Kayak repair

[DEkayakstriper]

Does anyone know anywhere on the Eastern shore that will repair kayaks or have any ideas how to do it yourself. I gues from years of dragging it I created a hole on the stern this afternoon. Any help would be mich appreciated.

Thanks

[J.A. Veil]

There are various ways to repair a kayak hull. Your first decision is whether your goal is: a) just repair a hole, or b) do a beautiful craftsman-like repair job that looks like new. If you are satisifed with a), take a look at my post last month http://www.snaggedline.com/showthrea...highlight=goop.

If you want to do a professional repair that makes the boat look like new, you will probably want to do "plastic welding". You can buy rods of the same plastic used to construct the hulls. They come in many colors. You then melt the plastic rods and apply the soft plastic to the spot where the hole is. You do some shaping, sanding, and reapplication until you have filled the hole and restored the original contours. I have seen some YouTube videos that show how it is done.

For my personal needs, option a) was sufficient.

[archeryrob]

Plastic welding can be done with a torch or for someone that has not done it before with a heat gun. You wave it back and forth and melt the plastic to drip it to cover the holes. I like a putty knife to push it together on the form and heat it all up again.

You may need to make a form inside the hull as to get the rest of the hull hot enough to melt new plastic to it the hull can easily deform.

The other thing is this one hole in the very back keel or they back 1/3 of the yak is tore up. If it's the later your kayak is best used to weld other kayaks. If it's the first you can fix it.

[Turtle135]

I bought the KC Welder kit from these guys:

http://www.urethanesupply.com/kcwelder.php

I used it to repair a kayak that had t-boned one too many rocks in the Potomac River. The repair seems as strong as new with welding in the wire mesh (it has held up fine for a couple of seasons).

If you are interested in going that route I can loan you the "welder" and save you the expense of buying that item. You would just need to get some filler rods (they sell those for $ 8.95 a pack) and some wire mesh if you need it for your repair.

http://www.urethanesupply.com/produc...stype=products

http://www.urethanesupply.com/produc...stype=products

[Memory Maker]

The stuff that Turtle recommends REALLY works .......... I have 1 from a different manufacturer ....it's made for the Hobie ....... the plastic runs throught a hole in the flat plate and it will repair it like new ........ mine uses the exact same plastic and color so you would reall have to look hard to see the repair if you sand it etc.

[DEkayakstriper]

Thanks for all the help I'm just ordered the kc weld kit from urethane supply. Seems like a good thing to have because I'm sure this is not going to be the last time this will happen.