Keelguard

xpertski · 14 October 2018, 22:06

Hi all

For those who have fitted a keelguard, what length did you go for? I have a 6.3m humber and the lengths are 6, 8, ,10 and 12ft lengths.

Also has anyone tested how this affects performance?

I used to have one on the rib, think maybe only 6ft, never did a performance comparison before and after though. It eventually after 14 years on came loose so had to come off. Now I’m doing some hull repairs getting any scrapes and chips repaired and polished, was thinking of putting another keelguard on ...

Also I have a bramber roller trailer with the usual keel roller near the front. Keelguard recommend raising rollers where possible so the keelguard doesn’t sit on the keel roller ... any thoughts?

jeffstevens763@g · 14 October 2018, 22:42

I had a six foot length just for nosing up the beach it did rest on my keel roller ( bramber trailer) and it indented but was ok for the six years I owned the boat no effect on performance noted

diver 1 · 15 October 2018, 08:59

You can get it in longer lengths. I've got it bow eye to transom on mine and I haven't found any noticeable effect on handling or performance. Mine also has a forward keel roller on the trailer but this hasn't caused any ill effect to the keel guard - I specifically asked the question before I installed it. Its been installed for 3 years now and still no problems.

xpertski · 15 October 2018, 09:26

So it sounds like longer the better ... will call them and ask about longer lengths because they only advertise to 12ft

Pikey Dave · 15 October 2018, 11:09

Mine’s full length, bow to transom. It also sits on the keel roller & has indented slightly, no issues.

jonp · 15 October 2018, 12:18

When I looked into buying this product I found many comparisons with keelshield which several people rated as better. When I purchased mine there was nothing in the web advertising to state you couldn't use it with centre rollers, however it was stated in the fold out instructions. Having a light weight 4.2m hull with most of the weight taken on the 24 side rollers I assumed the product would hold up ok, I assumed wrong. Not only did it soon start becoming unstuck where it touched the keel rollers it also caught while launching. Now it's just a mess almost impossible to remove in the areas where it hasn't touched the rollers.

From comparison reviews I've seen, many consider the two products almost identicle and neither products recommend use with keel rollers. I figure if it can't handle sitting on rollers then it's not a very good keel protection.

If anyone has any suggestions how to remove what's still stuck to the boat please let me know as the company who sold me it simply dodged the question continually.

xpertski · 15 October 2018, 12:40

Yeah the keel roller was something I was worried about, though should add I had one on for 13 years and it only messed up on year 14, basically where the central keel roller is it started to bunch up and come unstuck so it had to be pulled off.

It did leave lots of black residue which has been a pig to get off. I tried all sorts of products but in the end the only thing that worked was careful use of a scraper, keeping the blade flat and close to the hull with even pressure so it didn’t scratch the hull any further. Picture below of what I used.

I am inclined to give it a go and if the keelshield one came off so quickly perhaps there is a difference in the adhesive with the keelguard? Could also be how well it was installed?

If the boat can be raised slightly somehow to lighten the weight on that single forward keel roller it may help though. Mine never caught when going in the trailer previously, might be how far above the water line it is fitted?

jeffstevens763@g · 15 October 2018, 12:42

as i say i didnt have any problems but they do state not to be installed where there's pressure from rollers

GMT Marine - Suppliers of Megaware Keelguard - KeelGuard

xpertski · 15 October 2018, 13:11

Interesting. I may do it anyway given the previous lasted over a decade and the risk of otherwise exposing the keel to damage. May look into whether larger diameter rollers (the general rollers not the keel one) are available to fit to the trailer to lift the boat a smidge to take some weight off that keel roller- suspect it wouldn’t need much lift. Anyone considered finding larger trailer rollers?

learning to fly · 16 October 2018, 04:55

i have also used the keel guard. i loved it but it does recomend to keep it off a roller. i put it on my avon 5.4 and i had to work hard at it. the avon has a set of chines that make it hard to get a perfect seal. after about 5 years it started to come off at the chines. it was also being flattened out on the roller and i could see it was starting to cause a little problem. i took the whole thing off, it took time but found that acitone helped release the black adhesive pretty good. i missed it so much that i put on a new one, keel guard sent me a new one under warrentee. they definitly back up there product. this time i raised the boat up a bit so it no londer rests on the roller and also played around with a knife and a pair of snippers to better custom fit the keel gard around the chines. i also got a longer one that the first. the first on was about 6 feet, i got one about 12 feet long and it goes back almost 2/3rds the way towards transom. I have tested it both ways and at most may have lost 1mph but i wontgo without again. also no loos of handling , cant even tell its on.

xpertski · 16 October 2018, 08:19

Thanks LTF how did you raise your boat on the trailer? At a guess most straight forward way is to have larger rollers?

xpertski · 16 October 2018, 13:59

Keel guard £268 for 12ft and £40 per ft for every feet of length above 12ft!

jonp · 16 October 2018, 22:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by xpertski

Keel guard £268 for 12ft and £40 per ft for every feet of length above 12ft!

It's certainly not cheap, especially in comparison with a tub of gelcoat filler to repair the odd chip every few years.

By the way I did notice a slight reduction in boat performance and also had to move my transducer further to the side after installing the guard.

jonp · 16 October 2018, 22:37

Quote:

Originally Posted by xpertski

Yeah the keel roller was something I was worried about, though should add I had one on for 13 years and it only messed up on year 14, basically where the central keel roller is it started to bunch up and come unstuck so it had to be pulled off.

It did leave lots of black residue which has been a pig to get off. I tried all sorts of products but in the end the only thing that worked was careful use of a scraper, keeping the blade flat and close to the hull with even pressure so it didn’t scratch the hull any further. Picture below of what I used.

I am inclined to give it a go and if the keelshield one came off so quickly perhaps there is a difference in the adhesive with the keelguard? Could also be how well it was installed?

If the boat can be raised slightly somehow to lighten the weight on that single forward keel roller it may help though. Mine never caught when going in the trailer previously, might be how far above the water line it is fitted?

It's only come off at the start of it under the hull, this flap has continued to creep yet the parts that don't contact the rollers are stuck solid.

Did you find a chemical that could remove the black sticky glue or did you manage to scrape everything off. I found it so hard to remove that I've left it on there, you only notice the mess if you look under the hull. By the way I do launch around three times per week, always driving on and off the trailer which probably gives it more wear than simply winding the boat on.

learning to fly · 17 October 2018, 04:28

i have boat on bunks, just lifted them a bit, i realize now it wasnt a roller it was a crossmember beam that it was resting on, the beam had a plastic guard about 1/8inch across but you could see where the boat had a lot of weigh on it . it did flatten out the keelguard a little bit but like i said my problem started with trying to fit to the chines. i would recomend trying to keep as much weight off it if you are resting on a roller. i used accitone to help remove the black tape. it worked good.