Caulks: BoatLife, OSI, SIKAFLEX

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Phil T
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Location: Was Maine. Temporarily Kentucky

Caulks: BoatLife, OSI, SIKAFLEX

Postby Phil T » Thu Jun 30, 2022 8:31 pm

Boat Life's Life Caulk is the easiest and most suggested sealant to use for bedding screws and bolts.

While you can use Life Caulk for deck seams, OSI Quad #450 is a very close color match for the purists.

SIKAFLEX 291 FAST CURE MARINE SEALANT is an another option but not as easy to find and more expensive.
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dtmackey
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Re: Caulks: BoatLife, OSI, SIKAFLEX

Postby dtmackey » Fri Jul 01, 2022 8:08 am

Thirty-years-ago I'd have told you to seek out 3M 101 bedding compound, but I haven't seen it on the market in a long time.

I've since switched to SIKAFLEX [291 FAST CURE MARINE SEALANT] since it's recommended by many boat builders. It's available on Amazon (as low as $16.50 for a large tube) and if I order, it's at my house the next day and best of all that's half the price of BoatLife tubes at West Marine. Doesn't get any easier than that.

If you have a tube that's not used up, do your best to plug the end and place in the freezer, and it will keep for a long time.

D-

jimh
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Re: Caulks: BoatLife, OSI, SIKAFLEX

Postby jimh » Fri Jul 01, 2022 9:08 am

dtmackey wrote:I've since switched to SIKAFLEX since it's recommended by many boat builders....If you have a tube that's not used up, do your best to plug the end and place in the freezer, and it will keep for a long time.
Thanks for the endorsement of SIKAFLEX 291 FAST CURE MARINE SEALANT, and for the concept of keeping it refrigerated.

Many sealant or adhesive products are, in essence, already curing in their dispensing tubes. Being able to get longer shelf life from them would be very welcomed. It is frustrating to buy a $15 tube, use about one-tenth of it, and discover later--well, maybe a year later--that the product is completely dried up in the tube.