3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

[duck64]

i here this is better than jb weld any comments

 

[DJ]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

3M 5200 and JB Weld are really not comparable.<br /><br />5200 is a silicon type sealer as where JB weld is a two part epoxy type that hardens near the strength of metal.<br /><br />Iwould use 5200 to seal screw holes, etc, yet I would use JB weld to repair damage, etc.

 

[kd6nem]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

Above water line or below? How big are the holes? I have never had a boat with aluminum hull of any sort, but those toon's really need to stay dry inside if you want to float. Aluminum welding would not be overkill, particularly at or near the waterline.

 

[duck64]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

so i would go with jb weld

 

[crazy charlie]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

JB weld is good stuff but in an aluminum application it may come off at any time if the alum oxidizes which it probably will because it must be sanded clean for the jb weld to stick.When it oxidizes,and it will,the weld will come off.The far better choice would be 3m 5200.I have used it below water line on aluminum boats with great results.It will be permanent and will flex with the aluminum and allow you to sandwich it between the repair and another piece of aluminum if you choose.That type of repair could last forever.The strength and chemical resistance is unbelievable.Jb weld works great if you want to fix a block or a manifold or something more of that nature.Charlie

 

[sloopy]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

I am going to agree with Crazy Charlie, do not use J.B weld when working below the waterline, or on any surface that might bend or flex.

 

[duck64]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

i found the leak, it,s on the top rear where the top deck fits on the factory weld. it would be underwater when going fast. otherwise out of water. thanks for the help

 

[kd6nem]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

Why not just weld it? Probably wouldn't cost more than a year's worth of goop to seal it, but it would be a genuine permanent fix that you'd never has to mess with again.

 

[dajohnson53]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

I'd check out welding as a first option as well. One caution with using the 3M products or JB weld (both GREAT products, by the way) - if you later find it doesn't work and decide at that point that a weld is in order, it must be completely cleaned up before welding. A lot of times that's pretty easy - just grind or sand away the JB or 3M. In other cases, if it's inside a crack or in a place it can't be grinded off, it may make sound welding impossible due to contamination - therefore eliminating that as an option. So, at least think about that and maybe get an estimate on the welding. BTDT.

 

[dajohnson53]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

Originally posted by crazy charlie:<br /> JB weld is good stuff but in an aluminum application it may come off at any time if the alum oxidizes which it probably will because it must be sanded clean for the jb weld to stick.When it oxidizes,and it will,the weld will come off.The far better choice would be 3m 5200.I have used it below water line on aluminum boats with great results.It will be permanent and will flex with the aluminum and allow you to sandwich it between the repair and another piece of aluminum if you choose.That type of repair could last forever.The strength and chemical resistance is unbelievable.Jb weld works great if you want to fix a block or a manifold or something more of that nature.Charlie

Everything I've read about 3M 4200 and 5200 either does not list aluminum as a material that it can bind/seal - or alternatively states the aluminum must be primed or painted. Have you used it on bare aluminum with good results - e.g. permanent, strong bond and seal?

 

[crazy charlie]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

D ,did you read my entire reply to bmcg1 ??? Dont prime the aluminum.I have used it inside and outside and below the water line.Sealing a pontoon is a breeze for 5200.I used it on a hull and at hull joints,and in place of rivets.And I am not talking about on a row boat or canoe.25 ft chrysler lonestar cabin cruiser.Charlie

 

[dajohnson53]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

Thanks Charlie - yes I did read it. And you've also given me some good advice in the past about patching an aluminum hull with 5200 (I ended up having it welded because it really needed to be in this particular case). I am actually "poised" to use the 5200 to attach a piece of aluminum bracket to the hull. In reading the tube and the product info I've seen on the web I saw that it really doesn't mention bare aluminum among the long list of applications it can be used on - and somewhere else I did read that 5200 and 4200 can be used on painted aluminum, or if bare, it should be primed first. That's the only reason I was clarifying. Sounds like it bonds and seals bare aluminum - which is great for what I need and I appreciate the feedback.

 

[crazy charlie]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

I put a few L pieces inside the hull for reinforcement without priming and they gave the structural integrity I was looking for.I really dont recall any mention of priming before using the 5200.I have used it enough times to think that any priming would certainly adversly affect the bond.Charlie

 

[dajohnson53]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

Yea, that's the sort of stuff - I appreciate hearing the direct experience. Actually, the stuff I'm working on now isn't all that structural and I'm thinking of using 4200 to see how it works - it's accessable and easy to clean (even if it means cutting and/or grinding) if it needs something stronger in the future. Thanks again.

 

[crazy charlie]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

there is a debonding agent that you can use to undo it or clean it up.Makes it much easier if you ever need to take things apart.Charlie

 

[Solittle]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

Another product you should have even if you don't use it on this job is Marine Tex. It too is a two part product and will cure underwater if need be.

 

[BillP]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

I endorse 5200 but but it doesn't stay flexible forever. I caulked a boat windshield and transom with it around 1985. I still have the boat and started a full blown restoration about 2 yrs ago. The 5200 was hard as a rock, no flex and very brittle. It didn't take much to crack it into pieces. It reminded me of really hard sheetrock without the paper on it...and crumbled the same way. On the flip side...I also took fittings off which were bedded in Boatlife polysulfied and it was still flexible.

 

[crazy charlie]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

Hey Bill,you got 19 years out of a tube of sealant that cost you 6.99 at that time.What the heck do you expect????? I bet you were more flexible 19 years ago too.Charlie

 

[BillP]

Re: 3m 5200 anyone used this on pontoons

Actually, due to all the great press back then (and still now) I expected 5200 to be superior in all respects to polysulfide. My original plans were to use 5200 on top of the stringers to set the ply floor down...the plans changed to using thickened epoxy when I found the brittle 5200. Don't get me wrong, I like 5200 but there are places I won't use it on.