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1. Is there any reason why I shouldn't fill the scupper holes and glass over. Has anyone taken this approach or am I REALLY asking for trouble?
2. The bilge drain tube should probably also be replaced as a chunk of the flare is missing. Is there a common way to remove these (and the scupper tubes)? Good source for the brass tubes or better options?
3. When reinstalling scupper tubes or bilge drain am I just going to coat the holes and tubes with 3M 5200 and slide them in & then use one of those Moeller flanging tools to flare and seal? I think maybe Bushwacker made his own - got a picture or recipe for that Denny?
4. I noticed a bit of wetness on the carpet right at the cap seam in the cuddy. Looks like a chore. Is it? What does that take to seal?
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Hey Gillie, here's some comments on your questions . . .
1. Don Herman said a frequent mod he did was to plug the vertical scuppers and run 'em out thru the transom using PVC pipe and the Raybud check valves. The only problem I had with that is the plumbing that would have to run thru the baitwell and thru the storage area under stbd seat. It's already hard enough to remove that battery over near the chine, so decided to leave 'em alone. I just leave the plugs in or use the vortex check valve plugs when I need to frequently hose off the deck after diving, fishing, etc. If I was to redo the boat, I'd raise the deck and keep the drains in same location, but use right angle fittings to run them out the transom and use the Moesly idea of crossing the lines so stbd side drains out port side, etc.
2. I'd definitely replace that transom drain, as it could quickly rot your transom if it's not well sealed. Same goes for the scupper tubes because if they aren't sealed to the hull, they'll cause the wood blocks they're in to rot out, which makes subsequent repair more difficult in that area. Those brass tubes are pretty thin and easy to remove. The first time I think I did it the hard way by using a hacksaw to cut thru the length of the tube. The easy way is to just use a hammer and screwdriver on the outside, and hit the flare from the side to buckle the tube and then you can push out the tube. If they're as old as mine were, they're probably pretty brittle and will come out in pieces! I ordered new tubes from the local Boat Owners Warehouse store - they got 'em overnight. Another option is to replace 'em with PVC which I think is what Big Shrimpin did. Only problem with that is you end up with a smaller diameter drain, and I decided that if I ever took a breaking wave over the transom, I'd want all the flow area in those scuppers that I could get!
3. When you put the new tubes in, I guess 5200 is ok for the transom tube if wood is solid, but if the there's any rot around the scupper tubes like I had, it's just a band-aid that will eventually fail! I had replaced my scupper tubes once before, years ago before 5200 existed, maybe early 80's! I used Life Caulk polysulfide, which is pretty good stuff that will cure underwater, but it eventually leaked and there was 1/4 - 1/2" of rot in the wood block around the tubes. I dug out most of the rot, dried it out with alcohol, used Git-rot on the wood that was left, filled the cavity with thickened epoxy and then redrilled the hole (did a post a year or two ago with photos showing how I used some PVC and a wood dowel to create a pilot hole). I did use 5200 around the tubes this time, but even if the tube corrodes and leaks, it's now surrounded by solid epoxy, so water can't leak into bilge. As for flaring the tubes, I had some 1/2" drive air tool sockets with a pretty good taper on them, so I used a threaded rod with nuts and washers and the socket to get the flare started, and then finished it with a ball peen hammer. Some guys have said you need to heat the brass to anneal it before flaring, but I didn't do that and didn't have any problems. The tubes are already flared on one end and I would think they would already have to be in the annealed condition to do that.
4. You're learning about that Seafari pretty quick! I didn't discover the leaks thru the rub rail till my first Bahama trip! After a 10 hr/160 mile run to Green Turtle, EVERYTHING in the cabin was soaked - sort of like spraying a hose in there every time I punched into a 3' sea! Thank goodness we didn't stay on the boat that trip! Don't know if the rub rail had been replaced before or if rivets came out, but when I pulled it off I found 2X more holes than screws! After filling the extra holes with Marine Tex, I replaced the aluminum rail with a vinyl rub rail I bought from SeaCraft, the type used on the 23 with the inverted U-shape built into the bottom. That rail is a great spray deflector, but when you punch into a big head sea, the water tries to tear it off, and on the next trip I still had trouble with some of the sheet metal screws backing out! I replaced them with #10 machine screws with washers and nylock nuts, and it never moved after that!
You're making good progress! It took me several years and 2-3 Bahama trips to get mine sorted out (and I'm STILL finding stuff I want to change!) Guess that's the nature of boats! Denny