Need Some Advice!

I do some catfishing so sometimes a rod holder or two gets a good bit of pressure. Also, rod racks bouncing up and down the road doesn't help much either.:( Well, as luck would have it, the base for one of my T-bars is too loose for the screws to hold it tight to the floor anymore. This base is in a part of the boat that I cannot get underneath the plywood to add washers and nuts to so I'm not real sure what my options are. The holes in the base are only so big so going too large on the diameter on the screws isn't an option. One person has suggested that I add gorilla glue to the screws when screwing them back in and giving the glue time to set but hopefully you guys will have something better.

BTW, I should mention that these bases are the flush mounted kind so there's a hold bored in the plywood @ 3/4" for the center part of the base to stick into so it flush mounts. This is where the threaded T-bar screws into.

Move the base to good material section?

X 2 only move it far enough that the plate will cover the hole that already there if possible
if you have to move it farther there is stuff you can buy to fill the hole so it wont be too noticeable

Can you put a larger plate on the floor so that you screw into floor and distribute the weight farther apart. Did one of mine that way and so far so good.

X2 on the plate or also have the option of metal anchors or insertsAttachment 282679

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When the lag bolts that hold the side guides on my trailer loosened and came out I drilled a hole in the guide exactly the size of the hole in the metal bracket that held it in. I cut a wooden dowel that was the size of the hole I drilled to a length corresponding to the depth of the hole I drilled. I coated it with good exterior wood glue and tapped it in the hole until it was flush with the surface. Once it dried and set up, I drilled a pilot hole and reset the lag bolt. This trick works in door hinges too, when they work loose over time.
PS. I used an oak dowel rather than pine or popular thinking it would stand up better to moisture.

Not sure of what type base you are talking about. If you have a 3/4" hole a toggle bolt could fix the problem. Post a picture of what the base/hole looks like

Attachment 282684

This is similar to the base Butch is describing.

The 3/4" hole is drilled in the boat so the threaded section goes in the hole and then the screws are installed to make the mount flush with the mounting surface.

Butch, that's a tough one for sure. Anyway you could put the mount on a drill press and expand the diameter of the mounting holes slightly so you could go back with a slightly larger screws? You could move the base by a few inches and re-drill but I'd hate to drill more holes if it were mine...





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I think a couple toggle bolts would fix the problem, maybe need to drill the holes in the deck out for the toggle part

Derek, that base is very similar except mine has 4 small holes anchoring it down. Moving the base over a bit and not uncovering the existing hole would only weaken the floor more and I doubt the base would cover both holes. Looks like my options are to plug the existing 3/4" hole and relocate the base to a new area or try the metal anchors. Getting the base tight again is only half the battle. Slightly larger screws would possibly tighten the base temporarily but I want it to stay tight. I'll check with someone that sells these bases locally to see if they have more with larger plates. Keep the ideas coming....and thanks.