Does anyone have any opinions on the relative merits of keel strips for
sea kayaks?

I am about to buy my first glass boat. I am planning on getting an NDK
Romany.

On one had they seem like they might be useful in areas with rocky
shores. On the other hand, it seems that they would both add weight and
effect the hydrodynamics of the hull. Any help would be appreciated.

thanks,
ed...

On 28-Oct-2005, "Ed" wrote:

On one had they seem like they might be useful in areas with rocky
shores. On the other hand, it seems that they would both add weight and
effect the hydrodynamics of the hull. Any help would be appreciated.

I paddle in an area with rocky shores and don't find that I lose much
gelcoat to the rocks. I don't baby the kayak either, but then my
kayak has tougher gelcoat than some others - the gelcoat quality
definitely varies across brands of kayak.

A keel strip will affect the performance a bit, but not as much as those
thick Kevlar felt strips that some put on WW canoes.

Don't put anything on the new kayak. If the gelcoat wears significantly,
grind off the gelcoat in a strip once it's time to repair and epoxy on
a layer of fiberglass. That will be stronger and more wear resistant
than the gelcoat you are replacing - the weight difference will be
negligible. Since it's under the hull, UV degradation won't be much of
an issue (don't store the kayak outside and upside down). You can paint
the glass/epoxy if you want to match the colour or protect it from the sun.

If the gelcoat doesn't wear quickly, just patch it as required.

Mike

Ed wrote:
Does anyone have any opinions on the relative merits of keel strips for
sea kayaks?

I am about to buy my first glass boat. I am planning on getting an NDK
Romany.

On one had they seem like they might be useful in areas with rocky
shores. On the other hand, it seems that they would both add weight and
effect the hydrodynamics of the hull. Any help would be appreciated.

Although none of my boats have keel strips, I'll be adding them to a
couple this winter. Keels and chines are subject to a lot of wear and
tear, particularly if you use your boats hard, playing in rocks and
surf. The keels strips used on kayaks are thin enough that I find it
hard to believe that anyone could feel a difference in performance. As
for whether to get one on a new NDK boat, if you have any DIY skills at
all, you can probably do a better job for a lot less money. If you have
any interested in doing your own boat repairs, installing a keel strip
is a good introduction to working with fiberglass and epoxy. Whether you
install it right away or wait until the keel wears a bit is up to you,
but I'd probably do the latter.

"Ed" wrote in message
oups.com...
Does anyone have any opinions on the relative merits of keel strips for
sea kayaks?

I am about to buy my first glass boat. I am planning on getting an NDK
Romany.

On one had they seem like they might be useful in areas with rocky
shores. On the other hand, it seems that they would both add weight and
effect the hydrodynamics of the hull. Any help would be appreciated.

thanks,
ed...

Hi Ed, my Navigator came with a keel strip and it's been fantastic. My wife
and I do most of our paddling together, and comparing that part of her kayak
to mine, it's obvious that the keel strip is well worth whatever very minor
performance variation there might be. It also makes for a little less
anxiety when a bit of keel roughousing is necessary or advantageous :-)

Cheers,

Keenan
gokayaking.ca

I have had my NDK for 4 years . I am going to put a thin kevlar strip
on it eventually. I have some patches done but when you are slammed
into or left on a rock it is not always dead centre . I have chips
knocked out og my keel by the ( Empty ) skeg box . They will be
repaired easily and quickly. That strip is coming but it is not a
pressing issue.
I will wear it out then replace it, as I do with my cars tyres.

On 2-Nov-2005, wrote:

I am going to put a thin kevlar strip on it eventually.

Kevlar isn't the best for abrasion. Use a fiberglass strip instead.

Mike

Michael Daly wrote:
On 2-Nov-2005, wrote:


I am going to put a thin kevlar strip on it eventually.


Kevlar isn't the best for abrasion. Use a fiberglass strip instead.

It's also much less expensive and considerably easier to work with.

Fiberglass does not stand up to abrasion as well as Kevlar. I have used
fiberglass to repair the front and rear of my glass canoe. I finally
applied kevlar with epoxy resin and the strips have stayed on for over
five years. The secret to using kevlar is to spread the resin on the
cloth while the cloth is spread out on Saranwrap. Then cover the cloth
with another layer of Saranwrap and squeeze the resin into the cloth by
pressing on the top layer of wrap with a plastic autobody repair
spreader. When the resin is evenly spread throughout the cloth, remove
the top wrap and apply the patch to the spot needing repair. Pull the
wrap tight when applied to the boat and leave the wrap until the resin
sets up. By doing this there is no sanding needed to smooth out the patch.

Lynn Tegrity
p.s. Epoxy resin can be used on Polyester resin boats to repair them.
Polyester resin cannot be used on a boat using Epoxy resin. Epoxy resin
cures and stays flexible. Polyester resin cures and becomes much
stiffer. The resin that you buy at a auto supply house will be polyester
risen.

....

On 2-Nov-2005, Lynn Tegrity wrote:

Fiberglass does not stand up to abrasion as well as Kevlar. I have used
fiberglass to repair the front and rear of my glass canoe. I finally
applied kevlar with epoxy resin and the strips have stayed on for over
five years.

Are you talking about abrasion or adhesion? You are one of the only persons
I've ever heard claim that Kevlar has high abrasion resistance. Its
relatively poor abrasion performance in many applications is legendary.

When Kevlar wears, it frays. Fiberglass - less so. Glass itself is hard,
Kevlar is not.

Mike

Lynn Tegrity wrote:

Polyester resin cannot be used on a boat using Epoxy resin. Epoxy resin
cures and stays flexible. Polyester resin cures and becomes much
stiffer. The resin that you buy at a auto supply house will be polyester
risen.

This is not exactly true. Polyester products such as gelcoat can be
applied successfully over fully cured epoxy that has been cleaned to
remove any amine blush. I do this all the time on repairs and have never
had any adhesion problems.

IMO, epoxy should be used for repairs and other bonding applications,
since it creates a stronger bond than polyester resin will. For
sacrificial layers such as keel strips, either will work, but epoxy is
more abrasion resistant.