Hello all,

My kayak was stolen from a "friend" (loosely used) who I lent it to. The guy never gave it back, moved, and I later found registered it in his name!!! Long story short, the kayak has now been recovered, and has been abused- mostly sun damage and water crept under the 'glass. I have just stripped all the 'glass off, which was quite easy because it was so damaged it just peeled off like tape. I decided to weigh the glass to see how much I actually added to the boat with my extra layer of 6oz on the bottom. The kayak was layed up with 4oz all over, and then another layer of 6oz on the bottom, which in hindsight was totally unnescessary. At the time I thought I needed abrasion resistance, but almost all my beachings have been in soft sand. I think the 4oz would have been fine.

Anyway, I need to also add that the layup was terrible due to the epoxy kicking way faster than expected. There was way too much resin on this boat. Altogether the fiberglass removed from the kayak weighed just a tad over 7 pounds. Put that in your storehouse of useless knowledge. I figure the extra layer of 6oz added about 2 pounds. I am anxious to see what she weighs now that I'm going to do the epoxy right and not mix such large batches. (The reason it kicked too fast the first time.) Oh, also for reference this is a 19-foot Shearwater Atlantic, which is not only very long, but has a high deck, so there's a lot more 'glass than on a smaller kayak.

I will try to get some pics posted of the damage, and keep you updated on the restoration. The wood is badly stained where water crept in under the 'glass and I am going to have to sand a good 1/16th off to get the color back. I figure that will shave another half-pound or so as well! I plan to use West System 207, which I am about to post another question about how fast it kicks because I live in the tropics. I really want to use slow hardener but the 207 has a UV filter built in, which I need down here.

All the best,

Malcolm