so im getting the boat ready to paint and i know that the rudder gudgeons screw into a metal plate in the transom. do the drain plugs also bolt into a metal plate? im trying to decide wether i want to take them off or just tape them off and paint around them. also anyone have any magical ways to get stuck gudgeon screws out? theres always one that has to get stuck!
thanks

I just painted mine (1972). I just unscrewed the plugs, and then took out the two screws that held the mounting plate. When I put them back, I did put some silicone around it.

if you are talking about the delrin screws in the castings, the best i can recommend is to drill them out then take a mini-torch to whats left and chase with a bolt or even better a tap if you have one. There are a few pics in the tech help gallery.

ONE WORD OF WARNING, IF THE THREADS ARE NOT PERFECT, YOUR NEW SCREWS WILL JAM this was a major pain for such a simple problem but once i got a tap things went much better. if you want to be sure spring for the taps it is worth it

Duh,
I just re-read your post and I used vice grips to lock on to the heads to get them started. The good news is even if one breaks off, there is enough slop in the fitting to drill another hole and screw in beside it.

If you are using metal plug brackets, replace the red flat washers with the old black o rings as the red ones are crap and will leak big time.

by the way, my 87 H16 had wood in the bottom of the transom so redrilling was no problem

Haha.. Paul, i was wondering where you were going with that..

PS you had wood in your transom? I had a 84... and there was no wood in mine... just empty beer cans???

thanks for the help

Hey guys. I just took my screws & end plate off when putting the screws back I noticed one would not fasten all the way. I used a fair amount of silicone when I put it back in. Should I take out the. Screw place some tooth picks in the hole so the screw can grab it and silicone it?

If you have a wee bit of resin around, or can beg, borrow or steal a bit, just stuff the hole full of fibres soaked in resin. When it cures, drill a small pilot hole & replace the screw. It will be as good as new.

--
Hobie 18 Magnum
Dart 15
Mystere 6.0XL Sold Was a handful solo
Nacra 5.7
Nacra 5.0
Bombardier Invitation (Now officially DEAD)
Various other Dock cluttering WaterCrap
--