OK. This all started when my wife and I decided we needed a fourth kayak. We reasoned that with four boats, we could take others on excursions and trips. (We also figured out that we would need a way to carry all four. Look for that story in the future.)
I shopped for something new but even a decent 12′ boat would be 600.00. I rejected buying one of those entry level boats that the outdoor/sporting goods stores carry. Those are mostly good for only a paddle around the pond.
I then toyed with the idea of building another boat. I built a Night Heron from Chesapeake Light Craft and had excellent results but it took a lot of time and even CLC’s least expensive choices was beyond the budget. Great boats but not for the limited-use utility we were looking for.
So then I thought I’d buy a used boat. Maybe a Wilderness Systems Pungo 120 or something along those lines. My wife’s Pungo 140 is a really good boat-very stable yet pretty fast and easy to maneuver. She’s got a wall full of race awards to prove it.
There are a number of websites that sell used boats. But after a while I began to think that it was hopeless. Many of the sellers were proud of their boats and the prices showed. It was not that un-common to find used boats for just a few dollars less than new.
Then I found them. On Craigslist.
Two old and tired looking plywood kayaks in need of some serious attention. Both looked like restaurant boats, built to hang from the wall or the ceiling. No seats, no pegs, no carrying ropes. Each weighed less than 25 lbs. Just enough room for size 9 feet. It appeared that only fiberglass was used to re-enforce the joints, maybe a coat or two of epoxy but no varnish that I could detect. The poor things just didn’t seem built for the water.
After arranging the purchase at a fair price, I loaded them on the roof of the van. That’s when things got really interesting.
The boats had been stored outside so the fiberglass and epoxy had begun to fail and there were quite a few places where the plywood was starting to delaminate. I thought, “not a problem. I’ll get them back to my shop and do some patching”. My miscalculation!
As I strapped each one to the roof, the cradles and the straps caused the boats to flex.
Immediately, more delamination and ply separation. OK still not a problem.
Then as I drove down the highway into a rainstorm, there suddenly was a problem. I caught movement in the mirror when a small strip of delamed plywood flew onto the side of the road. The rain was forcing its way into the cracks created by strapping the boats to a vehicle going 70 MPH. I quickly envisioned arriving home with just the carcass; the frame and a few ragged pieces of the boats still strapped to the carrier, flapping in the slipstream. Oh the humanity.
But the boats made it to the next stop. I quickly hatched a plan to keep the structures together. Duct tape! I wrapped both boats in tape every two feet or so around the hull and deck (You can see that in the walk-around video of the boats on the van). It worked. The tape kept the plywood from peeling off for the rest of the trip.
By the way I used two brands of tape: Duck and Gorilla. The Duck brand did ok but the Gorilla roll was amazingly strong. As a non-paid, not requested endorsement, Gorilla is worth the extra cost. However that recommendation comes with a caveat. Pulling off the Gorilla tape (even with heat) caused more separation and delamination. I consider it a sacrifice for not leaving old brown plywood along I-10.
That’s the beginning of the “Tale” . We’ll see how this all turns out. Can one or both be rebuilt? If so, will they be good boats, stable and easy to paddle? The pool test proved inconclusive mainly because I could not get my 6′ 185lb size 11.5 feet anywhere inside the boat without fear of falling through the hull. Will it be economical? Will I end up spending more than a good used boat would cost?
It is possible one or both could end up at the curb for bulk waste pickup. Or maybe a viking-esque boat funeral is the inevitable outcome.
Stay tuned. This should be fun. At least interesting. Or at the very least a lesson learned.