I'm replacing the rubrail on a skiff. It's screwed in and screwholes are covered by wooden plugs. What's a good way of removing those plugs so I can access and unscrew the screws? Drilling them out seems hard on drill bits and screwheads.
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I'm replacing the rubrail on a skiff. It's screwed in and screwholes are covered by wooden plugs. What's a good way of removing those plugs so I can access and unscrew the screws? Drilling them out seems hard on drill bits and screwheads.
Drilling them out is really the only option, nothing else will remove the wood. It is really just a matter of which drill. I have done this on a canoe rub rail. I used a forstner bit. It leaves a quality hole to re-plug, the central spike will do minimal damage to the screws, yes some will need replacement.
In the past I’ve just run a regular wood screw into the center of the plug. When it hits the screw below it more often than not popped the plug out.
That’s the method I use but often with just a drywall screw. I have found that if you scrape the finish off the plug it reduces the chance of tear out of the surrounding area. Of course, I’m assuming the plugs were put in the traditional way with varnish rather than glue or epoxy.Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve Jenkins
Good luck!
As was mentioned already the screw method works great if they aren't glued in with epoxy or glue. Since you are replacing the rub rails how clean the holes are isn't a big deal so some break out isn't a concern. If you were going to reinstall them it gets touchier and much greater care is required to maintain a clean hole.
FWIW, some (most?) of the canoes and dinghies I have owned did not have the holes plugged. That was on white water boats and tenders both of which took a lot of abuse. I never found the lack of plugs to be a problem. Just me, but I would consider not plugging them when you install the new ones unless the aesthetics of that would really bother you.
Thanks guys. #8 wood screw worked like a charm.
Pete, this is one of those New England yacht club showboat things, and I'd have no end of snide comments if I showed up with an unplugged rubrail. I like the idea of just securing them with varnish; another thing I learned on this thread.
You don’t want to offend the Old Guard...there are standards lol! Bare bronze fasteners might pass.
If you do plug them, just dip them in a small pot of varnish and line up the grain before you tap them home. Works great and much less mess than epoxy if you have a drip.
Cheers!