How To Repair An Old Town Canoe

Chances are y'all've never heard how difficult polyethylene canoes are to prepare; this isn't the kind of thing that comes up until long after you've plunked downwardly your $1,000 or so on a boat. Polyethylene–used in canoes like the popular Quondam Town Discovery series, also every bit in kayaks and even newer driftboats–has lots of advantages: it is flexible, relatively cheap, and moldable into more than shapes than fiberglass or kevlar. Information technology has become the plastic of pick for most unpowered boats.
Historically, polyethylene boats have had nigh a twenty-25 twelvemonth lifespan. Later on that time, they dry and cracks "spiderweb" across them. Most canoes are of three-layer construction, so typically but the exterior layer will begin to actually flake away. Still, this is a major safety gamble should y'all hitting a rock. Meanwhile, out-and-out splits in the hull tin be fixed past plastic welding, simply it isn't cheap and you take to have a kayak shop handle the repair.
With a fiberglass canoe or drift boat, you can merely patch over any cracks with more fiberglass and epoxy. However, polyurethane-based epoxies (as well-nigh are) have a hard time adhering to polyethylene. Until recently, at that place was no truly reliable glue on the market for bonding a patch to a polyethylene boat.

Thankfully, W System'south new G/Flex epoxy has solved the problem. I recently needed to patch "spider-webbing" across the bottom of my 16'ix″ Old Town Discovery canoe. My boat had Kevlar slip guards, which had been applied when the boat was new with quondam-schoolhouse polyurethane epoxy (which is possible simply if the boat is fairly new, and has been thoroughly cleaned and flame-tempered showtime). After Old Towne's patch kit utterly failed, I searched effectually and discovered One thousand/Flex.
Because Chiliad/Flex is very mucilaginous (and very expensive), I only used it to coat the boat surface over the cracks. Yous have to make clean the polyethylene thoroughly with acetone, so "blush" the surface by wafting a propane torch across information technology until it fades slightly in color. With aid from a friend, I so practical a layer of Thou/Flex (to bond to the boat). Meanwhile, I mixed more traditional marine epoxy and used it to soak out Kevlar felt, which I applied over the Chiliad/Flex (considering M/Flex itself will stick to nigh anything) to extend my existing slip guards and cover the spiderwebbed department. Finally, I dyed a corrective layer of marine epoxy jet black and masked and painted both erstwhile and new skid plates.
This technique would work for whatever polyethylene gunkhole, including the new Hog Island or Boulder Boatworks driftboats. While it might not be equally pretty, it beats a trip to the factory mid-flavour. Further, for a 25-twelvemonth-old canoe similar mine, it's nice to have whatsoever choice to get the old boat back on the h2o.
Take tips for patching polyethylene boats? Share them in the Comments section!