Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Group Forum: Boat Builders and Repair :: strip canoe refinishing and repair of major scratches
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paddlingredrock |
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HighPlainsDrifter |
I have not made repairs (yet). But when I have to, I will use the repair recommendations found in 2 books that I have. Gil Gilpatrick's 2nd edition book on building a cedar strip is nice. He has a short chapter on repairs with pictures. I also like Ted Moores book (the book I followed when building my canoes). Ted also has a section on repairs. The yellow/opaque issue might mean trouble with delamination. I think you need to tap around that area and listen carefully for a dull sound (as compared to surrounding areas) Good luck in your repairs |
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paddlingredrock |
For grinding, shaving or sanding the delaminated portions and that thin strip down the bottom of the canoe, are there special tools that can be used to gouge the old cloth off in thin layers? I have seen some strange looking tools in pictures when people are doing this, but I don't know what the tools are called or if they are homemade inventions? |
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paddlingredrock |
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HighPlainsDrifter |
Thanks for the compliments about my strip canoes. The Merlin build went pretty smooth....... yes you will have to take your time laying up the strips in the tumblehome area........ I used bead and cove strips but still had a bit of gap in the tight areas (all that was filled with thickened epoxy. Small tacks work better than staples on strips that are stressed out. If you look at some of my pictures (especially the Ranger) you will see a small block of cedar (with a tack in it) holding down a strip. Make sure you don't glue your tack block to the strip. and yes sanding that area is a pain. I fashion foam blocks (for difficult contour areas) and use 3M GOLD self stick roll paper....... that stuff has saved my butt. The Merlin that I built follows the original design by Bruce Kunz. There is no rocker. The canoe tracks like it has a rudder, but it turns like a cruise ship w/o a bow thruster. In retrospect, I would have been better off following the plans of the Northwest Merlin (NW Canoe) which has rocker. The NW Merlin design is available free You can fix the damage to your canoe even if it means grinding the delaminated fabric off. Most likely that is you best bet for a quality repair. |
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paddlingredrock |
I am pretty sure we used 6 oz. cloth with two layers on the bottom. Used regular fiberglass rosin and hardner as we couldn't afford the new epoxy's on the market. I think we put 3-5 layer strips on the bow and stern tip. Those areas are becoming cloudy, but I cannot tell if they are separating from the wood (I don't think they are separating from the wood, just becoming cloudy) I did punture the boat once in very cold weather. The puncture went through the outside of the boat, through the wood and pushed the inner fiberglass layer off the wood. When it happened I patched the cloth on the outside (puncture) and it looks great. Really can't even tell where it happened. But on the inside where the cloth separated from the wood, I drilled a small hole and injected some rosin/hardner in the small area that was separated (about 6" long by 4" width) using a syringe. The process went well but the rosin only sealed the separation in the center 1/2 of the blemish, so now the cloth is still separated from the wood around the exterior of where it separated. This episode happened about 15 years ago. Question 1: How would repair this major scrape in the bottom that is into the cloth and looks white? Question 2: What would you recommend for repairing the inside the boat issue where the cloth has separated from the wood in a small area? Cut that small section of fiberglass out and replace with a patch over the entire damaged area, or just keep drilling multiple holes and trying to inject more rosin in the dead air space? Question 3: What can I do with the bow and stern stems where the coating is yellowing/opaque? I will probably have many more questions but this is a long enough post for now. I really would appreciate any of your comments and recommendations! Thank you very much. |