rudder stuffing box

[hericsson]

The base of the rudder stuffing box on my Roberts 341 has been leaking and the through bolts that hold the stuffing box down against the deadwood have corroded and need to be replaced.
To attempt to fix the problem I have used a grinder to remove some of the fiberglass layup that covered the bolts on the outside of the hull and I was able to pull the bolts out from below. Now, however, there are two gouges that need to be filled in after I put new bolts in place.
I have two questions regarding this repair.

1) I am planning on using 8 inch bronze carriage bolts inserted from below to replace the old corroded ones in the existing holes. Should I set the entire length of the bolt in epoxy and then glass over the gouges in the bottom, or should I leave the holes as they are and rely on sealant to prevent water from seeping into the holes and corroding the bolts again?

2) Do i need to apply some kind of barrier coat to the outside of the repair?

Thanks,

Hans Ericsson

[maxlynn]

Without understanding your setup completely, I would lean toward setting the bolts in Epoxy (maybe with some thickener such as microballons). Then I would just fair the gouges in the bottom with the same thickened epoxy paste. Sand it down when it hardens, and paint it. You don''t need a barrier coat on epoxy - it is a barrier coat.