Corroded Rivet Heads

[vultureboy]

I own a 79 Starcraft Riveted 22' Islander cuddy cabin boat. My rivet problem is quite different than the leaky rivets problems that I have seen in this forum. My boat has never leaked a drop of water. When I went to repaint the boat, I discovered that every one of the rivet heads along the outside chine (where when moored in saltwater it gets dipped in and out a few million times) would flick right off. I tried to drive the remaining shafts out with a punch, but it was as though they were welded in. The surrounding aluminum would dent before the rivet would budge. I then attempted to drill them, but discovered that the smashed rivet stub was harder than the surrounding sheet aluminum and the drill bit would walk and I would end up with an out-of-round hole. I then decided to drill in between every OEM rivet and add a new rivet of my own. This is a really big, difficult project that requires two people and my rivets (these are not pop rivets)look pretty shabby compared to the OEM rivets. I use an air hammer with a cupped riveting head on the outside and some poor accomplice holding a hammer head on the inside. It is a deafening process for the inside guy and we can't wear earguards because the inside guy has to yell to me when to stop the air hammer. I am considering continuing with my extra rivets scheme, but it looks really tacky. I am considering covering both chines with either a glued-on strip of rubber to hide my poor craftsmanship or possibly epoxying a strip of aluminum to hide it. I would really appreciate input from those with experience in corroded rivets.<br /><br />Bill Robinson<br />Spokane Washington

 

[SeaDawg]

Re: Corroded Rivet Heads

I had a 1993 Sea Nymph that the rivets corroded on, only in certain spot as you are describing. The factory (OMC at the time) replaced the boat, because they had used a piece of stainess as a support piece inside the boat, and it was causing galvanic corrosion.<br /><br />If you have the same problem, your new rivets will corrode as quickly as the first ones.

 

[SeaDawg]

Re: Corroded Rivet Heads

I had a 1993 Sea Nymph that the rivets corroded, only in certain spot as you are describing. The factory (OMC at the time) replaced the boat, because they had used a piece of stainess as a support piece inside the boat, and it was causing galvanic corrosion. The rest of the boat had aluminum supports, and the rivets were beautiful (they are aluminum too).<br /><br />If you have the same problem, your new rivets will corrode as quickly as the first ones. and it could also cause the hull to split near the rivets. I would inspect closely for hairline cracks.