Repairing plastic/polyethylene boats
 

hiya
Im a plastics engineer by trade and yes you are correct almost no glue will
adhere to HDPE or PP (polypropolene) do you know which one it is ? I once
saw topper dingies being moulded on 6000 ton machines and i think they were
PP.
Anyway, welding is the way to go, epoxy is just silly. Most good auto
bodyshops have plastic welding gear for the repair of car bumpers (
fenders ) most car bumpers are ABS though so they may have to order in some
filler rod to do your job , Just ask

fragged

"Ignoramus32317" wrote in message
...
In addition to my 21 ft boat, I recently found a 4x8 plastic boat that
someone put out as garbage. It is kind of doublehulled and seems to be
made of high density polyethylene (HDPE), like plastic buckets. I am
delighted because I can use this boat on some little lakes nearby.

It seems super safe (double hull) and super stable.

It does have however a few small cracks in the hull that need
repair. What is the right way to repair HDPE? Can I use glue guns with
hot melt glue?

i

Repairing plastic/polyethylene boats
 

hiya
Im a plastics engineer by trade and yes you are correct almost no glue will
adhere to HDPE or PP (polypropolene) do you know which one it is ?

When I was an Old Town dealer they had a repair kit for their royalex canoes
that adhered very well. Know of some that were patched 15 yrs ago & still
holding fine. They had color matched goo in there that stayed put after you
prepped the area well with abrasive & solvent.
Greg Sefton

Repairing plastic/polyethylene boats
 

They were probably PVC.

--


Keith
__
Learn from the mistakes of others. You won't live long enough to make all of
them yourself.
"Bray Haven" wrote in message
...
hiya
Im a plastics engineer by trade and yes you are correct almost no glue
will
adhere to HDPE or PP (polypropolene) do you know which one it is ?

When I was an Old Town dealer they had a repair kit for their royalex
canoes
that adhered very well. Know of some that were patched 15 yrs ago & still
holding fine. They had color matched goo in there that stayed put after
you
prepped the area well with abrasive & solvent.
Greg Sefton

Repairing plastic/polyethylene boats
 

Does anyone know what those little pontoon type two man bass boats are
made of and how to patch them? Everybody who knows me thinks I know
everything about fixing boats but I don't. My brother dumped his little
Stalker off in my yard and thinks I can patch his cracked transom. I
think it is ABS. I gotta do something with it before it kills the grass.

Bray Haven wrote:
hiya
Im a plastics engineer by trade and yes you are correct almost no glue will
adhere to HDPE or PP (polypropolene) do you know which one it is ?


When I was an Old Town dealer they had a repair kit for their royalex canoes
that adhered very well. Know of some that were patched 15 yrs ago & still
holding fine. They had color matched goo in there that stayed put after you
prepped the area well with abrasive & solvent.
Greg Sefton


--
Glenn Ashmore

I'm building a 45' cutter in strip/composite. Watch my progress (or lack
there of) at: http://www.rutuonline.com
Shameless Commercial Division: http://www.spade-anchor-us.com

Repairing plastic/polyethylene boats
 

From what I've read ABS = Royalex (see suggested remedy below)

Glenn Ashmore ) writes:
Does anyone know what those little pontoon type two man bass boats are
made of and how to patch them? Everybody who knows me thinks I know
everything about fixing boats but I don't. My brother dumped his little
Stalker off in my yard and thinks I can patch his cracked transom. I
think it is ABS. I gotta do something with it before it kills the grass.

Bray Haven wrote:
hiya
Im a plastics engineer by trade and yes you are correct almost no glue will
adhere to HDPE or PP (polypropolene) do you know which one it is ?


When I was an Old Town dealer they had a repair kit for their royalex canoes
that adhered very well. Know of some that were patched 15 yrs ago & still
holding fine. They had color matched goo in there that stayed put after you
prepped the area well with abrasive & solvent.
Greg Sefton


--
Glenn Ashmore

I'm building a 45' cutter in strip/composite. Watch my progress (or lack
there of) at: http://www.rutuonline.com
Shameless Commercial Division: http://www.spade-anchor-us.com



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Repairing plastic/polyethylene boats
 

I recently learned / heard this tip on the 'woodworking' NG . . .after
cleaning the are {HDPE}, 'toast' it {LIGHTLY and CAREFULLY} with a torch,
scuff it, then use a good epoxy.

NOT having the chance to try this . . . YET . . . I can only pass it on.

Regards & Good Luck,
Ron Magen
Backyard Boatshop

"Bray Haven" wrote in message
...
hiya
Im a plastics engineer by trade and yes you are correct almost no glue
will
adhere to HDPE or PP (polypropolene) do you know which one it is ?

