to all surfaces that are clamped together acting as a dressing (fill voids too big for the sheet material) and to supplement around fasteners etc.
Check if the sealant is compatible with the sheet material. Also, I would not use silicone.

[Canibul]

People who use silicon on their boats should be prevented from reselling them to the innocent.

[Target9000]

Originally Posted by forsailbyowner

Because I have a lot to do. His is like 1/2"x 1/16" . I am getting a case of rolls of 1/8"x1 1/2" for $47. Doing the math... it s around 1/12th the price, can you verify any difference in composition to make it worth that much more?

I can.

Not all butyl is created equal. Not all of it even looks the same. Here is a photo of some rubber that came from Amazon and was very cheap compared to some rubber purchased from Mainesail.



Note this is just one set of the few different rubbers we tried, but all the results were similar.

One thing we did to test was to put this rubber on a crack out in the wide open sun and elements and leave it for six months to see what would happen.

Cheap butyl:


Butyl from RV store:



Before you buy a lot, make sure it stretches like this:



Basically, all butyl is not created equal as we found out. When you bed something with butyl it will hopefully be bedded "forever". Don't cheap out but don't overpay. Test the product you're going to be using before using it!

I can wholly endorse the stuff Mainesail sells. It was the best in all our testing.

[Canibul]

Glad to hear that. we're about half way done with our old boat, using the butyl that some previous owner had bought and stashed below decks. It's the light gray stuff and stretches well. Strangely enough, that cream colored stuff from Amazon looks amazingly like the hardened and crumbling stuff I am replacing.

Now if someone can just steer me to a good way to have an opening window in an acrylic sheet so I can replace all these old aluminum windows.