Hand rails and cleets

[Jeromy Gaudy]

2017 Yamaha 212 LTD S. Both handrails and 2 bow cleets and worked loose. Anyone know how or able to tighten

 

[AuburnVFR]

Find a small child or contortionist to get in the front storage compartments with a ratchet with long extension and deep sockets. There are a few other threads dealing with this and they indicate the cleats require a 1.25" deep socket and grab rails need a 1/2" deep socket. You may get lucky and have better access by removing a speaker. Wear long sleeves, as the inside hull is raw fiberglass.

 

[3 green tornados]

I bought several extra extensions and paired with universal joint swivels I already had for those and the tower bolts. Luckily patience was on sale at Autozone that day.

 

[Jeromy Gaudy]

Thanks!! May have to run to AutoZone and look for patience and a small human also?
Thanks for the info

 

[anmut]

I have a 21' boat and the handrails were fairly easy when they loosened up last year. Front of the handrails and bow cleans can be reached by taking out the front speakers. The rear handrail bolts:

Go through the helm compartments. I'm 6'0, 200lbs, and found that if I "backed" my body into these compartments (so that my back ended up against the inside of the hull) , I could stretch my left arm (port side) or my right arm (stbd) with a socket wrench and a 4" extension and blindly find, and tighten, the bolts.

As stated, wear long sleeves, as raw fiberglass is ITCHY.

 

[AZMark]

I bent my starboard handrail in a drinking and fishing accident.
I’ve never attempted to remove it and straighten it out and the more of these threads I read the more I decide that I like the “character” the bend gives it. If people are struggling to just tighten a nut that’s already in place there’s no way I’m R&R’ing this thing.
Wife has not noticed for two seasons. She definitely will someday when I least expect it.

 

[drewkaree]

I bent my starboard handrail in a drinking and fishing accident.
I’ve never attempted to remove it and straighten it out and the more of these threads I read the more I decide that I like the “character” the bend gives it. If people are struggling to just tighten a nut that’s already in place there’s no way I’m R&R’ing this thing.
Wife has not noticed for two seasons. She definitely will someday when I least expect it.

Those brown bottle bass really put up a fight ?

 

[Alexegan88]

FYI - at least on my 252SE - removing the speaker is not enough to reach the forward hand rail bolt. You have to remove the entire speaker trim. Start with the speaker. Then there are four bolts that you have to remove from the inside (access under the seat or through speaker hole and then also remove the two cup holders (rotate chrome trim and pull off cap to expose three bolts) in order for the trim to slide out. Be delicate because the four bolts are simply glued to the piece of trim. It’s a massive pain. Really wish they would have added some locktight or something.

 

[Cleveland Steamer]

I had loose hand rails. I tried removing the screws at the bottom of the cushions thinking they would then lift up. Well, they didn’t and I couldn’t figure out how to remove them. I put the screws back and went at it another way.

For the front hand rails, I had to use a 13 mm long socket and four extensions (2 long and 2 short). I was able to get my head down into the storage area and see the rear nut and get that tightened. For the front nuts, I had to only use the two long extensions and get on the nut by feel. I couldn’t see it. I was able to knock the socket against the fiberglass to give me an idea where it was and then I could hear/feel the socket making contact on the bolt. I was able to pull it down ever so slightly, so I’m not hitting the bolt anymore, make a slight adjustment to the side so I was under it and then push it up onto the nut. The first one was the hardest because I had to develop the technique but then the other side didn’t take me long at all.

Now that I know how it really wasn’t bad. I recommend wearing long sleeves. I didn’t and my forearms must have been rubbing against the fiberglass cuz they‘re on fire ? right now as I’m typing this. ?‍