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The filler used originally was most likely to have a product called Brummer a Stopper, this was in its water resinstant form a cellulose based putty, there was also a standard version which was water based – not suitable for marine use. With time the Brummer Stopper tends to crumble and if water gets to the underlying screws the stopper gets popped out bursting the the paint or varnish.
Replace the filler above screws with an epoxy filler – under paint can be any colour under varnish I use SP epoxy filled with colloidal silica, gives a reddish colour and is very durable, the best for appearance is as you say wooden plugs but you need to drill the screw holes the correct diameter to match the plug cutter you have. Plug cutters are available from better tool shops.
Hope that helps Steve Corbet
Hi welcome to the GP14 family. Repairing any of the wooden parts such as your laminated tiller is normally best done using epoxy resins such as SP106 or similar from WEST , use a filler such a cellulose fibres to make the epoxy act as a glue. The repair will normally be stronger than the original. Alternative look on eBay for a secondhand rudder complete. If your tiller is in poor condition look carefully at the rudder stock as this needs to be strong enough to take the twisting loads when sailing.
Considering your mast step drawings are available for all versions of the GP14 from the class office you will need the correct sheet for your early fibreglass boat. I have not looked at the mast step in on of these for a while but I would guess that the mast step would have been made from ply wood, a better replacement would be to use a Hard wood. If you have the old one use it as a pattern or try to get a look at a boat of same age. When making a replacement make sure you seal it against water by coating it in the SP106 epoxy. When cutting the slot for the mast make the width , side to side, as tight as possible to the size of the foot of your mast. The length wise dimension is set by the class rules, then look at the GP web site for dimensions for setting up the for/aft position of the mast foot / rake, makes the boat easy to sail if all is set up and balanced.
Steve Corbet