When I was an Old Town dealer they had a repair kit for their royalex
canoes
that adhered very well. Know of some that were patched 15 yrs ago & still
holding fine. They had color matched goo in there that stayed put after
you
prepped the area well with abrasive & solvent.
Greg Sefton

Repairing plastic/polyethylene boats
 

There is no reliable way to repair PE with glue, epoxy or otherwise.
The only way to repair it that will last is to melt it together. A
soldering iron may work on thin pieces but to get adequate penetration
in the kind of thickness I think we are talking here, you need more
heat. A heat gun with a funnel output or a plastic welding gun
(preferred) is needed.

Ron

Repairing plastic/polyethylene boats
 

I know that there is a such thing as poly welding. I believe it uses
ultra-sound, not heat. Not sure what kind of PE it can weld. Look in the
yellow pages for companies that make plastic tanks (welded, not molded) and
give'm a call. They may know just what to do...or not. Call.

Brian

"Ron Thornton" wrote in message
...
There is no reliable way to repair PE with glue, epoxy or otherwise.
The only way to repair it that will last is to melt it together. A
soldering iron may work on thin pieces but to get adequate penetration
in the kind of thickness I think we are talking here, you need more
heat. A heat gun with a funnel output or a plastic welding gun
(preferred) is needed.

Ron

Repairing plastic/polyethylene boats
 

Ultra sound is another way to heat the plastic. Not very practical for
the DIYer.

Ron

Repairing plastic/polyethylene boats
 

I know the poly welders at work are a special breed. I was suggesting
taking it to a shop to have fixed. Polyethylene is a bear to do anything
with because nothing glues to it very well. Can't speak about the 'torch
it' first technique, which means I can't say it works or not. Sounds
interesting if it needs to be a DYI job, or an adhesive caulk, maybe with a
patch? Either way, I was talking about having a shop do the welding...

Brian


"Ron Thornton" wrote in message
...
Ultra sound is another way to heat the plastic. Not very practical for
the DIYer.

Ron

Repairing plastic/polyethylene boats - Plastic Welding Equipment
 

I've had a go at it - I'm as incompetant at welding plastic as I am welding
steel. But it's no harder than welding steel if you have the right gear,
and the right filler rods, and someone who knows what they are doing show
you the method and the tricks. Isn't that how you get to weld steel too?
The big difference is that with plastic welding you are forcing a partly
melted filler rod into a heated and partly melted joint, which is quite
different from either arc or oxy welding.

And just like welding steel, if you have a lot to do it's worth buying the
right gear, getting someone to show you how to do it, and practising until
the results are OK. If it's a one-off job find someone who already knows
how to do it, and has the right gear.
David

"John" wrote in message
...
I've been planning to try some welded plastic fabrication, but I
haven't gotten around to it yet.

It's kind of like oxy-acetylene, using a "torch" and plastic filler
rods. The torch uses electric heat and compressed air to melt the
plastic at the joint and the compatible filler rod is introduced and
melted in.

this is the torch, from a well known US plastics vendor:

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/pro...Super+Welde r

rods are available in many materials, including LDPE, HDPE, and PP

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/pro...ne+Welding+Rod


Here is the same idea, from a noted seller of low cost, imported
tools;
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=41592
Notice the 1:10 price ratio.

I've tried the same concept using a propane torch, it works, but it
also introduces carbon into the joint, which probably doesn't do it
any good.

If anybody is experienced with this equipment and/or has hints on
technique, I'm all ears.

Best, John


On Mon, 1 Sep 2003 09:05:21 -0400 (EDT), (Ron
Thornton) wrote:

There is no reliable way to repair PE with glue, epoxy or otherwise.
The only way to repair it that will last is to melt it together. A
soldering iron may work on thin pieces but to get adequate penetration
in the kind of thickness I think we are talking here, you need more
heat. A heat gun with a funnel output or a plastic welding gun
(preferred) is needed.

Ron

Repairing plastic/polyethylene boats
 

"Brian D" wrote in message news:Igy5b.349237$uu5.69452@sccrnsc04...
I know the poly welders at work are a special breed. I was suggesting
taking it to a shop to have fixed. Polyethylene is a bear to do anything
with because nothing glues to it very well. Can't speak about the 'torch
it' first technique, which means I can't say it works or not. Sounds
interesting if it needs to be a DYI job, or an adhesive caulk, maybe with a
patch? Either way, I was talking about having a shop do the welding...

Brian


"Ron Thornton" wrote in message
...
Ultra sound is another way to heat the plastic. Not very practical for
the DIYer.

Ron


I think I'd give up on trying to weld the plastic yourself. PE needs
to be welded under inert gas.

-Kevin