No problem with painting the whole hull except for the fact that it adds weight and paint will get scratched off. If you paint the bottom it is pretty easy to mask off the paint line and repaint as necessary when the scratches get to be more than you would like. Paint on the side is less likely to get scratched, but still seems to. Then there is the issue of the decals, if you want to preserve them.
Interlux two part Perfection is great and super durable. Really tough stuff brush on.
My hairline keeps receding but I can’t find a matching gel coat.
@Joose said:
Hello all,
Also, there are a couple spots **that look like holes **(light shines through stronger) but there isn’t any visible damage. We’re talking holes about a centimeter or less in diameter - how should something like that be handled? Just fill it with marine epoxy?
Holes in the hull or just thin spots in the gel coat letting light through? Can you feel them?
I just bought a Kevlar MR Malecite in similar but much worse condition as far as the cracking and spider-webbing of the outer layer. The Kevlar fabric appears to be pretty intact from the inside but has several very soft areas that will need some internal Dynel or S-Glass patching. I plan to sand down the entire exterior, especially the badly cracked areas and give it a roll-and-tip paint job which I have done with good success on composite boats in the past. I will replace all the decals except the small “Kevlar 49 Aramid” sticker that I will mask off. Yes it will add probably 1-2lbs to the boat but its worth it. Who knows how many grams will be removed from sanding and all the previous scratches and wear so my net weight gain may only be 1lb!
I would use fiberglass for interior patches on a kevlar canoe. When wet out, one layer of 6 ounce fiberglass will be nearly transparent. Dynel patches will be much more apparent. And since the outstanding characteristic of Dynel is abrasion resistance, it will be somewhat wasted on an interior patch.
Roll and tip paint job? What is the tip part?
Tipping out is just following after the roller with a disposable foam brush (or other) to level out the tiny bubbles and irregularities left by the roller.
Many vids on YouTube about rolling and tipping. Two part paints are very tough. Interlux is what I used.
@Overstreet said:
@Joose said:
Hello all,
Also, there are a couple spots **that look like holes **(light shines through stronger) but there isn’t any visible damage. We’re talking holes about a centimeter or less in diameter - how should something like that be handled? Just fill it with marine epoxy?Holes in the hull or just thin spots in the gel coat letting light through? Can you feel them?
After looking into them a bit more, they’re definitely just thin spots where the gel coat has cracked. I’m going to sand those down and, if need be, repair the gel coat.
@yatipope said:
I just bought a Kevlar MR Malecite in similar but much worse condition as far as the cracking and spider-webbing of the outer layer. The Kevlar fabric appears to be pretty intact from the inside but has several very soft areas that will need some internal Dynel or S-Glass patching. I plan to sand down the entire exterior, especially the badly cracked areas and give it a roll-and-tip paint job which I have done with good success on composite boats in the past. I will replace all the decals except the small “Kevlar 49 Aramid” sticker that I will mask off. Yes it will add probably 1-2lbs to the boat but its worth it. Who knows how many grams will be removed from sanding and all the previous scratches and wear so my net weight gain may only be 1lb!
I got in touch with Wenonah and they strongly suggested trying to save the gel-coat, if possible, by polishing it with a heavy duty rubbing compound. I was working on that a bit last night and it’s actually working a lot better than I thought. Still worried about the long-term health of the microcracks, but I figure that’s a lot easier than painting (it’s too cold for that right now anyway). If that fails, I’ll go with a new paint job.
I would whip out my Starbright Cleaner Wax (always have some around) and random orbital buffer and go to the whole boat. They you’ll be able to separate scratches from the cracks. However you have a lot more suspected cracks and seperations than you think. Look at this picture. I have marked all the scratches that look like hairline cracks. Any one of these can weep water and blister a hole by water or impact like your hole in the picture.
If these are cracks you should be able to get an exacto blade in them and pick out a little piece or at least feel the crack. If it were me. I’d likely check for loose chips and prep for painting to seal up all the cracks and prevent water intrusion. Loose will have to be chipped/sanded and patched. Then paint the whole hull.
Scratches aren’t a problem, cracks are.
Yeah I’m still now sure what to make of those things - I think the photo might be making them worse than they look, but I’ll look into it. For now, I’m grinding/sanding out the actual damage, repairing with 5200, and will do a gel-coat repair over top (is this even necessary except for cosmetic?) Also, I’m been hitting it hard with a heavy duty rubbing compound and a lot of this little dimples and creases are working themselves out so far. Thanks for the help!
Not sure gel coat can be used over 5200
@Gs96c599@aol.com said:
Not sure gel coat can be used over 5200
Not at all.
I hope we can hear from pblanc about water intrusion and blistering. G2d/Ezwater always said this phenomenon was a myth, and I don’t know anyone who knows more about the repair of composite hulls than he did (but he doesn’t post here anymore). He said that a hull made with with properly wetted-out cloth fibers contains no void space for water to occupy, and that makes sense to me. Also, I’ve seen so many boats with the gel coat worn right off the bottom who’s hulls were perfectly intact in spite of frequent use for years on end, that I seriously doubt that water absorption actually happens, except perhaps with a hull that was badly made in the first place.
blistering will not happen in a boat that is not left in the water all the time and more likely to happen on larger boats in water all year and more likely on deeper sitting hulls.
I have seen a whole lot of canoes with fine cracks in the gel coat, and own a few and I have never seen them blister.
Osmotic blistering certainly occurs which can be confirmed with a brief internet search. There is a section in System Three’s “The Epoxy Book” that details repair of blisters. But virtually all the material you seem to find regarding the issue pertains to repair of blistering in “yachts” that spend considerable amounts of time in the water. It also clearly occurs much more commonly with boats constructed using polyester, as opposed to epoxy or vinyl-ester resins. Polyester materials including gel coat and resins are not completely water impermeable and with prolonged water exposure water molecules can permeate completely intact gel coat. Polyester resins decompose in the presence of water releasing soluble materials in the laminate which tend to be acidic resulting in progressive damage.
But canoes are typically not left in the water continuously for prolonged periods of time and are rarely constructed using polyester resins these days.
@Overstreet said:
@Gs96c599@aol.com said:
Not sure gel coat can be used over 5200Not at all.
Oh, right. I’m going to do an epoxy over the 5200. I just wanted the 5200 in first to really grab onto the fibers in the hole. I already drilled it out and filled it with 5200 and it went much better than I had thought it might - wax paper on the interior held in place with duct tape formed a perfect backing for the 5200. I’ve got a nice, shallow divot to fill epoxy with before gelcoating. I’ll update with photos soon.
@pblanc said:
I have seen a whole lot of canoes with fine cracks in the gel coat, and own a few and I have never seen them blister…But canoes are typically not left in the water continuously for prolonged periods of time and are rarely constructed using polyester resins these days.
Yes. But this boat has multiple cracks. I’m guessing it is the result of years of flexing, or some specific impacts. If the gel coat separates from the underlying layers like we see in the “hole” water can enter the crack. Canoes don’t live in the water but they do live upside down outside. Y’all have winter. Water freezing in between laminations can be a bad thing. Without physical examination if it were mine I’d probably just sand down the holes and any chipping cracks and fill with epoxy. Sand smooth and spray can paint a camo pattern. I’d use it as a “beater boat” similar to what we call a Georgia Fishing car or a beater bicycle. Functional without the worry of damaging the “furniture” , a perfect worry free boat…