Rebedding toerail...butyl tape mess

[Finallybuyingaboat]

Okay, I am replacing the old teak toe rails with Mahogany. I will be sealing with butyl tape, but since I need to bend the toe rail to get it into place, how can I best put down painter's tape to catch any butyl oozing out from under the rail?

Also, I am not quite sure how much tape to use under something like a cleat. Should I just make a little donut for each bolt hole, or do I put down enough to cover the entire area where the cleat sits on the deck?

Thanks for any input.

[sailingdog]

You'll want to put down enough to cover the entire area beneath the cleat—otherwise, water can get underneath and in the winter time possibly freeze there causing some serious problems.

[Maine Sail]

The cool thing about butyl tape is the ooze is easily cleanable. Once the toe rail has been tightly bolted down simply begine peeling the ooze up vertically along the toe rail. Do not pull it in an "out" fashion but pull up agains teh edge of the toe rail. Please DO NOT use black. Butyl tape has a mineral spirits base and cleans up easily with mineral spirits or even Meguiars Cleaner wax but do not get the wax on the wood before you paint it.

Cover the entire cleat base with 1/16" inch thick flat butyl and then make cones around the bolts.

[badsanta]

Dry fit them first. Put Paper painters Tape down around a good area where the cleat will go. place the cleat in place. Use an exacto knife to cut around the cleat base. Remove cleat and the paper cut out where you just cut. the place under the cleat now has no paper tape. Clean spot apply sealer. Install cleat and pull up the excess from around the cut spot. All done and a nice sharp clean edge. Could you tape around the old toe rail to mark its position then remove the old and replace with the new along the same line?

[Finallybuyingaboat]

I would have liked to tape where the old toe rail was prior to removal, but the paint is being redone as well, so that was not an option. Once i have the wood shaped, I will dry fit it and see if I can come up with some ideas. May just have to guess a bit, put tape one inch and a quarter from the edge of the hull and hope it all lines up.

[Capnblu]

The 3-m brand of blue painters tape is for exterior purposes, and comes off clean after baking in the sun for a few days. This blue tape comes off clean on interior surfaces, even after 1 year. FWIW.

[arf145]

Really, the butyl is easy to get off, as MS says. I run around the edge of the item with a dull putty knife and the piece strips away like cookie dough. If you are worried about scratching your deck, then a slightly sharpend wood paint stirrer would probably do the trick.

[sailingdog]

A plastic putty knife would do the trick too.

[arf145]

Originally Posted by sailingdog

A plastic putty knife would do the trick too.

Perfect!