BWCA To gel coat or not to gel coat Boundary Waters Gear Forum
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nooneuno
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02/26/2018 05:12PM   (Thread Older Than 3 Years)
I am thinking of picking up a new Spirit II ultra light Kevlar 42 lbs or I can get the gel coat for the same cost but an additional 7 lbs. This boat would be exclusively for BWCA/Quetico trips as I have other canoes and kayaks for other uses. I have been using my Royalex at 74 lbs so either way I am much lighter with the new boat. So what say you skin coat ul or Gel coat ul?
 
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02/26/2018 05:48PM  
Skin Coat, Kevlar Brown is a color. You have the option down the road to refurbish and make it look like new if that floats your boat
 
MReid
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02/26/2018 06:52PM  
The boat with a gel coat will last considerably longer without maintenance. The UL with the skin coat will wear quickly at the stems, even if you don't drive up on beaches (I don't), necessitating some minor maintenance. I have both types as solos--I'll use the UL where there is much portaging (e.g. Quetico), and the other for more rough and tumble activities. Both types are pretty easy to maintain--it took me years and years to wear through the gel coat on my heavier boat.
 
bwcasolo
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02/27/2018 05:29AM  
ul kev all the way, been using them for 35 years, tough use, quetico, bwca.
 
02/27/2018 09:50AM  
I have both and i prefer my UL when i'm up in the bwca.
 
03/01/2018 02:45PM  

nooneuno: "I am thinking of picking up a new Spirit II ultra light Kevlar 42 lbs or I can get the gel coat for the same cost but an additional 7 lbs. This boat would be exclusively for BWCA/Quetico trips as I have other canoes and kayaks for other uses. I have been using my Royalex at 74 lbs so either way I am much lighter with the new boat. So what say you skin coat ul or Gel coat ul?"


As noted, Wenonah Spirit II Ultra-Kevlar is listed at 42 pounds. By comparison, the Spirit II Kevlar Flex-Core is listed as 54-pounds, which comes standard with a gel-coat finish. By adding a gel-coat to the Ultra-light Kevlar Spirit II, you're now only saving approximately 5-pounds over the Kevlar Flex-Core lay-up, but it will cost you $200.00 more than the Kevlar Flex-core lay-up. So is it worth $200.00 to save 5-pounds?

I'm usually a big advocate of a gel-coat for the durability factor. Additionally, the Kevlar Flex-Core lay-up is more durable than the Ultra-light Kevlar for general use. But as you have stated, you have other canoes and kayaks, and the Spirit would be exclusively for BWCA/Quetico trips. In which case, the Ultra-light Kevlar lay-up with a skin-coat would probably be the way to go in my opinion.

For what it's worth; a clear gel-coat will add less weight to the canoe's overall weight than a pigmented gel-coat. A friend of mine custom ordered a Kevlar Ultra-light Wenonah Jensen C1W with a clear gel-coat. At the time, I had a Kevlar Center-Rib Wenonah Jensen C1W. Although we never weighed our C1W's, his was noticeable lighter, although the clear gel-coat added some weight to his Jensen C1W. (FYI, the Center-Rib construction preceded the Kevlar Flex-Core lay-up, and was essentially the equivalent of the Flex-Core layup now offered by Wenonah.)

Gel-coat FAQ's

Hans Solo
 
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