A friend of mine is on the hunt for a fairly light kayak. I’m just wondering if any CD experts know if Current Designs kayaks in a Kevlar build have a “Kevlar” label somewhere on the deck. If not, can you tell a CD fiberglass from Kevlar from any build details you can see inside the cockpit? Thanks!
This is not a general answer, but I see two CD solstice GTS kayaks for sale on Seattle’s Craigslist. Each has “KEVLAR” prominently displayed on the side of the bow deck, just above the seam.
Kevlar boats are easy to spot because the interior will have the natural yellow Kevlar color inside the hull. Most paddlesports companies stopped using the Kevlar™ name and logo when DuPont’s licensing fee for using it became too expensive, but the material now is the same as before.
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Depends on year if label is on exterior of the hull. As said above when they used Dupont kevlar it was on the deck. Fiberglass is usually more towards the whitish side. Aramid is more yellowish even a golden color. 3-4 pound difference in the two layups. Kevlar is a stiffer stronger hull even though lighter. Can’t really quantify it in a percentage but I could tell with my thumb without looking inside. I have some off each but definitely prefer kevlar. Weight not my biggest concern. I have swapped all my seats to wide base CD seat except my Libra XT it comes with the 17" wide base vs standard 16".
I have put few layers of mat in the cockpit of all my CD hulls except my Libra XT. I end up seesawing the hulls off the bulkhead down to the floating docks or vise versa. It can be up to 5’ difference depending on the tide.
Sun exposure turns Kevlar a browner color.
I have a Kevlar CD Prana. There’s no label on the deck but the interior is clearly Kevlar.
(Gee, I have a slice of birthday cake, having joined Pnet June 7, 2014. Time sure flies when you’re having fun)
Thanks all. It’s good to know there’s no consistent label to look for. This question is motivated by trying to figure out of a boat is Kevlar based on sellers photos (which are sometimes pretty poor). Some sellers don’t know Kevlar from RM plastic. Seeing the boat is best, of course.
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Happen to me they said kevlar but it was fiberglass. After buying so many CD hulls I should have known to get picture of interior hull. They bumped 50 bucks off it. I drove 50 miles from Long Island to NYC then to Canadian border. It was a cheap hull so I wasn’t going to go back empty handed.
Post picture here if they sent you one if you have any doubts.
Call CD and ask directly. They answer the phone and are pretty helpful.
They won’t have any info on hulls before their purchase of CD about 2001 or 2002?
That’s kind of why I asked. You can’t be sure from photos, but the word “Kevlar” on the hull would help decide how long a drive is worth going for a look. There isn’t any specific kayak in question right now - just trying to help a non-local friend in her search for a boat.
Also, when I asked about things to look for construction-wise, the yellowish color is generally a good sign but I’ve seen glass that looked more yellow or light tan too. I was hoping for something like the old Neckys, where the Kevlar builds had a small raised rib running right down the center of the hull inside, like a very narrow keelson.
I can tell if it’s kevlar if I see it. Material weave is different also. I could feel interior and tell blindfolded. I’ll try to post pictures soon.
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Looking inside the cockpit, fiberglass will be white/off white color and the fabric will be a wide weave. Kevlar is dark yellow /light brown and the fabric is a very fine weave.
The first picture shows Kevlar, the white kayak is fiberglass.
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