Bed-it
- Thread starter Blue Streak
- Start date
All I can say is that I bought West Marine butyl tape maybe seven years ago, and it was a failure. Sticky. Gooey. Useless after a year or two.
RV suppliers may have a better product.
In the meantime, until Maine Sail's store comes back (maybe), I am going to return to caulk when my supply runs out.
RV suppliers may have a better product.
In the meantime, until Maine Sail's store comes back (maybe), I am going to return to caulk when my supply runs out.
Blue Streak
E25
The only butyl I have ever had a problem with was the cheapest stuff I saw one time on Amazon.
Go figure.
The black automotive stuff at NAPA auto parts absolutely ALWAYS works, but you need to be ready for the "ick" factor. It's like the Tar Baby in being almost impossible to get off and dirt LOVES to stick to any of it that is exposed.
Go figure.
The black automotive stuff at NAPA auto parts absolutely ALWAYS works, but you need to be ready for the "ick" factor. It's like the Tar Baby in being almost impossible to get off and dirt LOVES to stick to any of it that is exposed.
dhill
Member III
I recently bought Bed-It butyl tape here:
originalmarinesupplies.com
But they seem to be sold out now...
Dave
Compass Marine Bed It Butyl Tape — Original Marine Supplies
High quality marine grade butyl tape!! Bed-It Tape is gray in color, 1/16" thick and 1/2" wide and comes in a 50' roll. Designed to survive the long term in the marine environment, it is the perfect consistency & width for bedding deck hardware. rolls are sold individually.
originalmarinesupplies.com
But they seem to be sold out now...
Dave
Last edited:
Reefpoints
Member I
I discovered this when doing some vacuum bagging of a fiberglass layup: https://www.fibreglast.com/product/gray-sealant-tape-00581
Upon inspection, it looks suspiciously similar to the butyl tape from Maine Sail's site (Compass Marine).
Upon inspection, it looks suspiciously similar to the butyl tape from Maine Sail's site (Compass Marine).
Reefpoints, were you able to compare them in hand? The vacuum bagging material in the video looks a little "wetter" to me than Maine Sail's butyl tape but it's hard to be sure. Hoping RC can recover and reopen his business but until then it would be great to have an alternative source.
Pete the Cat
Member III
I bought some butyl tape from Amazon and it worked fine. Maybe I was lucky.
Reefpoints
Member I
I do actually have both products in hand, bed-it at the boat and now my vacuum-bagging stuff at home. I'll try to compare them side-by-side this weekend. This is something I've been meaning to do anyway.
I went through a couple rounds of crappy butyl tape before finding Bed It, so I approach other brands of butyl tape with some skepticism. I found one roll of butyl tape at an RV store but it was utterly useless. It was rock hard and felt like it had chalk mixed into it. It barely stretched before breaking and didn't stick well to metal. I used it on a couple fittings but got nervous about how well it would work, so removed them and went with some butyl tape I found at a marine store. This butyl was also much stiffer and less stretchy than Bed It. I used it for some fittings but it was difficult to tighten fasteners and took several tightenings over a few days. I haven't heard of it leaking from the current owners of that boat, but it wasn't as easy to use and stretchy as Bed It. All this sounds nitpicky, but I have had absolutely no leaks from anything I used Bed It on, and it's really easy to use.
You can order the same butyl tape that Rod sold from Hamilton Marine in Searsport Maine, Rod lives in Falmouth Maine. Last box I bought was around $20.
Reefpoints
Member I
For completeness I'm following up. The sticky-tape from fiberglast seems the same as bed-it (though it is a thicker at about 1/8", and with a slightly different shade of gray). I took about 1.5" of each and stretched both over 30" and figured it's similar enough. Though the sticky-tape does look glossier - it had the same consistency and feel. Photos will follow later.
Reefpoints
Member I
Good testing!
Blue Streak
E25
Yeah, but did you compare the taste?
For the record, here is the current status of Maine Sail (April, 2022):