To Repair or...

Here is the problem. My old yak has become pretty scarred up from all the dragging about by me and previous owners. Some of the scrapes and scratches are pretty deep and might be in need of repair. I'm sure that even if I got the yak back in pristine condition it wouldn't stay that way for long. Any how, I've got the urge to try and smooth the old bottom up a bit. Might even help the glide if it were to have a bit less drag from all the dings/scratches.
I have one of the rotomolded yaks and don't know what to use for repairs. I have worked with fiberglass a bit, but don't think this is the same stuff????
Anybody on here done any of this type of work? What is entailed and how costly are the materials likely to be? Is this something that can be done with some type of gelcoat, or??

Anxiously waiting, Rodgerole:?

I would contact a boat repair place and ask them what the recommended procedure is. Depending on what kind of yak you have, it might be cheaper just to replace it.

Repairs to plastic roto-molded boats are done with a thermo plastic welding rig. This is a device that uses a special hot air gun and filler rods of compatible plastic material, very similar to a wire feed arc welder.

http://www1.mscdirect.com/CGI/NNSRIT...MT4NO=57654184

Fiberglass will NOT stick to the plastic, so a gel coat type repair is not possible.

A local rafting/kayak shop would have the right equiptment. If the scratches are only cosmetic (ie. they don't leak!) I wouldn't be too concerned. The advantage of the plastic boats is they can take a lot of abuse w/o leaks, the down side is that nothing sticks to them.

I have heard of some folks using rough sand paper to smooth out gouges and then using a propane torch or high temp heat gun to singe off the resulting hairs.

Sounds like a very expensive repair..not the sort of thing to do in my spare time in my shop. :oops:

Rodger

What about marine putty? I've used it on those plastic bass tender boats. it sticks extremely well and can be sanded. I got it at wally world. It's the type where you cut off what need and then roll it in your hand to mix the two components.

Now I don't know how many scratches you're talking about and how long they are but this should work for a few deep gouges. It works very well on holes. I've used it to fill in holes on my transom from old transducers.

If the damage is primarily down the center of the boat you may also want to consider glueing on a keel saver. That will cover and protect any weak spots.

It is a very easy fix if you have a heat gun like the kind used for paint removal, a torch also works. You can get the repair materials from the manufacturer, or if you have any scrap from mounting things to your boat. Just heat op the area to be repaired some and then melt the repair rod/scrap piece into the ding. You can sand it down and flash over the area to make smooth if you want. I did it to a perception kayak and the company even sent me the repair rods free.

Just found a site that is touting Clear Marine Goop for repairing rotomolded boats. Sounds almost to good to be true, but at least not expensive.

http://www.ozarkcanoe.com/CanoeRepai...epartment.html

You may have to cut and paste the link. My tiny URL maker isn't working:confused:

Another person mentioned a West Marine product called G-flex epoxy. It has been reported to do a good job.
Some of the kayakers I've talked to have simply said rotomolded boats can't be repaired, but others claim to have repaired them.
Guess it is about time to bite the bullet and try something.
thanks for the information.

RodgerO.

I used that Goop for plastic to repair my boat
The skeg was worn to nothing by the previous owner and when his repair failed it got a little leaky
I built the skeg up with layers of sliced milk bottle and the Goop then trimmed it to shape.
So far it's held just fine for three seasons.
It's not pretty, but I didn't do it for the cosmetics, just to stay dry