First bit of damage to the new boat - advice please! - Page 2

Fenlander · 14 August 2021, 10:56

>>>Using the 'tacky' method it's a bit hit and miss - how tacky is tacky - and if you place part of the joint a little out of line it's too late to move it.

I use the "join when tacky method" which has worked for me but you do need to judge the rate at which tacky happens re the temperature and alter instruction timings accordingly. Also make sure there is not too much to glue in one go so that you are working all patches within the time it stays tacky. For one or two simple patches never a problem though.

Re the "stick on first contact" and getting a patch/fixture in the correct place I do a dry run before applying glue to check how to position and apply... one edge down first... middle down first... or whatever suits. Again not an issue for a simple patch.

chipko · 14 August 2021, 11:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by jwalker

PS, your boat has welded seams, you don't need to worry about the MEK solvent affecting the original joint.

Unless the current Honwaves are different, then pretty sure all seams are glued. Just a heads up to use MEK sparingly so it doesn’t leach into the glued joint.

jwalker · 14 August 2021, 13:00

Quote:

Originally Posted by chipko

Unless the current Honwaves are different, then pretty sure all seams are glued. Just a heads up to use MEK sparingly so it doesn’t leach into the glued joint.

Have a close look at the picture..

jwalker · 14 August 2021, 13:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mattster

.... Looking forward to breaking my first repair cherry and giving this a go!

Hehe.... If you really want to make a high class snazzy repair you can feather the edge of your patch from the bottom - you need to sand right through the pvc and fabric until you've got a very thin edge then when it's glued down you end up with a nice blended edge without the usual catchy square edge. Classy, man!

Mattster · 14 August 2021, 14:14

Quote:

Originally Posted by jwalker

Hehe.... If you really want to make a high class snazzy repair you can feather the edge of your patch from the bottom - you need to sand right through the pvc and fabric until you've got a very thin edge then when it's glued down you end up with a nice blended edge without the usual catchy square edge. Classy, man!

I get what you are describing but I think I might try and master the basics first!

Quick question on patch shape - I would think that a square with roudned corners might be a little easier to apply accurately, because I can line up a straight edge with a bit of tape of the boat to start things off, but most people seem to go for circles? Any pros and cons to either?

jwalker · 14 August 2021, 14:23

For your situation I'd be tempted to apply a rather long patch and start it at the edge of the floor seam. That front corner is always rather vulnerable - sliding along rocks, bumping the harbour wall etc. - so you'd have a bit of added protection. You could do both sides so you could slide it along the floor on the opposite side also...

Mattster · 14 August 2021, 15:17

Sounds like a plan JW, I'll butt up to the longitudinal seam along the floor, and extend say 1.5 inches fore and aft and beyond the nick. Depending on how that goes, I might just do the other side as well to make it look like it was supposed to be there..

Fenlander · 14 August 2021, 15:38

Decision on how to do this is a personal thing but here's my take...

You have a small simple puncture on new material with no old glue or difficult joins or corners to work around. I think your Honwave would have come with pre-cut round patches of matching colour material. All you need is a minimal round patch centralised on the hole. Every extra square cm of patch size... and taking it from a simple circle to match and reach seams... makes it look more intrusive and cause future buyers to wonder what happened such as seam failure. Patching the other side to match never looks like it was supposed to be there and can further cause potential future buyers to wonder just what was wrong with the boat.

Wear a simple round patch with pride I say.

Did like the idea of edge feathering though... may have a go at that on some scrap material out of interest.

Mattster · 14 August 2021, 16:04

OK you've sold me Fenlander, I'll keep it simple. What came with the boat is a single, quite large rounded corner rectangle, but easy enough to trace a circle around something.

Fenlander · 14 August 2021, 17:11

I'd forgotten the Honwave patch shape. As a guide the Aerotec came with a selection of round patches 120mm dia but to me these are still too large for a pinhole... some places say 100mm which is a safe option and I've gone down to as small as 60mm for a pinprick.

You can usually find something to mark round in the kitchen cupboard of the correct diameter... if not the garage with paint tins etc.

I'm not saying you should go this small but second image is a pinhole leak repair on my previous Aerotec. Note I was using Acetone then which is OK as a general cleaner... but MEK is much better for pre-glue prep so just use that now.

chipko · 14 August 2021, 19:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by jwalker

Have a close look at the picture..

Hmmm! Surprisingly I looked closely at the seam before commenting. Taking on board your comment looked again.

Sorry, classic lapped and taped glued seam. Also think the Honwave marketing lads would be shouting from the rooftops if they had thermowelded toobs!

Mattster · 15 August 2021, 12:08

Thanks so much to everyone for all the help. Just waiting on the kit to arrive now (hopefully Tuesday) and I'll get on with it, and update here with the results.

Also monitoring humidity as best I can via a weather app, which does show 70+ all week so maybe that is something else to consider - PM advice just says "not too high". Notable at least on the humidity forecast that the few hours around midday are the lowest, so I'll aim for that.

Fenlander · 15 August 2021, 13:19

Surely an excuse to nip down to Argos for a digital weather station with outdoor sender??

Mattster · 15 August 2021, 15:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fenlander

Surely an excuse to nip down to Argos for a digital weather station with outdoor sender??

Tempting! Just read about some of the fancier ones on Amazon (internet connected etc) so decided to Google for one close to me. Turns out I have a very conscientious neighbour on the very next road who is broadcasting minutely updates! Currently 69% humidity, apparently.

Fenlander · 15 August 2021, 16:13

Wow... didn't know that was a thing... very useful. I know it's only one patch but try and get below 60%. Yes I found after lunch onwards the best for a few hours.

Mattster · 15 August 2021, 17:20

Try this map on weather underground - you might find one near you: https://www.wunderground.com/wundermap

Humidity predictions are over 70% all week - currently 81% at my local station.

Fenlander · 15 August 2021, 17:56

Oh that’s quite useful. We are between a 51% and 54% reading on that website and currently showing 49% on our unit… so very much in the right ball park.

Oldman2 · 15 August 2021, 17:59

I suggest a quick trip to Fenlander's with boat & patch and dont forget any tubes you want bent

jeffstevens763@g · 15 August 2021, 21:06

I would clean it up and tear aid patch it IMO it’s only a battle scar

Mattster · 19 August 2021, 18:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeffstevens763@g

I would clean it up and tear aid patch it IMO it’s only a battle scar

Tear Aid looks really interesting - thanks for the tip. Had issues with my Polymarine order (they were out of stock in the end, but website hadn't been updated), so now have an order coming in from somewhere else. I took the chance to add a pack of Tear Aid to the order.

I am getting a bit frustrated by our humidity (85+ all day today!), so wondering if a stop-gap solution of a bit of this Tear Aid would get me on the water again next week, and then sort a proper patch when I get some time coinciding with better conditions? I would have been out tomorrow if I was fixed up by now, but I'm not..