repair buttons for cover.

[cmtaylor777]

Anyone have any suggestions on how to replace the button snaps mounted to the boat that attach the cover. I am sure there is some do it yourself resin out there to fix the ones that pull through the fiberglass when you yank too hard on the cover.

Any suggestions???:D

[Salty87]

search 'spectrum gel coat' for one company that sells gel repair kits. they prob have your color.

if you're not worried about matching the color, marine tex will do the job filling the hole. i've never tried to put gel coat on marine tex, label says you can't.

how bad is the damage to the fiberglass? pic?

[iwakeboard]

Maybe you should contact Great Lakes Boat Top company? I'm 99% sure they made the cover for your boat and may have those parts. 423-884-6761

[cmtaylor777]

the damage isn't bad. on the play pen there is a few snaps that have pulled through. Looks like the snaps just screw in. I would imagine there is a product that you can fill the tiny hole and rescrew the snap into place. Is that what Marine Tex would do?

[cmtaylor777]

Ok Guys I found a solution.

I found a product called Aquamend. I bought it a Home Depot.

What it does is acts as an epoxy that attaches to just about any material. In this case...Fiberglass. It comes in a semi solid form much like a paste. You cut off a small amount and mesh it together with your fingers. It has two parts that mix together to create a "putty like" material that you can apply to an assortment of jobs. Even can be applied under water.

One at a time I filled the holes from the buttons that had been pulled out. ( had 4 that needed to be fixed) Once I packed the hole as full as possible, I took a razor and cleared the excess putty. Carefully, so that I didn't scratch the gel coat. I then screwed in the screw button for the cover. I only screwed down to a snug fit. Being that I'm screwing into putty, I'm sure over tightening would start to pull out some of the unformed putty. I then let the putty sit over night. Product says that it dries in an hour.

Checked the repaired buttons this morning and it worked perfectly. Buttons are tight and secure. Worked like a charm. Also, being the product can be used under water, I am sure it will hold up to the weather.

I would think you could also use MarineTex in the same way. I didn't have any on hand and the nearest place to buy is a lot further than Home Depot. Plus this stuff was only 4 bucks. Can't beat that!!!

Hope this helps anyone having the same problem with a button pulling through the fiberglass on your factory boat cover.

[dusty2221]

Nice work!

[Newty]

Sounds like a good product to have handy.
Good find!