William R. Watt wrote:
Thinking of buying an old ABS kayak ...

O, the irony!

... and wondering what I'd be getting into
as far a possible future permanent repairs to cracks, etc. Something
a person
can do at home with inexpensive materials?

I wish Byron Funnell hadn't been driven away from r.b.p by the Moron
Wars (Tim and Njall); he could tell you exactly what it takes. He buys
sheet ABS to repair ABS canoes. I cannot tell you how he does it,
except that I recall that he cuts a suitably sized patch, heats it in
the oven[1], then presses it onto the hull to get an approximate fit,
then repeats to get a better fit, and so on until the patch is closely
form-fit to the hull. Dunno what adhesive he uses; I'd go to the 3M
catalogue.

You might try googling his name to get his address; I'm sure you'll
find it. His ISP is (was) in Ft. Wayne, Indiana.

[1] the regular cooking oven in the kitchen.


-Richard, His Kanubic Travesty
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