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Posts: 77
| I have 2 24 inch hand rails that i want to install on my 2007 tuffy 1700 esox. is this something i can do on my own? seems like I would just drill holes, put the rail in, and use somet type of nut to keep it in place. is it that easy or does drilling into the fiberglass need special work? any help would be great. thanks |
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Posts: 260
Location: Almost Heaven | Well, Once you drill the holes they are there? "I" would start out with a VERY small and good drill bit for your pilot holes and progress to the size you need to mount your brackets. Mark the hole location and proceed slowly. Get stainless hardware and use stainless nylock nuts with a flat washer underneath . I would also use a nylon or rubber gasket under the rail brackets. This is how i would do it if i thought that's what i wanted. My opinion only. |
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| Start with a 1/8" bit and drill your holes. Then, countersink them. This is very important to avoid chipping the gel coat now and in the future. Then upsize your drill bits progressively until you get to the size hole you need. You might be able to go to the size you need with your second bit of the holes aren't that big. Just make sure that when you're done drilling that the countersunk portion of the hole is a bit larger than the hole itself.
I agree with a think rubber pad under the rails, though it's not necessary. Washers are bad because you don't want grit getting underneath. Either install a pad that is the same size as the base of the rail, or don't install a pad at all.
If the boat is very cold it's not a bad idea to warm the area you're drilling up to room temp before you drill.
Shoot a bit of silicone in the holes before you put the screws in and that's it.
You can avoid all these steps and it will work just fine, but you're much less likely to experience cracking in the gel coat if you follow the procedure outlined above. Hope this helps. |
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Posts: 32955
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | Good advice. Use a nylock nut, and a nylon washer. Do NOT over tighten. |
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Posts: 203
Location: Minnesota | for extra strength, you could put 2 aluminum plate under the area you drilled through, 1 per hole, two per side... |
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Posts: 814
| I would use the black round gaskets for sure. There's a reason they make them, and a reason there on every factor rigged ranger ordered with rails. You can get them through any ranger dealer, there a few bucks a piece and the holes are already there. |
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Posts: 32955
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | You will not need the rubber gasket on top or the aluminum plate underneath. The rails come with nylon washers that go between the surface and the rail. |
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Posts: 2893
Location: Yahara River Chain | I would place tape down and mark the holes and drill through the tape and on the back side have a scrap block of wood to keep the backside from blowing out.
Good ideas, like the locking nuts and the bigger plates on the backside, instead of a washer. If not, see if you can find larger fender washers. May not in stainless steel.
The best would be a long aluminum strip the entire length of the rail underneath. Might be a little over kill. but it would be the best.
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installing hand rails on tuffy 1700 esox