installing grab loops?

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lung
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installing grab loops?

Post by lung »

I want to put some on my Ocoee. Never done this before. Any tips before I start drilling? I've heard of glueing in PVC pipe. I've had another person tell me that aluminum tubing works better?? How low should I go? Will vynabond do the trick?
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Re: installing grab loops?

Post by craig »

I've heard the tubing is good to use for a low loop for lining a tripping canoe. That way water doesn't leak in. Up high near the deck a big knot thru a washer on the inside should be fine (just my thought)

edit; drill holes insert rope, cord/webbing thru hole and thru washer on inside tie a knot. repeat for both sides. the washer just gives the knot something more solid to back it up, it is not a necessity
Last edited by craig on Fri Oct 19, 2012 11:55 am, edited 1 time in total.
lung
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Re: installing grab loops?

Post by lung »

what kind of washer are talking about? Are you saying not to drill?
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Re: installing grab loops?

Post by canotrouge »

I drill mine at about 2in from the top, 4 inches back. I use tubular webbing(1in wide) and make a water knot, under the deck plate. I like the webbing better than rope!
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arhdc
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Re: installing grab loops?

Post by arhdc »

Realistically even if you don't make any attempt at sealing the holes, you are going to be taking in extremely negligible amounts of water. Even 4" down the water is not going to be that close to the gunwale except when you are punching waves and then you are going to have water at least splashing over the ends into the boat anyway. If your holes are close to the minimum to get your rope (or webbing) through then they will be mostly occluded anyway. This is not like the drain plug in a kayak where it is at or below the water line most of the time.

Just my $0.02 but I wouldn't worry about it at all. Just drill your holes close to the size of the cord/webbing that you are going to use and tie in the loops. Anything more is just making more things to break later on.
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Re: installing grab loops?

Post by ezwater »

Don't use Vynabond unless you are gluing a vinyl/fabric patch to vinyl. For that purpose, Vynabond softens both the patch and the vinyl top layer of the Royalex, so they essentially meld into one another.

Vynabond is never the best adhesive to use if one of the substances being glued is *other than* vinyl.

For dissimilar materials, contact cement works if the areas are fairly large. G-flex works well for smaller areas.

I now use G-flex even for vinyl to vinyl, because I've had long-term failures of properly done Vynabond D-ring applications on Royalex boats.
lung
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Re: installing grab loops?

Post by lung »

Thanks for the vynabond tip ezwater. I suspected that might be the case, but wanted to skip going out to buy more glue. I do have some contact cement, but it sounds like g-flex would be the glue of choice. Although I'm leaning towards this idea of skipping the pipe all together. Is there any issue with water getting into the foam core causing delamination? I thought this was one of the reasons that if you get a hole in your boat that you shouldn't wait to fill it?
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Re: installing grab loops?

Post by arhdc »

There should be no issues with leaving the foam core exposed in the holes you drill. Your boat already has a fully (to water) exposed top edge under the gunwales and holes get drilled in Royalex all the time for factory grab loops, bag cages and more.
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lung
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Re: installing grab loops?

Post by lung »

Good to know. Thanks for the info.
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sbroam
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Re: installing grab loops?

Post by sbroam »

canotrouge wrote:I drill mine at about 2in from the top, 4 inches back. I use tubular webbing(1in wide) and make a water knot, under the deck plate. I like the webbing better than rope!
+1. I put a short piece of old rope inside the tubular webbing to make it easier to grab (holds the loop open) and it fills the hole in the hull better.
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Re: installing grab loops?

Post by dwinchester »

I installed grab loops on my Yellowstone solo using pvc pipe. I used a paper template to mark each side to make sure the holes were aligned before I started drilling. I twisted (it was a tight fit) the pvc in thru the hole on one side of the hull and out the other leaving the pipe long a few inches on both sides. I used 5 minute epoxy to secure it in place and used a flush cut saw to trim them once the epoxy cured. I used rope for the loops tied with a fisherman's knot.

Its a quick, easy project and it looks sharp. I think its stronger than just drilling hols in the hull. That said, my XL14 has the later set up and has worked fine for years. Depends on how much time you want to spend on it.
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Re: installing grab loops?

Post by hazardharry »

you don't any tug eyes on a royalex boat. composite yes. i use some 5/8 ballistic nylon repelling line for my grab loop. its quite stiff and makes a nise ring to grab. at the end of the video you can see the loops. big enough for 2 gloved hands. http://youtu.be/4G2ZsXNjEHk" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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mahyongg
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Re: installing grab loops?

Post by mahyongg »

Drill matching holes, fumble rope/webbing through, make knots inside. Either water knot or connect the rope ends to form a closed loop, that way even if one hole starts to rip out you won't lose connection as fast as with only two water knots.

Clean, efficient, quick, proven a thousand times.
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Re: installing grab loops?

Post by Paddle Power »

Drill the two holes.
Use tubular webbing.
Connect the tubular ends to form a closed loop. This is the best option in case the grab loop is used in a rescue situation.
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lung
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Re: installing grab loops?

Post by lung »

Ended up using webbing stuffed with a small section of rope tied together with a water knot. The water knot makes a closed loop correct? Is there a different loop knot that the last 2 comments are referring to?
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