hull repair

[Hangen by a string]

Hi everyone, apparently i bought my fenders a bit too late. the dock i tied up to put 2 nice gouges in my starboard hull and dinged up my rub rail a bit. Doubt i can repair the rail but can someone advise me about the hull please.

it cut a gouge about a inch long and 1/8" deep. the portion cut out is still attached to the hull so i simply need to push it back in place and reseal . just not sure about the heat source needed.

thanks , Roy

[NCangler]

Hi Roy. This is one of the great things about having a Roplene hull. This repair is not that difficult to fix and I'm sure the damage is much less than a fiberglass hull would have had. You can get Roplene "welding rods" from your Triumph Dealer and use a Plastic welding gun to heat it up and work it into place. Then a triming tool and a little sanding will smooth it out. Triumph hulls are the same color thru out so you only need to get the correct model year color welding rods. I would check with your dealer about fixing the gouges for you. If you don't have a dealer you can contact Merritt Marine in NC and order the rods (and the welder) from them. I have a section of the Triumph Boats Maintenance and Modifications DVD that I'm working on that shows how to do this. I'm still working on it and hope to have it done this month.

[cagrove]

Originally Posted by Hangen by a string

it cut a gouge about a inch long and 1/8" deep. the portion cut out is still attached to the hull so i simply need to push it back in place and reseal . just not sure about the heat source needed.

thanks , Roy

Frankly, if it were me, I would cut off the hanging portion and call it a day. I wouldn't even worry about trying to weld the piece back into place. But, hey, that's just me. You can obtain a plastic welder from Harbor Frieght tools. Here's a link:

Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices

Good luck.

[Hangen by a string]

Hey thank you both for responding. next time i get a free day i think I'll take it back to my dealer.

[jtaylor1]

A $15 electric soldering iron from the hardware store will do just fine for this. The kind that doesn't have a trigger you have to pull is easiest to use.

[pamarine]

The only drawback I see with using Soldering Irons is most of them are 40 watts max. They are designed to generat no more than 400-500 degreees Farenheit. A Plastic Welder, wheter the electric or Hot-Air type, are designed to generete around 1000-1200 degrees. HDPE (the stuff our wonderful boats are made from) melts at around 300 degrees. This is the upper range of most consumer soldering Irons. They take longer to heat up, have a harder time keeping even high heat on a cooler material, and have a harder time allowing sufficient penetration of the heat into the substrate. Using a purpose-built welder can make projects a lot quicker and give stronger and more visually appealing results. And, these welders can be picked up for the same amount as a high-end soldering iron ($40-50). I feel they are a much better tool for repairing Plastics.