Losing My Outfitting!

gumpy · Post by **gumpy** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 12:45 am

I occasionally lose foam kneeling pads on the highway. Should I be using something other than Vynabond for adhering foam to the hull? The canoe in question is a Mad River Explorer 16TT. Not Royalex. Any thoughts?

pdown2 · Post by **pdown2** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 1:58 am

Go to Lowes and drop $5.50 on a red can of Weldwood....

gumpy · Post by **gumpy** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 2:31 am

Thanks, I'll try that tomorrow. BTW, does Weldwood work well for vinyl d-rings too?

Jim P · Post by **Jim P** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 9:18 am

Weldwood for foam

vynabond for vinyl (drings)

knu2xs · Post by **knu2xs** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 10:43 am

True, use Weldwood for form and Vynabond for d-rings, but application is every bit as important as adhesive. For greatest strength, ensure all slick surfaces are well roughened up with sand paper to give the adhesive something to hold on to. With the foam, apply at least one, preferably two coats and let dry. Foam is like a sponge, it soaks up the adhesive.

My best results after ripping out multiple d-rings and foam blocks was to apply a coat of adhesive and let dry, then apply a second and let it get just past tacky to almost dry. Heat both surfaces with a heat gun and stick together. Ensure they are placed where you want them when they touch, because they are not moving anytime soon after this.

One final thought on Weldwood, get the gel. It is much easier to work with, much less runny.

Happy outfitting.

Post by **sbroam** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 12:32 pm

Ditto on the gel. However it sounds like gumpy1114's boat (Explorer 16TT) might not have the vinyl layer (polyethylene?) and vynabond might not do it for d-rings - not sure what would.

gumpy · Post by **gumpy** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 2:05 pm

Yes, I do beleive the inner layer is polyethelene.

the great gonzo · Post by **the great gonzo** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 2:57 pm

I have an Old Town Discovery Scout, also in PE as river tripper. Havven't found anything that really works so far for D-ring. Contact cement works fine for knee pads, but the D-rings come off regardless of what glue I use. I haven't tried the really expensive stuff people use to glue D-rings into Twintex boats yet, but that might be a good option. So far I just keep reglueing them whenever they come off.

martin a.k.a. the great gonzo!

cbcboat · Post by **cbcboat** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 3:02 pm

Nothing sticks to polyethylene, Thats why boats such the prelude and Spanish fly use bulkhead outfitting. Its the same with kayaks, nothing is glued in. However I have glued knee pads into C-1s with a 3M spray, I believe is called High Strength 90 or it could be Super 90, then again it might be 80. Anyway its in a tall can and is a spray. good Luck
B

Jim P · Post by **Jim P** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 4:32 pm

Excellent advise from knu2 - prep is key.

West systems has announced a new product G-Flex which is claimed to adhere to polyethylene. I remain skeptical but might be worth a look.

http://www.gougeonbrothers.com/G-flex/description.html

gumpy · Post by **gumpy** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 7:21 pm

So I called Mad River (changed ownership apparently) and they use 3M contact cement, but wouldn't be more specific. (?)

billcanoes · Post by **billcanoes** » Thu Mar 27, 2008 5:02 am

I have lots of plastic c1s and use weld wood -red can - I sandpaper the hull with 80 - wipe the hull then put a thin layer on the hull- I use a big sheet of .25 or 3/16" minicell-

the glue on the minicell dries much faster than it does to plastic the hull- so I always glue to the boat first- if you use a 12" x 14" .25 slab of minicell (or possibly larger) you can glue blocks to the slab to keep the front of your knee from sliding- you can repeat this to put another .25" slab of minicell on the side of the hull and add a top knee block to it-- the pre packaged adhesive minicell doesn't work. After my first year of boating (except for the factory drings on the Zephyr) I've never had a gluing failure. After the second coat to both the hull and minicell I stick them together when the minicell becomes tacky -I do the hull about 5-10 minutes before the minicell depending on temp - when the 2nd layer of minicell looks mostly dry- I stick the minicell to the hull- I prefer the liquid weldwood to gel, because I apply too much with the gel, it just takes longer to dry- I only use the heat gun on the hull for the first application -