The material that many plastic canoes and kayaks are made of is called high density polyethylene hdpe and it is an extremely difficult material to repair.
Hdpe plastic sheets for conesand kayak bliuding.
For bottles cutting boards dipping baskets dippers trays and containers.
Density equal to or greater than 0 941 g cm3 is a much more suitable material for manufacturing kayaks.
It has high tensile strength is a stiffer material than ldpe lldpe giving a rigid feel to the boat has a good level of scratch resistance and good impact strength.
By beveling and rounding the edges of the joint with a sharp object sanding and flame treating the surface with a propane torch we effectively glued this plastic together.
High density polyethylene hdpe aka hd has the distinction of being the strongest toughest most chemical resistant and least flexible of the four types of flexible plastic sheeting.
High density polyethylene lends itself particularly well to blow molding e g.
The same chemical properties that make your boat extremely flexible and durable also prevent other materials from bonding to it.
Permabond has developed a line of specialty acrylic adhesives which can form strong bonds to polyethylene without surface treatment.
I didn t do enough to know for sure but it didn t seem to dull cutters too badly.
I ve done a bit of repair work with star board.
It is often used as the material to make plastic pipes and tubes.
Previously hdpe could only be welded together by melting the surface of the hdpe.
It is also the most uv resistant holding up to the harsh rays of the sun without needing uv additives.
The difference between hdpe and other plastics is that the exterior surface of the plastic is very smooth making it somewhat difficult to bond with itself or other materials.
Wood composite glass fiber aramid graphite rotomold thermoform and others.
To test g flex for this type repair we simulated splits in the bottom of a thermal formed plastic hull by edge gluing 1 8 thick high density polyethylene hdpe sheets.
It doesn t sand easily so make sure your machines are leaving as good a surface as possible.
Interstate plastics marine board xl is a lighter more economical version of the popular marine board.
However recent innovations have created epoxy based glues that allow hdpe to be attached to other polymers such as pvc fiberglass and steel.
It s just hdpe in thick sheet good form.
Kayak building processes can be broken down by the different types of construction materials used to form the boat either in its entirety or by creating a deck and a hull and joining the two pieces together.
Learn how to bond both low and high density polyethylene a thermoplastic material which can be challenging to bond with industrial adhesives with and without surface treatment.