Hull repairs

[bignose]

I got my Old Town Pack Canoe hung up on a underwater object (I suspect a metal fence post) earlier this week that ended up with me having to climb out of the canoe and lift it off of what ever I was caught on. Fortunately, my hull wasn't pierced, that would have had a much worse outcome.

Upon inspection, I found a thumb-tip sized depression in my hull. The Canoe is made out of ABS / Royalex, which is quite soft.

After consulting sources on Google and from Old Town's website, I understood that this was relatively easy to repair by gently applying heat to the area and then smoothing out the surface. They recommended using either boiling water or a hair dryer, not a heat gun (too hot!) to soften up the plastic. I used a hair dryer, tablespoon blade and some finger pressure to persuade the hull back into shape.

Here are my results: the first three pictures are before, the next photos are "after."


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As you can see, there is still a blemish, but the depth of the "zit" has been considerably decreased. Old Town ABS canoes get all sorts of scrapes and dings, they show that the craft has been put to use! I could fill the void with some JB Weld or West System G-Flex, but I'll hold off on this unless it begins to leak.

[J.A. Veil]

One of the good things about plastic watercraft is that they can be repaired by the owner without too much effort. I hope the repaired hull continues to work for you.

[Mark]

Stu,

Scuppers don't work in Old Town canoes.

Glad you figured that out before it was too late!

Nice job on the repair.

[bignose]

[QUOTE=Mark;172577]Stu,

Scuppers don't work in Old Town canoes.

Yeah, gotta keep the water on the outside.
This is the canoe with the experimental "floaties" on it to provide stability.

Between those and the natural buoyancy of the Royalex, I probably wouldn't have sunk.

But I would have had to try to paddle back to the ramp with water over the gunnels. I don't mind a wet ass, but it wouldn't have done my Lithium Ion battery a hell of a lot of good, let alone car keys and cell phone, either.

[bignose]

John Veil was kind enough to provide me with a picture of what I was hung up on Monday. The rounded top is a perfect match for the dimple that is in the bottom of my canoe.

As you can see, it appears to be a grounding stake, that is five feet off of the shoreline and in two feet of water. What it is doing there, beats the hell out me.

Due to an extremely high tide, this was submerged, the water level was at the top of the rocks in the background, and the canoe was hitting the branches.

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[Mark]

Stu,

Perhaps a new way to electro-fish...

It was an inconvenience to you that could have been far worse.

It could also be a danger to anyone stumbling into the water there.

[john from md]

I carry the heavy duty Gorilla Tape and JB Water Weld in my yaks just in case I meet up with something and take on water. I have experimented with both and they will hold on a wet hull with no problem.

[ronaultmtd]

How many of us have invested in a hand held bilge pump? Watched an Elias You Tube rescue of a recreational kayaker that had rented a cracked hull paddle kayak...without pumping the water out of the hull (and continuing pumping it out) that would have been a hopeless loss of a kayak...

[gtrfan]

Luckily on the EliasV video, the guy was in waist deep water. It could have been much worse if Elias didn't see him. Also, shame on the rental company for giving him a faulty kayak.

[Mark]

I have a pump but I never carry it in my fishing kayaks.

I probably should. It works great.

I do use the pump at home when I wash out my Ultimate kayaks. They have no scuppers. I squirt them down after outings and that includes a thorough soaking of the inside. Prior to tilting them over in the lawn to empty the water, I pump most of the water out out to lighten the burden of lifting them.

Some kayak paddlers carry a large sponge intended to wash cars. It soaks up water fast. That's an alternative to a pump to remove water inside your kayak.

[john from md]

How many of us have invested in a hand held bilge pump? Watched an Elias You Tube rescue of a recreational kayaker that had rented a cracked hull paddle kayak...without pumping the water out of the hull (and continuing pumping it out) that would have been a hopeless loss of a kayak...

I have one ever since I was turtled by a speed boat with my hull cover opened. I had to swim to shore, wait for the wind to push the yak to shore and then empty it with a sponge. I went to Dicks and bought a hand pump that day.

[ronaultmtd]

$20-30 bucks for an 18 inch plastic pump is one of the cheapest peace of mind investments you can make! I store mine under my drop in tackle box in my square hatch...