Brass screws in a Brass keel band?

share hints, tips and experiences
Post Reply
Jimmylovescake
Posts: 61
Joined: Mon Sep 30, 2013 6:34 pm
Location: North Devon

Brass screws in a Brass keel band?

Post by Jimmylovescake »

So I'very been making steady progress with my 1734 Enterprise. Having finished varnishing the inside (finally after 8 coats of varnish), and almost completed varnishing the inside bits, I'm getting my order for Silicon Bronze screws to start putting it all back together.
I'm intending to fit the brass keel band with brass screws, but just wanted to make sure I shouldn't be using Silicon Bonze.
Any advice, as obvious as this is I'm sure, would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.
Rupert
Posts: 6255
Joined: Thu Sep 16, 2004 8:40 pm
Location: Cotswold Water Park

Re: Brass screws in a Brass keel band?

Post by Rupert »

I've always used brass in them, never had any trouble, save where they have been worn away and not had much head left for removing them. Suspect the same would be true of any screws on a worn keel band, though.
Rupert
Michael4
Posts: 504
Joined: Fri Jan 03, 2014 5:25 pm
Location: West Sussex

Re: Brass screws in a Brass keel band?

Post by Michael4 »

I'd stay with brass, and much cheaper than silibronze too!
Tideway 206
11+
Sold the 'Something bigger and plastic', it never got used.
Jimmylovescake
Posts: 61
Joined: Mon Sep 30, 2013 6:34 pm
Location: North Devon

Re: Brass screws in a Brass keel band?

Post by Jimmylovescake »

Thanks folks, that saves a few quid
User avatar
Ed
Site Admin
Posts: 3486
Joined: Wed Sep 01, 2004 10:11 pm
Location: Plymouth
Contact:

Re: Brass screws in a Brass keel band?

Post by Ed »

Only thing that I might add to this is....

there does seem to be 'brass' and 'brass'....

I recently bought a few boxes of Screwfix brass screws and was using those but they are crap and in one case, trying to remove them only a year (or two) later showed them to have rotten to such an extent that half of them broke before extraction. Others have suggested these are made in China of pretty crap metal.

I reckon I will take a bit more care in future to avoid the cheapest ones as it now doesn't really seem worth the saving.

cheers

eib
Ed Bremner
CVRDA


Jollyboat J3
Firefly F2942
IC GBR314 ex S51 - 1970 Slurp
MR 638 - Please come and take it away
Phelps Scull
Bathurst Whiff - looking for someone to love it
Ian Malcolm
Posts: 51
Joined: Mon Mar 07, 2005 3:42 am
Location: United Kingdom

Re: Brass screws in a Brass keel band?

Post by Ian Malcolm »

Don't be penny wise and pound foolish. When I re-did my Alb keelband, the amount of trouble I had with rotten brass screws was beyond belief. I was doing well if I could shift 2/3 of them in one piece at anything up to 10 minutes per screw.

If you intend to keep the boat + ever sail on salt or brackish water, the silicon bronze screws are worth it for peace of mind. Five years later, if you have to remove a section of keelband to anneal it and hammer out a ding, you will be glad that all the screws (that haven't had their heads ripped off) come out cleanly.

The extra cost of silicon bronze is really quite small compared to the costs of making good the damage from dezinked brass screws - even if the screw comes out in one piece the metal salts are really bad for the wood around the hole.

DZR brass screws are OK for limited lifespan freshwater use, but making sure the screws are actually DZR brass and not cheap far East god knows what alloy is not so easy. Even the supplier may not know for sure due to supply chain issues after their buyer has initially accepted the product.

(e.g. I bought an assortment of so-called copper washers from a leading auto parts chain and found when I came to use them that they were hard brass flash plated with copper and were absolutely useless for their intended application of high pressure seals. I pointed out it was a safety critical issue and the product was withdrawn, my money refunded and I was given a replacement assortment that I believe they custom assembled for me by ordering individual packs from a competitor!)
Ian Malcolm. London, ENGLAND. (FORUM REPLY PREFERRED)
ianm[at]the[dash]malcolms[dot]freeserve[dot]co[dot]uk
[at]=@, [dash]=- & [dot]=. *Warning* HTML & >32K emails --> NUL:
'Stingo' Albacore #1554 - 15' Early 60's, Uffa Fox designed,
All varnished hot moulded wooden racing dinghy.
Post Reply