Correcting a pilot hole that was drilled 1/8" offset ?

I screwed up the first hole of a (should-be-center)-mounted trim tab, drilling it 1/8" to the right of where it should be in the transom. The holes are for 1/4" pan head sheet metal screws. (I think the trim tab shifted when I was marking the hole... always a screwup when in a rush.)

I'm guessing it won't be a functional problem, but it looks kind of ugly close up since the drain plug makes the offset obvious.

I have not drilled the other holes yet. I'm trying to decide whether to fix the first hole, or just keep it and drill the rest with everything slightly off-center.

Does anyone know the best way to fix the hole if I go that route? Since it is just 1/8" off, the new (3/16") hole would half intersect the old hole. My best thought is to fill the old hole with epoxy (such as West System G/Flex 650 - http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs...roductId=14974), and then drill the new hole in half-fiberglass/half-epoxy. I just don't know if that will really work.

Thanks.

Fill the unwanted hole with Marine-Tex and drill the new hole once its cured.

FYI, I read on some other forum that Marine-Tex can crumble after a certain amount of time (years I assume), and that West System epoxy is supposed to be the best. (Please (you or anyone) let me know if you think otherwise. I'm ignorant on this.

But regardless of the epoxy brand, that's good to know you think the new hole will be structurally sound. Thanks.

Well, if you read it on the internet, it must be true, they cant put anything thats not true on the interent you know....I read that on the internet

J/K I started using Marine-Tex about 15 years ago, but feel free to use any product that says it can be used in the manor you need. There are a handful of products designed just for filling wallowed out holes and re-drilling them once cured.

For a 1 1/4" deep hole (1/4" diameter), do you think I can just fill it with epoxy in one go (after which it will be sitting for more than a week)? Or should I just fill it halfway and do the rest later? I've been trying to find official info on this but no luck so far.

The marina is pretty far away so doing it in one trip will save me hours and probably get me back on the water a week earlier.

Originally Posted by chpthril

Well, if you read it on the internet, it must be true, they cant put anything thats not true on the interent you know....I read that on the internet

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Bonjour

could you just slot the hole in the tab 1/8 of an inch and use the hole you drilled?

Extending the hole in the metal hinge was a great idea, and I probably would have done that. But it turned out that the new transom hole also had to be slightly lower, and the left+down combination gave me just enough distance from the bad hole to do a clean new hole (and I put epoxy in the old one).