WW kayak repair kit!

[mattinak]

Just putting together a repair kit for boating! Any suggestions on handy stuff to throw in there??

[XXX-er]

doesnt matter the boat is FG or plastic all you need is a roll of ductape

I had a dancer with a 4" crack under the seat so I put 2 layers of ductape over the crack and paddled it for another 4-5 yrs and DT stayed on the boat on even thru rock gardens,the biggest killer for ductape was the weather ... So I replaced it twice a year

some friends had a boat get away on a portage, it hit a rock and broke the tip completely off a perception Corsica which would seem like they are totally fucked but they pulled the float bag thru the hole blew it up hard and ductaped around the joint ... finished the run

[Jethro]

Bituathane, duct tape, marine goop, fiberglass mesh, contact cement, thick rubber from dirt bike innertube. Mix and match to suit

[donutlynx]

Duct tape, contact cement, a knife, accessory cord, and an old MTB tube (2.0" or bigger). Everything else is dead weight.

[crackboy]

i would say it depends on if this is going to be an overnight or day repair kit.

really duct tape will get you by on a run where you are not going to have time to sit around and fix it by the fire since most of the other stuff require a dry boat

[XXX-er]

Get the hull warm & dry in the sun & DT really sticks well

round the edges overlap 2 layers and I was VERY suprised how well DT holds up on a hull ... until it falls apart from weatehr & UV

[crackboy]

my creeker has a decent sized crack in it. 4 inches or so and it has had a duct tape batch like 2 years or so and it hasn't leaked once

[Jethro]

My Nomad has a large crack 4-5" under my knees. I used a contact cement a couple of years ago to glue the thick dirt bike tube to the inside of the boat and it has worked really well. Patches on the outside get ripped off to easily in my opinion. If you have a day to wait, a big puddle of marine goop with fiberglass laid in it makes a strong yet flexible repair. Probably a home repair.

[Alpinord]

For cleaner, more permanent repairs (just like ski base welding) you can plastic weld your boats:

[XXX-er]

how well does a plastic weld hold up ?

[Jethro]

For cleaner, more permanent repairs (just like ski base welding) you can plastic weld your boats:

I learned some stuff watching that. His methods are the same as you would do for a butt weld on steel. I never widened the crack or spun the donor plastic the couple of times I tried to plastic weld, and my efforts failed pretty quickly

[XXX-er]

I pretty much go with the idea once you crack a kayak boat its at least half way fucked

drilling the ends of a crack in plastic often help to stop the crack from running and further

[Alpinord]

From what I've read, the weld should be equal or better than the surrounding material if done properly.

I had a long discussion with a plastic welding supplier who carried both air welders (best) and soldering iron tips as well as our repair gun distributor. The major keys to the bond (be it skis, boats, ATVs, etc):

-clean surfaces, free of oils and residues
-preparing the area as shown in the video. The 'V' provides more surface area for bonding and adding layers of material
-matching the plastic welding rod to the plastic type
-heating the adjacent area to the 'wound' to melting point to avoid cold joints and blend materials
-thinner, layers is better than one major spoodge


XXXer, if your boat is half SOL, what's to lose by giving it a go? Report back if you don't sink. :-)

[Alaskan Rover]

Having had to do a considerable amount of remote kayak repair at various times, I heartily agree with ALWAYS bringing duct-tape.

Not all duct-tape is equal though. I forget the exact brand that is the best....3M brand?? I know this stuff called "Duck Tape" really isn't all that great for heavy-duty repairs. I've tried a bunch of brands. Maybe it was 3M that was the best...can't remember.

While Gorilla Tape is AMAZINGLY STRONG tape, it might be a little thick if you have tight compound curves to go around. But I think for absolute strength, NOTHING beats Gorilla Tape....just like it's cousin Gorilla Glue!

For more permanent repairs, it really depends on the make-up. Roto-molded plastic kayaks are an overwhelming PAIN-IN-THE-ASS to repair below the waterline, but above the waterline cracks and stress tears can be repaired by "sewing" the rip with zip-ties, or better yet, drilling small holes on both sides of the rip/tear and stitching those through with 1/8" nylon braided line...that's what I did and that repair lasted for 7 years.

You CAN plastic weld roto-molded plastic, but just like P-tex on a hard ski-base, if too much carbon builds up while melting the plastic, the weld WILL pop off....I've tried it.

Fiberglass 'yaks are the most fragile, but BY FAR the easist to repair...I figure they are worth the extra grand or so that they cost. They repair jut like a surfboard or a sailboat...all you need is MEK, some epoxy or polyester resin (depending on wht type of fiberglass the kayak is made from) and some pre-cut swaths of fiberglass cloth strips and matting. It's super easy, the repairs are super strong and it is super-fast repair (kayak can be put back in water just a few minutes after final sanding...no painting necessary).

Don't know a damn thing about repairing those fancy carbon-fiber and kevlar kayaks....If I can't afford them, I don't worry much about them.

