Bulkhead repair
Wednesday, October 17, 2007, 7 comments
As mentioned the other day, my aft foam bulkhead broke at a rolling class - the upper edge tore when a too large person tried the Black Pearl. Some duct tape saved the day (or more correct the following two weeks). At last I pulled myself together to a hopefully more lasting repair. Hopefully, because I decided to try an idea that surfaced during a short trip along the westcoast.
First I shaped a piece of 2" foam to a mold for the coming lamination. It will be a combined bulkhead and back support, landing on top of the aft rim. Back support is not quite correct though since the support part of it is at least 4" behind my back in paddling position - but for layback rolls it will support the back with the molded surface. When positioned, the mold was covered in wrapping tape to prevent the lamination to stick prematurely.
Next step was to laminate layers of glass cloth in polyester (polyester because I was in a hurry, couldn´t wait for epoxy to cure - the kayak will be neede for a class the day after tomorrow). Six layers of cloth on the back support part and four at the edges.
This is what the bulkhead looks like with cleaned up edges. Next comes a little finish sanding and then installing in the kayak. I will report back when that is done...
