Fishing just got better!

[exMember]

A little beat up but a 15 footer 4 person canoe for $100 was to damn good to pass up. I will start the fiber glass work in a few days and repair some spots that were hitting when they'd beach it. I started to use flex seal on the inside for easier cleaning and a little padding, but will buy the white flex seal instead. As you can see in the second picture, the igits removed the yoke bar that provides stability to the fiber glass. They removed it so they could fit more gear into it. Shame they didnt cut or drill the rivits, they pretty much bent the aluminum frame to get it out. Not a biggy, if i can not buy one, I have aluminum pipe I will bend and fit into its place. But like I said, $100 and a little repair work here and there, can't ask for much more.

 

[Muley Hunter]

Pretty cool Hiawatha.

 

[patocazador]

Ijets is right.  :No: 

I've had the same Sears 16' aluminum canoe since 1967. It has never leaked and I've beat it up plenty over the years.

 

[Muley Hunter]

I believe it's glass.

 

[exMember]

yeah this ones glass. Aluminum would have been nice but a bigger pain to patch holes lol.

Its getting covered in snow, maybe i can test it out tomorrow as a sled  :evil: 

 

[exMember]

damn! Seats are expensive as hell, $100 per seat. What a rip! I guess who ever else comes along will have a nice plastic crate to sit on LOL.

 

[Muley Hunter]

Make them. They look like a simple board with angle brackets.

 

[exMember]

was hoping for some extra padding but it looks like I will do just that. I already have to make the yoke out of aluminum pipe, once the damn snow melts. I swear, you get gorgeous weather and then bam! Snow and then mud for 3 days.

 

[patocazador]

Duh,  :geek: I know yours is glass.     Aluminum is the better choice for rough use. Holes are seldom poked through one. Rocks just dent them in .. especially rounded off river rocks.

If you want more cushion, use strap webbing like the old lawn chairs and just weave and fasten it tightly with sheet metal screws and washers. Wood is hard and weighs more.

 

[exMember]

hooooly crap hole! What looked like minor repair required the grinder to remove patched holes with bondo and poorly done fiber glass. Quite a bit more work now. Just finished cleaning up the 3 main areas that need a great deal of help, then I took an hour to work an aluminum pipe into shape for a yoke. I got it too! Much more stable than with it missing. Have to let a couple areas dry where they fill it with foam, then I can do some more sanding and fiber glass it.

 

[Spitfire1]

Do yourself a favour and paint it with pool coat or flow coat once you've done your repairs , much more durable than paint.

 

[exMember]

2 sections completely repaired and the nose partially repaired! I have to buy the bulk resin-hardener and material tomorrow, the kit didnt have a whole lot in it.

 

[exMember]

before  we did one more layer of fiber glass. I feathered this down smooth and then we filled in the little gouge with more fiber glass. Its now feathered, primed and I just painted it a color that damn near matches the green. All of the other fiber glass is done as well, just have to sand it, prime & paint it. The nose is the only piece unfinished.

 

[exMember]

Found a bad ass way to get the shape back in the front of the canoe today. I was going to use cardboard to build a spine to get that nice round/pointy shape. Ended up finding a thin bamboo rod which I split in 1/4's and used a thin strip to put directly in the center of the hole I had to cut out and then bend it to shape, duck tape it to hold form and then fiber glassed layers under it and then over it. It shocked the hell out of us when we stood back to look! If I have to use bondo to get it smoother, it will look like nothing ever happened.

 

[patocazador]

If you keep on adding stuff, especially Bondo, that canoe will wind up weighing 200 lbs.   

 

[exMember]

oh man the section at the front had a lot of fiberglass where they reinforce it for beaching. It was horribly big hole to cut out in order to get to the good stuff. One the fiber glass canoe's they use bondo and coat the entire thing for a smoother look rather than pure fiber glass. Adds weight but also adds strength to it.

 

[Spitfire1]

You must maybe think about a half round aluminium keel strip for those hard wearing places. Will wear the strip instead of the fibreglass.

 

[exMember]

I certainly like that Idea, I will look into it.

 

[Spitfire1]

We use it on all our ski-boats as we launch from the beach and the sand is rather abrasive.