Toller wrote:

A fiberglass canoe washed up on a friends beach a couple years ago. He
tossed it over to one side. Since no one has claimed it, I think repairing
it will make a good project for my son this summer. He is actually eager to
do it.

It has two holes, one in the bow and one in the stern. It looks like
someone dragged it over a driveway and simply ground holes. The previous
owner patched it with what seems to be asphaltic tape. He also painted the
inside and outside.

I am planning on putting one layer of fiberglass over the holes, and then a
larger layer over the entire bottom. The construction is awfully flimsy and
can use some strengthening.

First thing is to get the paint off. I have tried simply scraping and that
gets a little off. A heat gun and scraping gets most of it off, but not
all. And I am not not sure how good a heat gun is for fiberglass.
I don't want to sand (except of course where I will be putting new
fiberglass) because the fiberglass is so thin, and I have doubts about the
safety of a chemical stripper on fiberglass; someone warned me it will
soften the resin.

So, any suggestions?


It sounds like a great father/son project. You don't mention the
make/model of the canoe. I would check and confirm the construction
materials. Expoxy resin and polyester resins will not bond well
togehter so if the canoe is fiberglass, you should know which resin was
used. If it is a fiberglass canoe, it may have a balsa core between
layers - check for water wicking/damage.

Is it possible that the canoe is actually made out of ABS or
polyethylene instead of fiberglass? You said it was flimsy construction
- ABS feels very flimsy and "rubbery" in a sense. ABS and poly can only
be repaired with special materials, but it probably can be done.

Assuming fiberglass, if it were me, I'd make the spot repairs, feather
them in, and sand the old paint down with 80 grit as another poster
suggested, then smooth sand and prime/paint the boat with a good marine
paint. I would not add another layer of fiberglass which will add
weight and not much structure.

You don't mention your son's age but sanding, feathering, painting, are
more likely within his skill sets than reglassing the whole hull.
Instead of more glass, I'd put that time into inwales, tharts, seats,
and appearance items.

Hope this helps - HH