Thread: Rivets...gotta' love 'em!

If you want to do it yourself, there are metal epoxy putties out there. They come in a stick and you cut off what you need, then knead the two parts together. Use a wire wheel in a drill or Dremel tool to remove the paint around and on top of the rivet as well as rough up the aluminum. Press a small ball of the epoxy into the rivet and smooth it out with your fingers. If you wet your finger tips with a little water, you can blend the epoxy into a smooth repair.

As suggested by another, 5200 will work but is a lot more messy to deal with and takes a while to cure. It also requires moisture to fully cure and in dry, cold conditions that can take a while since there is little humidity in the air.

Originally Posted by kycreekboy

Why not weld it? A good welder could tig up a couple of rivets in no time & you would be done with it.

Exactly

Originally Posted by kycreekboy

Why not weld it? A good welder could tig up a couple of rivets in no time & you would be done with it.

NO DOUBT THE BEST OPTION . ONLY PROBLEM THEN IS YOU WILL HAVE NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT .

There are all kind of good Marine grade two part epoxy patching compounds out there. I think the last I used was called Marine Weld. It mixed to a gray putty like product. Always worked from outside of the boat. Clean around the rivet and rough it up with some fine sand paper. When it hardens you can not get it off. It is sandable and paintable. But if it is on the bottom of the boat it does not have to be a thing of beauty. I have fixed up some real old clunkers in the past this way including holes. Luckily I now have a ten year old Lund that is as tight as the day it was built, they sure make a great boat!!!!

Marine Tex,,,check it out,,,works fantastic.

im thinking it cant be fixed and will require a new boat. sound like the best solution to me

Several very good options so far. As to welding, it takes a good welder to work the sheet metal. I've seen one attempted and abandoned after the welder blew holes in the hull. the blind rivets get my vote, but I really favor doing the work to buck new rivets into place. Just my opinion. Then you get new carpet to slime up too.

I go for the blind rivets also. Because just welding the rivet will not tighten the seam that loosened because of the loose rivet. I would blind rivet it using sealant on the rivets then check it for leaks. Then I would use one of the sealant mentioned to seal the seam if it leaked. Just my humble opinion based on limited experience.
"gene"