I have a Dagger Cortez that is approximately 8 years old. I love it! Unfortunately it got stored last year on the kayak trailer. Obviously I have 2 huge dents fore and aft of the hull. I had heard that putting the unit in the sun would pop out any dents but, these are huge. Will they pop out themselves or is the yak ruined. Any help is appreciated.
Please Help
Someone out there should be able to help me! Please weigh in - not about how to make your Yak look shinier and pretty but, about function!
dimples
If they’re big smooth dimples, I’d try upside-own in the sun. You might want to put blocks inside to provide a bit of pressure to help move the plastic back to the original shape.
If you’ve got a sharp crease, you might have to make up a rigid foam “bulkhead” to provide support from the inside.
warmth
Out in the sun in temps above 80 and much of it will likely go away. You could also pour hot water on it or hit it with a blow dryer.
Note, plastics melt at something between 150 and boiling, depending on the type of plastic. You don’t want to reach this temperature, just warm enough that it softens some. You can pour a pot of near boiling water on it, as not enough heat will transfer to melt the plastic, but watch that you don’t blow dry any one spot for too long.
another hot-water approach
soak small towels in water and microwave them till they are steaming… apply to the dented areas, do this several times and the plastic will become more pliable, then you can apply pressure from the inside to pop the dents out and reshape the hull back into place.
I removed a rack crossbar dent on my
Necky by carving a piece of stiff foam to force the hull into original shape from inside. I then left the boat out in the sun for a day. The dent was gone.
Usually there’s a way to get at a dent with a stiff foam pusher, even back of the rear bulkhead. Might have to cut two pushers and put them through the hatch.