Save-A-Boat - The Forum for Plastic Classic Rebuilds!

Hi All,

I know there is always talk of new ports here and I just wanted to offer my latest photo based "how to" I wrote up on the installation of my NFM ports..

Here's the link:

Installing New Found Metals Portlights
http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/nfm_port_lights

Having just gone through all of this and learning it all as I went, I'm mad you didn't get this up sooner! Very informative and I'm glad you also took the trouble to highlight the small details!

I would have loved to have ordered from NFM, but they don't make (nor seem to want to make) oval ports!

Wow, great write up! I just pulled my ports (fixed) to paint and will have to re-install them in a few weeks. I'm not sure what the best way is to bed them - I will post pictures soon.

Thanks,

Noah

McMaster has butyl tape that is grey instead of black and is a lot less messy. They sell it in 1/4" rope form, but it is a little less messy and works just as good IMHO.

Part No. 1049A31 Sta-soft Glazing Rope.

I have gray flat butyl but I needed 3/8" round and could not find gray in 3/8" round... If you have a source for 3/8 gray I'll add that info to my site. I agree the black is VERY messy!

I doubled up the 1/4" where necessary, squeezed the portlights in with the clamps, and trimmed the excess. McMaster doesn't have 3/8" but I bet its out there.

Nice website Acoustic. You've totally inspired me. I was going to use polysulphide caulk but I decided to order some of that grey butyl tape from McMaster. I've removed my windows which are very different to your ports.
Do you recommend the butyl between the glass and the frame as well as between the frame and the coach house?

Wow, those look great. Nice writeup too!

Steve'O wrote:Nice website Acoustic. You've totally inspired me. I was going to use polysulphide caulk but I decided to order some of that grey butyl tape from McMaster. I've removed my windows which are very different to your ports.
Do you recommend the butyl between the glass and the frame as well as between the frame and the coach house?

It sounds like you want to use the butyl tape on your fixed portlights or deadlights. I did this on my Pearson 39 with good results, but BE WARNED, you will not be able to use a clamp to bed your deadlights with the butyl. It is viscous stuff that can be almost hard. You'll need some way of using mechanical advantage to press your ports to the cabin sides if the 1/4" butyl tape is too thick. You might try searching for thinner stuff if you have a problem.

That said, I've used it to bed the glass in the frame of my deadlights. It works better than that rubber channel stuff with the silicone AND it was easy enough to get a clamp on that to make a good seal.

I wonder if this is why some people have used the butyl caulk in tubes instead of the butyl "tape"? I haven't used either myself (yet), but at least in photos, the caulk looks pretty "soft" and gooey.

R.

Rachel wrote:I wonder if this is why some people have used the butyl caulk in tubes instead of the butyl "tape"? I haven't used either myself (yet), but at least in photos, the caulk looks pretty "soft" and gooey.

R.

Rachel can you point me in the direction for a source of butyl "caulk" in a tube? I'd LOVE to get my hands on some of that stuff!!

For the fixed ports I would use a flat butyl, not a round, in gray. I have a bunch, 1/8" thick X 1/2" wide, that I ordered about 8 years ago and it's still just as rubbery as when it was new..

If you don't have a way to clamp through Rachel is right that it takes a LOT to compress this stuff. I used a C-Clamp at every screw to do my compressing then just snugged up each screw but my ports are opening so I can do this..

I used to be able to find butyl in tubes at hardware and big box stores - sold as gutter and flashing sealant. The last time I checked though, the gutter sealant was some sort of synthetic blend that included silicone. It's out there, though.

I've been wondering about the butyl tape as a means of avoiding the sticky mess of "tube butyl". I need to replace my portlights, but they simply sit in a molded recess. There's no frame, thus there's no way to clamp the port in the sealant. I can rig some bracing to apply some pressure. Do you think butyl tape is too stiff (or non-malleable) for this application?

If I remember correctly, Ace hardware brand was one source of butyl. I think it may even come in colors other than black. It was definitely a "mundane" source and not an exotic one.

I'm watching this thread with interest for future reference.

Rachel

I just looked through Lowes and wasn't able to find Butyl in either form - I will keep looking as I will need it soon. With my fixed ports I think the only way I will be able to make it work is with the tube kind.

acoustic wrote:Rachel can you point me in the direction for a source of butyl "caulk" in a tube? I'd LOVE to get my hands on some of that stuff!!

I was thinking acoustic was being facetious, but just in case, I got mine last year a Maine Hardware on St. John Street in Portland - the big tube stuff.

MikeD wrote:

acoustic wrote:Rachel can you point me in the direction for a source of butyl "caulk" in a tube? I'd LOVE to get my hands on some of that stuff!!

I was thinking acoustic was being facetious, but just in case, I got mine last year a Maine Hardware on St. John Street in Portland - the big tube stuff.

Mike thanks! I'll check Maine Hardware in the morning. I know Red Devil, GE and OSI all make white butyl caulk but finding it is not easy!!! It seems everything is moving in the Silicone/hybrid direction most likely due to cost and butyl is becoming harder and harder to find..

To reassure myself, a quick internet search turns up lots of sources:

While I will have to check the tube to see what's really in it:
http://paint-and-supplies.hardwarestore ... caulk.aspx

Great writeup!

Just in case anyone needs butyl tape quick, NAPA stocks black round, as will any windshield shop. A lot of the pre-70's cars used it to seal the windshields. (The chrome clips held it in place and rubber blocks set the height.) The gray tape is almost always available at RV shops, as well as white that doesn't last quite as long. The big rig guys are about the only ones that still use a lot of it on new installs, almost everyone else has switched to rubber weatherstripping. Most any car dealer that can get Wurth products should have some stashed away (or stuck to the wall in the bays...)

Theres also "Butyl Sealant" which is loaded in caulk guns that is a one part liquid goop. ADCO is the one that comes to mind. One of the coolest tools I've seen is a compressed air powered squirter for this stuff. Rounded tip that slides in under weatherstripping and triggered to shoot it in. Leak tester is similar, shoots soapy water under compressed air until it bubbled out the leak!

Rachel wrote:If I remember correctly, Ace hardware brand was one source of butyl. I think it may even come in colors other than black. It was definitely a "mundane" source and not an exotic one.

I'm watching this thread with interest for future reference.

Rachel

Rachel's right. Ace carries tubes of butyl rubber sealant. It comes in a white tube with green accents and is advertised as Gutter and Foundation. I've used the gray. Don't know for sure if there are other colors.

David

McMaster carries the butyl-as-caulk too. I just wasn't sure this was the same stuff/had the same characteristics as the tape/rope. I'll check it out.