[Mr. Multiglisse]

I agree with duct tape/gorilla tape ideas above but plastic welding has competition: West System G-Flex. Just discovered this stuff and it is amazing. Follow the instructions, watch the video and it will glue a plastic kayak or ABS canoe back together. I manage a big canoe rental operation and our repair guy has fixed several ABS canoes with g-flex, glued in d-rings and even repaired the busted handle on my plastic travel mug. No failures.

This video is worth watching if you don't believe me. Better yet, it is pretty funny, these guys have obviously been sniffing a little too much glue:

[Jethro]

That G flex stuff looks pretty good. What is the cure time? Would it be worth taking in on the river with you, or is it a home only product?

[XXX-er]

XXXer, if your boat is half SOL, what's to lose by giving it a go? Report back if you don't sink. :-)

that dancer is long gone ...I left it at someones lake cottage

back in the day before the happening OC-1 designs guys who competed in the rodeo world's would chop up royalex boats with a skilsaw and epoxy/rivet them back together

[Mr. Multiglisse]

That G flex stuff looks pretty good. What is the cure time? Would it be worth taking in on the river with you, or is it a home only product?

Cure time is 24 hours, it stays flexible. I think it would be a good product to take on an extended trip with a high probability of boat damage, otherwise use at home when you can prep the repair properly. The first batch we got is the smallest size available, imagine packing two large tubes of toothpaste. Beveling sharp edges, sanding and heat treatment make a BIG difference to the adhesion factor and a little bit of G-Flex goes a long way. Repair Guy was impressed that he could work it and shape it as it cured.

You can download Northwest River Supply's G-Flex prep guide here.

From the West System web site: A toughened, versatile, liquid epoxy for permanent waterproof bonding of fiberglass, ceramics, metals, plastics, damp and difficult-to-bond woods. With a modulus of elasticity of 150,000 PSI, it is a bit more flexible than standard epoxies and polyester, but much stiffer than adhesive sealants. This gives G/flex the ability to make structural bonds that can absorb the stress of expansion, contraction, shock and vibration. It is ideal for bonding dissimilar materials. It can be modified with West System fillers and additives, and used to wet-out fiberglass tapes and fabrics. Mixed at a 1:1 ratio, G/flex gives you 45 minutes of working time at room temperature. It reaches an initial cure in 7 to 10 hrs and full cure in 24 hrs.


Sorry for the glue nerd-out. I love glue, it holds the world together.

[donutlynx]

how well does a plastic weld hold up ?

As an outspoken critic of kayak plastic welding...I will admit that it probably depends on the application. Playboat - they seem to hold pretty well. River runner - iffy. Creeker - terrible...it will break everytime, and probably at the same spot.

Flexible interior patches are seriously the best way to go. Field proven, over and over again.

[Conundrum]

I've fixed a couple of my cracked boats with fairly good success by using pieces of other boats. I drilled the ends of the crack, lathered the area with marine grade silicone, and placed a piece of plastic from another boat on the inside of the crack. Then I drilled holes through that, lathered t-nuts with silicone and screwed them through both pieces. Held up great for years. In fact, I think a buddy is still paddling my old Big Gun I fixed like this from 7 or so years ago.

[LukeS]

Here's a good thread on the buzz about welding techniques. One with that LL video and the other Tom Janey made. Everybody I know that goes through boats welds like TJ's method and I've seen repairs like that hold for a long time down lots of steeep mank.

[Alaskan Rover]

Here is another thought for those with fiberglass kayaks or canoes:

Find out if your craft is made from epoxy fiberglass or polyester fiberglass , as it makes a BIG difference in the following kit.

Before your trip, cut at least a dozen 6" x 6" swatches of fiberglass cloth (dispense with the matt, as that is for at-home repairs, and it usually makes a silly mess...the repair will be plenty strong without it and cloth is MUCH easier to work with). Put these swatches in a small zip-lock bag.

Next find some those tubes that you can pack peanut butter or toothpaste into and squeeze in about six ounces of resin (epoxy resin if it's an epoxy kayak, or polyester resin if it's a polyester fiberglass kayak)..and cap it tightly. Put some RTW or other sealer around cap so it doesn't leak.

Next you will need the hardener...it's best to just bring the original small tube it came in. Make sure you right down how many drops of hardener you'll need per ouce of resin, as it will vary with ambient temperature. Put sealer around that cap as well!!

Bag the hardener and tube(s) of resin in a small zip-lock bag....and then bag eerything together...don't forget the instructions, too. Put in some surgical glovez for the repair...they weigh almost nothing and make clean-up easier. The whole kit should fit in a small zip-lock bag and notweigh much at all.

It's best if you get some practice in doing fiberglass repair BEFORE your trip....it's really easy, but a little extra experience helps!!!

I've spent much time doing remote river excursions in Alaska, Yukon and the Northwest Territories, and while I love the inate ruggedness of roto-molded plastic...a good well-contructed fiberglass craft is SO much easier to repair when the shit DOES hit fan on an extended remote trip. But we generally take a mix of both type of boats, as plastic boats take wrapping around a rock much better than fiberglass and hopelly at least one boat will make it out.