Hobie Cat Forums

I have a couple of screws that keep coming loose..... on my boat!!

Is this common? How do I fix it? I'm assuming that I should use Blue LocTite on them, but I thought I'd write here first.

Here is a picture of the two screws:

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Maybe even red loc tite.

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Matt Miller
Director of Parts and Accessory Sales
Hobie Cat USA

I suggest going with "Blue" or "Red" Loctite. Here is my recent post on a related issue (loose screws port side A-Frame). I reported the same problem with my A-Frame. I love to dig into the sea and swells which causes a lot of "pounding" and vibration. Bought the Bravo in June 2011, and lots of sailing this summer. Port side A-Frame anchor bolts/screws have come loose three times so far because of the heavy vibration. First time, I tightened the bolts. Second time, I used a couple of drops of Loctite Threadlocker "Blue". Used up package. (Loctite used when boat first assembled -- Small container came with boat). Third time, I coated both bolts with Permatex Threatlocker "Blue" (same as Loctite, which I couldn't find here in Nova Scotia.) It's held for the last few sails with lots of hull pounding into the sea and swells, but we'll see. If that doesn't work, I'm going to "Red". ("Red" is advertized as permanent, "Blue" is advertized as medium strength.) If you use Loctite, suggest you give it some time to cure. See their website on curing times.

Thanks! I didn't know much about Loctite, so when I asked, I had always assumed that blue was marine loctite, while red was the stuff that I was familiar with before Hobie's entered my life.

Thanks for the clarification, I definitely want Red. I don't see any need for those screws to loosen. It's a used boat for me, so I'm trying to make sure that everything is in perfect working order, that seems to be the only thing that's not working as I had expected.

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OUCH!!!

$26.49 to make sure two tiny little screws stay tight!! Turns out LocTite isn't available in Canada (guess that explains why two of my very handy neighbours had no clue what it was!)

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When I looked up the price of Permatex Threadlocker "Blue" and "Red" (both the same price), I thought the same thing. However, $26 is for the larger bottle. When you get to Canadian Tire, you'll find they have different sizes. I bought the small 6ml tube for about $7.

I can also attest to the loosening of the fasteners on the A frame of both old and newer Bravos. My girls brought their Bravos to sailing school for 5 weeks over the summer. I had to religiously inspect the screws every morning during rigging. After a calm day at sea, generally the fasteners remained tight but on a wild day with multiple flips, the screws backed themselves out. I used blue thread locker this Spring but it didn't hold out. I'm hesitant to use the red stuff on the older boat with the Phillips head screws. I may upgrade them to hex heads next season and do it right.

Also, the screws on the mast base were prone to backing out as well...even with lock washers in place. Plus the screws on the boom outhaul....these should be riveted IMHO.

But back to the original question....can these two screws be replaced with stainless rivets?

I'm hoping that this won't be a problem, and that the red stuff will hold them tight so that I can ignore them, but I'll let everyone know if things don't work out.



My mast base screws are rock solid. On my AI, they tend to loosen, but the Bravo hasn't had any problems at all. Mine doesn't have any lock washer though, so maybe mine is a slightly different design.

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I added the lock washers on one boat because a screw bottomed out prematurely. I'm hesitant to use red loctite on Phillips screws because when they need to be removed (and someday it will happen), I don't want the heads to get stripped when extra torque is needed to remove them.

Slot and Phillips screws should be discontinued. Robertson, Hex and Torx rule.

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Marc...
1978 Hobie 16 Keoke, sail# 36 84

So would Home Depot have the same screws with the different heads? If I'm going to fix this today, I should probably do it right.

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Home Depot does have a selection of stainless steel screws. So does Canadian Tire. If you can't find it there, Fastenal would have some for sure. Check Fastenal's website to see if there is a store near you.

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Marc...
1978 Hobie 16 Keoke, sail# 36 84

Cool. There are a few Fastenal locations around where I'll be today.

On another note. If we make Matt an Honourary Canadian (note the U) then this is an entirely Canadian post.

Cool

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Well, it's all CA.

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Marc...
1978 Hobie 16 Keoke, sail# 36 84