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Have any of you ever seen a boat that was built with ferrous metal fasteners?? I am restoring a 1932 Thompson TVT and except for the exposed screws that are visible on the finish product, everything else is pretty much steel or iron. This includes the pieces that are nailed. The first couple I came across, I thought ok someone had made a repair some years ago, but now I’m finding them in places that had to be from the original construction !! The problem with them is not only they rust, but as you probably all ready knew when you use them with oak they sort of fuse together and make it impossible to remove. All I know is it sure is slowing down my restoration project. Was this the case a lot in the 30s?? This is the oldest boat I have yet to restore so I’m wondering, or did I happen to come across a builder who ran out of brass screws??

tcvc,

Thompson used steel screws and bolts as a standard where they are not visible. They were not plated just plain steel. You could order a boat with all brass screws and bolts, if you wanted to pay additional money.
By using steel fasteners they saved money and also had less problems with screws breaking and slots stripping out when tightened. The did not have the silicone brass we have today with the higher strength.

In some cases it is easier to use a core type drill to drill out the screw and then plug the hole with a dowel and glue.

Good Luck,

Phill

Thanks Phil,
Yes I have been using a core bit but it just slows everything down. I don't have any of the silicone bronze screws but I have a lot of the regualr brass ones from a previous restoration, they should work, right??

Phill Blank wrote:tcvc,

Thompson used steel screws and bolts as a standard where they are not visible. They were not plated just plain steel. You could order a boat with all brass screws and bolts, if you wanted to pay additional money.
By using steel fasteners they saved money and also had less problems with screws breaking and slots stripping out when tightened. The did not have the silicone brass we have today with the higher strength.

In some cases it is easier to use a core type drill to drill out the screw and then plug the hole with a dowel and glue.

Good Luck,

Phill

tcvc,

Regular brass will work, but Silicone Brass is a better bet. Much stronger and less likely to break when screwing into oak.
Remeber to use slotted screws for anything that will be visible and you can use philips head if they are not.

Phill

Yup, very typical of builders of small boats to use plain steel fasteners.

Andreas