New Toy, New Troubles - Plastic Welding 2

    Confused about the new blog title? You shouldn't be, because this month's blog is a sequel to February 2017's "Plastic Welding" topic, with the major difference being that instead of repairing a small gouge-like crack in the bottom of my Hobie's hull, I bought a used kayak with structure cracks on the top of the hull.

    Here's the story of how it all started:

    Our kayak fishing club (RISAA.org) has what we call an annual "Meet & Greet" in early June on a Saturday at 10:00 am at one of Rhode Island's largest free parks. Last year, the state of Rhode Island completely redesigned the parking area and replaced the badly damaged boat ramp with a brand new ramp. I like to get there early and set up my kayak as if I was going to go fishing, but instead we just set up our kayaks in a row so that others can casually walk around each kayak, take pictures of how each kayak is set up, talk with their prospective owners about why they set up their kayak that way, and to check out the gadgets that each kayak has while the owners describe how everything works. The local U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary was on hand to give out free inspections to our kayaks for those of us who wanted that done.

In the above photo, I'm holding one of two 9 foot graphite salt rods that I have with me when I'm out on the water. My 2009 Hobie Outback is at my right.

Photo #1 Credit: Mona Rodriguez

In this photo, I'm showing a father & son some of the upgrades that I've done to my kayak. That orange kayak in the background is a 2013 Feelfree Moken 14, and is the subject of this month's blog post.

Photo #2 Credit: Mona Rodriguez

Those of us that attended, and showed off our kayaks, gathered for a group photo along with the US Coast Guard Auxiliary members (kneeling in the front).

Photo #3 Credit: David Pollack

Anyway, one of our members showed up with his kayak, but didn't set it up. He stated that he hurt his shoulder, and can no longer pick up his 85 lb. kayak anymore, but was willing to sacrifice selling it for $500 - but only to members of RISAA (he told me he was asking $900 originally). I started to look over his kayak thoroughly because I had been looking into getting a bigger kayak for offshore use. As I was inspecting the top of his kayak, I noticed the sides of the kayak had structure cracks in the hull. The cracks appeared before, and after the gear track rails, at both the front, and rear of the kayak's top edge. I thought to myself, this is my chance to snag a really nice offshore rig, and write another detailed blog about the benefits of plastic welding, as well as write about the additions I plan to make on this kayak. So, I saved up for two months, and I told him I'd be over around 6 pm to pick it up.

As you can see, this kayak is huge at 14 ft 8 in long, and sticks out the back of my truck just a wee bit. It came with a nice padded seat and a Scotty Mount adjustable rod holder. This model features the "wheel-in-the-keel", but I will get my own trailer for it.

Photo #4 Credit: Jeff Hall

Here are some of the cracks that I noticed once I got the kayak in the garage. To the casual observer, seeing these cracks would've turned off a lot of people, almost to the point where people would've scoffed it off as a total loss.

Left Front Rail - Rear crack

Right Front Rail - Rear crack

Right Front Rail - Front crack

Photo Credits #5, #6, & #7: Jeff Hall 

To really get an in depth look at what I was up against, I did one gear track rail at a time, so as not to confuse myself with what rail came from what side. First, I had to remove the screws from the track channel. The two screws farthest away from the forward hatch came out easily. The two screws closest to the forward hatch, didn't come out as easily as I had hoped. I opened the front hatch and stuck my hand inside to feel around for the other end of the screw. It turns out that someone at the factory used a *plug to set the screw in place better. I grabbed the plug with a set of vise-grips and the screws finally came out. 

*NOTE: Save those plastic plug pieces as you will need them to re-attach the screws.

When I finished removing all the screws from the channel, I couldn't get the rail out off the kayak. So, I used a flat head screwdriver to carefully pry it out, being extra careful to keep an eye on the edge. After I got the rail out, I noticed that the rail had been forced in place - from the factory! Just laying the rail in revealed that the rail was 1/16" too long! I had originally thought that the previous owner had dropped the kayak on its side damaging the hull, but this wasn't the case. The rails were simply too long for the molded channel. By forcing them in place, the kayak's hull became compromised with the extra stress on the hull.

Photo #8 Credit: Jeff Hall

* * NOTE: In an effort to keep up with the plastic welding details, I had lost the original photos and had to "substitute" the next bunch of photos with that of an old ATV fender. The fender was bright yellow, but I changed the color with a photoshop program. So, as you will see, the methods to weld plastic still apply here. 

*WARNING* Wear gloves when handling the plastic welding tool!

This is the plastic welder tool that I use. It can be found at Harbor Freight Tools for $17.

Photo Credit: Jeff Hall

Starting with photo #5, this area of the kayak had one of the largest cracks in the hull. 

Photo #9 Credit: Jeff Hall

I start off using a Dremel Rotary Tool with a bit that has a tiny "ball" tip. This will help to enlarge the crack's sides to create a "V" channel on the crack's edges. Be sure to "drill" past the end of the crack. This will ensure that the crack won't continue to crack thus wrecking the hull further.

Photo #10 Credit: Jeff Hall

As I grind off the sharp edge of the cracked area, I'm working the cracked area into a "V" channel. This will allow me to lay the welding rod into the channel and melt it into place. In doing so, it will heat up the sides of the crack and seal the melted rod into the channel better.

Photo #11 Credit: Jeff Hall

This is what your area should look like when you're done grinding the sharp edge of the cracked area. It will look like a "Y" channel.

Photo #12 Credit: Jeff Hall

Now, the fun begins! Plug in the welding iron and wait about ten minutes. Next, take a welding rod and lay it in the channel.

Photo #13 Credit: Jeff Hall

The really nice thing about this particular plastic welder, is the versatility of the iron's head, which can be used in a variety of ways to shape the molten plastic while you work. Here in this photo, I lay the iron's head down sideways to melt the rod a half inch at a time. It will save you a lot of time doing it this way. If there isn't enough to cover the crack on the first pass, you can always come back later to fill in the gaps you missed.

Photos #14 & 15 Credits: Jeff Hall

Keep working the welding rod into the crack until it's completely filled it. When you're done, you smooth it out as best you can with the iron's head. Added too much? Let it sit for a few minutes, then come back in with the Dremel Rotary Tool to "knock down" the high spots. When you're done, this is what it should look like when you're finished.

Photo #16 Credit: Jeff Hall

These are the cracks I sealed up on the Feelfree Moken 14 after a few days of work in my garage. The fourth rail didn't need any work, and was left as is.

As you can see, all of the cracks in the hull have been sealed up, and now the kayak is ready for use.

I was shocked to find out that the inside of the hull had saltwater residue and evidence of sea grass INSIDE. The previous owner took a huge risk in using the kayak without fixing the cracks first! It would've been a waste of money should the hull begin taking on water without him even knowing it!

All in all, the sequel to February 2017's blog was a lot of fun to do. And, as with this particular blog, I was able to give better detailed descriptions and provide better photos of what entails when working with a plastic welder. 

As for the material used for welding, you can substitute the welding rod for a plastic milk crate, as it is the same material - polyethylene plastic.

As usual, keep those lines wet & tight! - J