Arkansas Canoe Club Forums

I am a Boy Scout leader and our troop has been looking at buying some old town canoes. They are in need of skid plate repair. None of us know anything about this subject. Can anyone in this group help us with a good reliable person that can repair these canoes or know where we can puchase the kits resonably. We are looking at buying 10 of them. We would appriciate any advice. Thank You for helping out scout troop.
Troy

A big chunk of our membership is at Whitewater school, so don't despair yet. I've made that repair but don't have the materials on hand. You'll need some fiberglass and kevlar fabric and some fiberglass resin.
West Marine is a good source of this stuff. Where are you located?

We are located in Rogers, Arkansas. About how much would it cost to do about 10 canoes?

you can make your own skid plates for less $. These prople have the info as well as the supplies you need. I have made my own poster board pattern and used their supplies. I have used layers of fiberglass and have also used kevlar. Both work well with West Systems Epoxy. They also sell the special sissors to cut kevlar. You also can Google canoe skid plates for info. Hope this helps, Jerry
Link to Sweet Composites. http://www.sweetcomposites.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Actually, you might want to look into not repairing the skid plates. i've found over the years, that skidplates actually make that part of the boat more rigid, therfore less flexible, and more likely to transmit any forces of a rock hit more likely to break the ABS. In fact, I would consider figuring out how to remove any skidplate material, as long it didn't damage the vinyl layer or ABS, otherwise I'd just let them wear off. Plus, this would save you a bunch of $$. If you need an alternative to repairing ABS, let me know, I've got a cheap, flexible arternative. dale

Think Dale is on to something.

First reason being if damage is limited to skid plates and no interior layers of the boat are exposed, then there is no worry at this time.

Second, what rivers are to be floated and paddled with what frequency? If you only use them a few times a year on streams like the Buffalo, War Eagle, Current, etc., proper attention to landing the boats on the shore will minimize further damage.

First question! How bad is it?

Got a few people on the board who advertise repair services up there. Paul (Shep) Shepherd is one.

Troy,
Are all the canoes the same? You need to determine the type of plastic you are dealing with. Polyethylene is way different than ABS in the ways they can be repaired. Below is a link that will provide you with a lot of info on the different types of plastic canoes.

http://www.mv.com/users/morris/paddling ... stics.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

There is a wealth of knowledge here. If they can be repaired someone here will be able to give advise.

Edit: Do the canoes have skid plates that need repair or do the canoes need skid plates?

-Louis

If they are Old Town, then by definition they are old ABS or Kevlar, though doubt they are Kevlar because of cost, plus Kevlar would not need skidplates . dale

Troy,
Are all the canoes the same? You need to determine the type of plastic you are dealing with. Polyethylene is way different than ABS in the ways they can be repaired. Below is a link that will provide you with a lot of info on the different types of plastic canoes.

http://www.mv.com/users/morris/paddling" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ... stics.html

There is a wealth of knowledge here. If they can be repaired someone here will be able to give advise.

Edit: Do the canoes have skid plates that need repair or do the canoes need skid plates?

-Louis

I have an Old Town that is polyethylene, and I have found that it is nearly unpatchable, as it's really "waxy" and nothing will bond to it permanently, or at least nothing I have tried.

All the canoes are the same. They are old town discovery 16'. They just need skid plats put on. They do not have skid plats on at this time.

I really appreciate all the feed back and support. You guys have been awesome!

http://www.tapplastics.com/shop/product.php?pid=457&" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

This is about the only thing I have seen that could work on those Discovery's but its very expensive. Probably not worth it at 14 bucks per ounce plus you need the dispensing gun and flame treat the canoe surface. Probably would be a good way to put on vinyl anchor pads but probably not feasible to adhere patches. G/flex is another product but I'm not sure that would work either. Maybe someone here will have a solution or has used G/Flex with success on Poly boats.

-Louis

Go to the old town web site. They have complete instructions on how to patch and add skid plates. They sell kits with kevelar skid plates but these may be to expensive. I don't see any reason one couldn't fabricate there own from fiberglass. Read the instructions carefully the secret to getting good adhesion on HDPE boats is the flame treating. It is very easy and safe. You just knock the shine off with a propane to rch and you are ready to go.

just drop them off @ Buffalo River Canoes . we will have them ready for you in 24 hours ...

If I drop the off at Buffalo Canoes, How much am I looking at cost wise?

Hey Troy,

I believe I talked to you on the phone last week. I am the owner of Buffalo River Canoes. I cannot put a concrete price on skid plates without looking at the boats due to cost of the resin and kevlar. The Old Town resin works well but is expensive. Old Town Discovery canoes are notorious for wearing on the back of the canoe and not the front. If you save money and just fix the one end then the balance is thrown off if you carry them like we do (solo). You can get expensive if you put matching large skid plates on both ends. Is the ouside layer torn? If not, reverse the seats and float on. We use g flex and west systems epoxy with 60-70% success on my fleet of 97 canoes. Are the boats dry? Moisture is a major variable. Let me know your thoughts and I will price bulk resin. I have the kevlar on hand.

Thanks,
Jesse
Buffalo River Canoes