bob welsh
Well-known member
Picked up an OT Canadienne fiberglass canoe in December and finally getting around to the needed repairs.This boat had all the good bits mahogany decks spruce inwales mahogany outwales and ash thwarts. previous owner did a wretched bow repair with bondo and gel coat . The Canadienne is supposed to have a knife edge in the bow stem and instead made it look like a bathtub. Sure it was serviceable but on a coleman I wood let it slide. The guy screwed 2x4s from gunnel to gunnel to mount rod holders and those cheap plastic cup holders in two places. Got rid of that mess first thing.
I started grinding the bow blob with a 40 grit sanding wheel on my angle grinder then when i got close switched to a belt sander to expose the old repair. I found the old holes and made them wider with the angle grinder and dished them out to a feather edge at the hole. I then went inside the boat and tore out the sealed flotation chamber and foam. using 12 oz biaxial cloth with attached mat i backed up the opening using plastic wrap and painters tape on the outside of the hull. When it cured i removed the plastic and tape and went back to the grinder and restablished the concave area around the holes from the outside. I then made small circle patches with the same 12 oz cloth each a bit smaller until i built up the thickness equal to the hull put plastic over that and smoothed it with a plastic squeegee. When dry i went to the longboard and shaped and faired the hull adding thickens epoxy and cabosil until everything flowed nice and running my hand over it would detect any bumps or high spots.
Sanded the hull with 220 and used good old Rustoleum hunter green gloss at 10 bucks a quart not bad. I have used it many times on canoes and is hard wearing paint and is available at every hardware store in the country if you need touch ups. Got one coat of spar on the railed before the weather hit.
I started grinding the bow blob with a 40 grit sanding wheel on my angle grinder then when i got close switched to a belt sander to expose the old repair. I found the old holes and made them wider with the angle grinder and dished them out to a feather edge at the hole. I then went inside the boat and tore out the sealed flotation chamber and foam. using 12 oz biaxial cloth with attached mat i backed up the opening using plastic wrap and painters tape on the outside of the hull. When it cured i removed the plastic and tape and went back to the grinder and restablished the concave area around the holes from the outside. I then made small circle patches with the same 12 oz cloth each a bit smaller until i built up the thickness equal to the hull put plastic over that and smoothed it with a plastic squeegee. When dry i went to the longboard and shaped and faired the hull adding thickens epoxy and cabosil until everything flowed nice and running my hand over it would detect any bumps or high spots.
Sanded the hull with 220 and used good old Rustoleum hunter green gloss at 10 bucks a quart not bad. I have used it many times on canoes and is hard wearing paint and is available at every hardware store in the country if you need touch ups. Got one coat of spar on the railed before the weather hit.
