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Keel strip for old Current Designs Solstice HV

drybag

New Member
Joined
Jun 29, 2010
Messages
9
Hello all!
She's old and battered and I want to keel strip her. Thinking a 4" glass tape. Just wondering what the best tape material is and what kind of resin I should use and where I can obtain it.
Thanks in advance!
Drybag
 
Since keel strips are usually just 'wear away' additions, you have lots of choices, IMO.
You could use just gelcoat (layers), sanded smooth, without tape.
For resin, polyester resin will work OK for a keel strip - I'd use epoxy for anything 'structural'. Polyester is cheaper.
I'm assuming you don't have a gallon jug of epoxy in your shop.
You can also soak tape with gelcoat (or wet the tape with clear resin and then lay it into gelcoat and top it with gelcoat to add the colour).
Using polyester resin, you could use mat strip instead of cloth tape. Mat is easier to shape to curves (and is thicker) but tape works fine as well. With epoxy, tape only - epoxy won't dissolve the binders in mat.
For the 'where to get it?' question, where are you located? (You can add your location to your profile.)
I'm not a big fan of keel strips - I usually prefer to just repair the gelcoat.
You could just stick on a length of KeelEzy if you want a keel strip. It is popular but I think it's a bit 'sticky' when the kayak gets hung up on a rock. Just IMO.
 
Here is an automotive type of solution:
1 - repair surface with bondo
2 - Drag a 7 mm high by 14 mm wide ridge of bondo (wear strip ) down the keel line
3 - spray/coat the wear strip with Pick Up truck spray on bed liner ( might be hard to find )

Crazy , maybe,
but bondo is cheap and is very tough once fully cured. (bondo is polyester resin and glass)
Bondo can be sanded to a very high gloss paintable surface.

However I am not sure if a small raised wear strip will affect the way your boat turns.
You could always sand it back flush to the hull contour.

Roy
 
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