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In a thread about skegs, Howard said:
....the basic approach is 3/16 red cedar with 4 oz s glass inside and out, internal seam kevlar taped.....
I haven't used Kevlar seam tape, but I've noticed in a few commercial boats that have used it, that the tape doesn't wet at all clear and it looks like it's more difficult to get the edges to lie flat, compared to glass taped boats from the same company (Mariner Kayaks Seattle).
Does anybody have experience working with Kevlar seam tape?
I usually think of the seam as one of the strongest parts of the boat with more glass layers, and I hate working with Kevlar, so have never tried it myself.
my experience with kevlar
my experience with kevlar seam tape was rather benign.
so, as you point out, it does not wet out clear....so i only use it on the inside. you need good shears to cut it...and once its down, you really can't sand into it.
but i did not have any problems getting it to lie flat compared to glass tape nor did i find it any more difficult to work with. the main advantage from my perspective was it used less epoxy because it is a thinner material and helped contribute to a light build which was something that i was really focusing on.
attached is a picture after i did one side facing aft on a petrel
and another after that facing the bow.
i am not sure how clean other folks work is when they do this type of thing but i was satisfied.
in the visible, reachable by hand, areas in the cockpit....i was able to make everything perfectly straight.
h
Taping with Kevlar
Howard said:
i am not sure how clean other folks work is when they do this type of thing but i was satisfied.
Howard-
Looks good to me!