Installing stem bands

[ticonderoga]

When installing stem bands is it neccessary to use bedding compound along the entire band or can it be applied only in the areas with the attaching screws and holes? Does it make a difference? Thanks

 

[Lazy Jack]

Not sure I understand the motivation for applying it only at the screws. I would bed the whole thing, especially if the band is hollowed out a little on the back side

 

[Dave Osborn]

What Jack said.... I think it is important to keep water out from behind the whole band, not just around the screws. It also gives a more finished look without a small gap between the band and the stem.
I have however seen newly built wooden craft with only a dab of sealer of some kind by each screw. May have been effective, but didn't look cool. It really drew my eye.

 

[Fitz]

You should pre-drill for the brass screws and I usually "pre-screw" with steel screws that are the same size as the brass. New brass screws are usually junk and will break. I drove a few dozen old brass screws the other day and had no problems at all.

 

[Jan Bloom]

I have found that #4 steel screws can a bit larger than #4 brass screws making it hard for the brass to pull in snug.

 

[Steve Ambrose]

Having just removed a pair of stem bands I installed 3 years ago I can attest to the holding and sealing properties of marine bedding compound. I had to work a putty knife behind the bands to get them loose. A direct hit from a rock or log to a stem band that's not bedded could bend, break, or move it.