This is what happens when you loan gear to an idiot, ok, that’s too harsh. It happened a few years ago and Ive had it stored since then. It’s on the nose guard (plastic) of my Wenonah Vagabond royalex and not super awful. Repairable?
We similarly dinged the stern on my ex’s Old Town Guide . Packed it with successive layers of G-Flex epoxy, sanded a bit once it seemed to be cured and dabbed it with black liquid Flex Seal. Three years later (the last I saw it and him) it was still holding up fine.
50 years ago, on a long weekend canoe camping trip in a vintage wooden canoe that had been lightly glassed over the original canvas skin, we hit a rock in a mild rapid and knocked enough of chunk off the keel that the boat was leaking. Once ashore we took an inventory of what we could use to patch it up and settled on chewing gum (Wrigley spearmint, I think) and a large patch of day-glo orange peel-and-stick ripstop repair tape I happened to have in my first aid kit. The 3 of us each masticated a big wad and packed the gouge tightly. Anyone who recalls from childhood what happened when you’d chug a cold drink with a mouthful of Bazooka knows chewing gum turns into a plug of stiff plastic-like stuff when immersed so we figured it would hold for a while. The tape stretched nicely over the slight curve of the keel line. Years later that orange patch was still blazing on that well-used canoe.
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I love that story!! Great ingenuity!!! Thanks for the advice.
I would use the G-flex thickened in the tubes.
I’m not quite sure I understand what you’re meaning about the thickening in the tubes?
Look up G/flex 655 Thickened. It comes in two tubes that you squeeze out equal parts and mix together. It is thick and doesn’t run. I use it for numerous applications. I apply it to the tips of my wooden Greenland paddles I make to protect the edges. You can see that in this photo.
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I see now, thanks so much! I just wasn’t familiar with the product. Sounds like what I need! Nice paddle!
Just lay it on and then shape or how do you do it?
I’ve got a greenland that I really like and would like to keep it in decent shape.
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The G/flex 655 is thickened and doesn’t run. It more or less stays in place, but it will sag. I do one blade and let it set before starting on the other. I just flip the blade over when it sags to make it sag back the other way. I turn it several times for about 20 minutes. I apply more than is needed. Once I have both blades done, I let it harden overnight. The next day I file and sand it to shape and sand the paddle smooth.
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Since you mentioned that it sags some, what would you recommend to position under the bow guard to keep it in place while I’m working on it and while it’s curing?
Perhaps some aluminum foil.
The thickened g-flex is good stuff, a few years ago I had trouble finding it and then it was very pricey. If you have a marine store nearby they probably sell epoxy for plugging large holes, you knead it together and it looks like modeling clay. I then use two coats of regular G-flex (works to bind plastics), held in place with saran wrap while it cures and it gives you a nice smooth surface that does not require much sanding. I would spray the repair with plastic compatible spray paint if you don’t like the amber/yellow fix showing.
Several years ago another poster here on Pnet called my. painted look “ghetto”. but he is no longer with us.
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It stops sagging depending on the mass and temp after 20-30 minutes.
very good point SeaDart, I hadn’t thought about the two-part puddy. I always have some in my boat repair kits. I have used cling warp for a smooth finish, but it can be tricky as every crease or air bubble will show. The great thing is epoxy won’t stick to it. I have made some simple forms to pour epoxy into with bits of fiberglass to make parts or bits and bobs as the English would say.
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Nice to hear about Gflex as it sounds like a great product. The sagging can be colved with a thioproxic product designed for use with fiberglass. 2 are commonly available (1) colloidal silaca (don’t breath in the dust as it is hazardous) and (2) micro glass bubbles. Just mix it in with your patching compound untill it is thick enough it doesn’t run. I usually will add 10 to 15%. Niether product colors the resin. The micro bubbles are a tad bit more expensive but won’t be a signficant cost for a small repair. The microbubbles also increase impact resistance and are lighter than the silaca. Tap plastics and west Marine carry both products.
you can repair it with fiberglass and paint it or replace it.
Here is a link to Wenonah’s website. Canoe End Cap - Wenonah Canoe
New caps are $23.00. I would also recommend buying the replacement rivets to match the rest of the canoe.
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Thanks for the link. I should have been clearer in my post, I did see that on their website, but they want 19.95 to ship a 23.00 part. It hurts me to do that. I am in MN occasionally and if they’d let me pick it up I’d do that.
Contact your closest Wenonah dealer and get the end cap. It’s cheap enough and easy enough to replace (drill out the rivets on the current one and slap the new one on).
Shipping is what it is. i’d rather pay $20 to ship in the right part than have a Frankenstein repair on a boat.
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