Thanks for all of your input regarding my kevlar skid plates that are basically coming off. I think I need to remove them, and try again. I will obviously do more research this time when it comes to applying them.
How would you suggest getting them off?
zero experience
my guess is sanding and scraping.
now let the kids with experience tell you what to do.
Liveoutside
same thread
on another site wasn’t much help as far as an easy method. Recommendation was grinding carefully.
Very sharp chisel will do it…
Ah’d just mask out de surroundin’ area wit duck tape jus’ in case yer slip - but iffin’ it be sharp yer probably won’t. Use both hands on de chisel - why, do yer ask? - 'cuz if yer slip both yer hands aar behind de blade… :>)
FE
Advanced translation: A sharp chisel
pushed at a very low angle will skim the vinyl cleanly off the underlying ABS. I use this technique (instead of sanding) when I want to epoxy cloth directly to the ABS. I have not tried to remove an old skid plate, but I bet it would work. Instead of pushing straight into the skid plate, advance the chisel at a small angle to its line of forward travel, and work AROUND the perimiter of the skid plate.
If you send me an email, I will send a photo of my chisel cleanly removing the vinyl layer from the ABS. Epoxy and urethane are safe for ABS, and I, personally, believe they adhere a little better to ABS than to the vinyl over-layer.
I’ve removed several
damaged skid plates with a chisel. I generally score the vinyl/royalex around the perimeter of the existing skid plate with the corner of a sharp razor blade before starting with the chisel. That way if a piece begins to tear loose , the surface damage won’t spread beyond the score mark. Tapping the chisel lightly with a small hammer often helps to loosen the old plate and you will likely need to resharpen the chisel several times before you are done. Cured epoxy is murder on a sharp chisel edge. Make the new skid plate a bit larger than the old one and it will cover all evidence of the original plate and the repair efforts.
Marc Ornstein
Dogpaddle Canoe Works