Hi all. I am about to epoxy the deck onto my Guider build. Plans call for using temporary drywall screws every 6 inches to provide clamping force while epoxy cures. Question: Should I drill a pilot hole for each screw through the deck (has been fiberglassed already)? I think the screws will self tap into the in-wale which is soft wood. Just not sure about the deck itself. Any particular guage or length of screw folks like for this? The in-wale/sheer clamp is 1-1/4” thick. Deck is 1/4” roughly. Thanks!
-Peter
A pilot hole will certainly not hurt and will help the screws go in straight, especially if they need to be in an area where the weave is filled (or overfilled).
As far as size, I’ve usually used 3/4" in the past for this. The last time I did this, though, I used 1" and had rectangles of 1/4" wood (scrap okoume from the rest of the build) on top of the deck. The screws went through the scrap, through the deck and into the inwale. I did this for 2 reasons. First, this let me really tighten down on the screws and get a good clamping pressure without putting a dimple into the deck. Second, if the screw got glued in by the epoxy that held the deck on, I could chip away the scrap and grab the protruding part of the screw with vise grips to remove it. It also let me do that if the screw head broke off, something that happens not so occasionally with drywall screws. I have a picture somewhere and when I get my hands on it I’ll attach it to this post.
Have fun,
Laszlo
I would wax the threads of the screws as well.