# what type of plastic is my canoe?????help please



## murdermittenkid (Dec 27, 2009)

i bought a canoe from dicks sporting goods a few years back and i now got couple small cracks.its a northwest territory 14ft.how can i figure what kind of plastic it is? i tried using some two part marine epoxy from aco hardware and it broke loose about 15 mins in the water.does that mean its a poly plastic?i cant find any info online about these canoes.any help would be appricated


----------



## fishkram (May 14, 2004)

Sorry i can not answer your specific question, but i have a plastic boat as well that had a crack from being dropped. Loctite has a product specifically for plastic. I am 95% sure this is what i used. This is a 2 part that mixes thick and will not run, but dries to a yellow color. I have used a few times on plastic and it worked excellent. Can sand smooth, can super strong. Again not sure which one it is, Home depot or Lowes, but one has it and the other has the 7 min stuff that is clear and does not work well at all for me. I think the 7 min stuff is "epoxy" where the stuff i use is "bonder". Rough up the surface some, clean well, apply, sand smooth, and your done. I highly recommend giving it a try. Hope it works for you.

http://www.loctiteproducts.com/products/detail.asp?catid=11&subid=49&plid=866


----------



## Rudder (Mar 8, 2010)

Could possibly help with a picture of the canoe?


----------



## Rupestris (Aug 25, 2000)

Look the canoe over for molded in or stamped markings. There should be a designation that tells what type of plastic it is. 

PP - Polypropolene 
PE - Polyethelene
HDPE - High Density Polyethelene

If you don't see those then look for the recycle logo with a number in the center.

The number is assigned to a type of plastic. 

http://www.valcorerecycling.org/affair/archives/2002-08-04.htm

Odds are, if the canoe is not made of "Royalex" or it is smooth on the inside and outside, Has an injection molded look or has an inner and outer layer, then it is Polyethelene.

If it is PE nothing is going to stick permanently. It might hold for a while but the plastic itself lets off components that will build up (almost like a gassing) between the plastic and the repair and cause failure.

Same reason paint doesn't stick to that type of plastic.

If you find something that works, just understand that you will have to re-do the repair on occasion.

HTH,

Chris


----------



## yellowbelly80 (Aug 27, 2004)

they sell plastic welders..they are pretty inexpensive


----------

