When making holes. Filling advice.

[Jonathan M. Cohn]

I need to either lower this outboard bracket or add a different bracket that can raise and lower. Questions:

 

If I move this down, lower on the transom, do I use something around the bolts when I install them in the new holes?

 

What do I use to fill the now empty higher bolt holes? 

 

In general, when I drill into wood, should I be filling first with epoxy and then drilling into that or can I drill direct into the wood? For example, the previous owner used screws inside with zip ties to bundle wires. Is this ok? Previous owner drilled through the bulkhead by the companionway to mount a solar controller. OK?

 

Any info or recommendation appreciated.

[Peter HK]

In general one should always seal with epoxy.

I would use thickened epoxy to fill the old holes- it shrinks a bit so I try to leave the thickened epoxy a little proud and sand it off later rather than having to add a little more later.

For drilled holes I usually coat with plain epoxy using a pipe cleaner to spread it evenly inside the hole.

You can dip screws in epoxy when screwing them in.

For the ultimate protection you can drill a very oversized hole and fill it with thickened epoxy and redrill the correct size hole- I wouldn’t bother for a trailer boat stored out of the weather but have done this for boats left in the water for long periods.

HTH

Cheers

Peter HK

[PadrePoint]

Could you drill new holes in the black rubberized “transom” part of the bracket to lower it by some inches?  
I’ll do a quick visit of my boat for a photo. 

[PadrePoint]

I guess mine is set similarly in the bracket… still, new bolt holes in the black part could be helpful. I use a long shaft Honda 5 hp for in this boat and it is in the water sufficiently.  I might add some wedging this year (if I feel like it ) since the transom is pitched slightly forward and the shaft angle would be improved.  Since I use the motor primarily to move from the dock, I don’t feel a big need for a more correct fit… adequate is fine for me.  Also, my lighter Honda 2.3 works very well to attain hull speed. 
The boat is a Core Sound 17 Mk 3. 

[Jonathan M. Cohn]

Thanks for the suggestions. If I am buying epoxy for filling some of the holes, what would you recommend? I have some marine-tex on hand that I used on a previous boat's project.

[Paul356]

Careful if you move the black part down; the motor may not have room to tip up.