Knocked a big hole in my canoe. Procedures to fix it??

[woody]

There is one main strip that runs all along the center of this boat. that is destroyed. the fiberglass is cracked around it.
check out the pics.

i know i could just slap a patch cloth over the holes after some basic sanding. but the thing will visibly have a gap where no wood can be seen.

what should i do? cut it into a square and add wood in there? then epoxy the cloth on it? or what

the inside piece of wood, not the actual strips, is ok. but its hard to work with cause its pretty much held down with epoxy

 

[Todd Bradshaw]

Best bet is generally to feather out the fiberglass around the hole with a sander, making sure to get rid of any delaminated glass. Then cut the broken areas of strips out, replace them with new wood (butt joints are fine). Getting a bomb-proof glue bond between strips isn't critical, since most of the strength will be the fiberglass, but the neater and stronger the core work is, the better. Once the new wood is faired in and smooth, re-glass the area (a couple layers of 6 oz/ is usually plenty) overlapping the old glass by a couple of inches. Fill over it with additional coats of resin, sand it smooth and varnish it.

 

[woody]

Thank you that's exactly what I'll do. I talked with my autobody neighborthis mornmorning. He said dang near the exact thing. I'll post up pics

 

[Steve Ambrose]

That's a scary hood you have in the background!

 

[woody]

heres my progress so far.

 

[woody]

Steve I like the scary side of life, it reflects in my truck, and somehow i think that this hole in the canoe is proof too. Ya next time Ill avoid rapids in this canoe. Whoops.

i love that skull camo!

 

[woody]

I have been taking pics of most of my progress. Ya I'm new to this forum, but not forums
I'd like to at least contribute to this site since I like it. :cheers:

So I had this split in the 1/2 x 1/2 piece that basically held the strips together when I built it. So I figure its critical. I didn't snap a pic, but I glued it and had an elaborate mirage of clamps holdin it all down. Then I carefully fit in strip pieces in place of where they once were in place of this hole I carved out. Here is that pic. The small gaps I later mixed sawdust with glue to only fill the void as that method really has no strength holding ability.

 

[woody]

then I clamped it all down.

 

[woody]

i slapped a sheet of fiberglass on the inside to hold it all down.
i changed from my original plan of building a base under this repair.
my lack of tools and supplies hinders this step.

i have all the tools in the world to fix any motorvehicle but no wood tools. ( i borrowed the clamps)

 

[woody]

i sure hope this helps someone out along the lines and that im not aimlessly posting this crap that nobody will use or appreciate...

 

[pklonowski]

Looks like it'll be a solid repair. And no, it's not crap that nobody will ever care about. People in this org do a lot of canoe repairs, and any process can lead to new ideas. Having this one well-documented will be a great resource!

 

[Kathryn Klos]

There are a lot of folks who read the posts and look at the pictures, but who have nothing to add... you are providing a valuable service! The "search" function can be used by anyone with a similar problem, and your solution will appear... and continue to be helpful.

Kathy

 

[Nutkin]

Thanks for posting the photos, it helps to see other ways to skin a cat, and saves some of us from re-inventing the wheel.

 

[woody]

thanks for the support fellas.

i have done more work and documented it with pics.

i ended up doing more work to it than just the repair.

i will post up my progress later on

 

[woody]

after fitting and sanding down the new pieces, it was time for glass and resin.

i cut two sections. the smaller one i applied first then i applied the large one. i did it in one shot and did not wait for the first one to cure.

this fiberglass cloth is not pretty or fun to work with.
to complete the job i sanded down the edge of the cloth cause it was so evident it was there. a large seam almost in the side. i dont like it.

after feathering the edges real good i used a brush to layer on more resin. and hopefully no drips!

done

 

[pklonowski]

Them's character marks -- wear 'em proudly!