newbie kayak gear question

[perchbutt]

My first time out in my new used kayak-
ran into a gravel shoal called a boat-launch. Kayak's plastic. It scrapes. Anything out there like a bow protector? Would it be dumb to attach some flashing or other metal to the area or is there something better out there to use?

[wvbreamfisherman]

Don't know about kayaks, but there are kevlar rub pads you can attach to canoes with epoxy.

Most kayaks are polyethylene and epoxy doesn't stick well to polyethylene.

[perchbutt]

hmm...
mine's recycled plastic....maybe...

[wvbreamfisherman]

Check with the manufacturer to see what material it's made from. It IS possible to bind epoxy to polyethylene, but you have to prepare the surface with a torch.
http://www.oldtowncanoe.com/pdfs/Dis...Repair_Kit.pdf

I don't know if I'd put this much effort into putting a kevlar pad on a kayak. On my Royalex/Oltonar (ABS laminate) canoe I generally just sand around the deep gouges, wipe with acetone and fill them with JB Weld epoxy. This might work on polyethylene if you do the torch treatment first.

[ChadTower]

I would just walk further out into the water so I'm not getting into the thing on the rocks.