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Thanks Rhett!

A guy I know who is an engineer tried to separate deck and hull to repair his. It was not easy to do and he aborted the mission. I believe for him the part he could not separate was where the bottom of the bucket is glued to the center of the hull. There was no easy way to get in there and cut it apart.

I have a little aviation experience, some sailplane projects years ago. That's why I had the clecos on hand. The hole drilling is an interesting tip, I have heard of doing that for glass but didn't think of it for composites.

What about using a fairing compound to gradually merge the high spots with the original level?

What happened to the ski to cause all the damage?

@@zachhandler fairing compound is usually used to fill the low spots, not the high spots. It is not used to bring anything up to the original level, because you still need to gelcoat the repair, so before adding gelcoat the repaired area needs to be slightly lower than the level of the surrounding area. Then gelcoat is added to bring the repaired area up to the original undamaged area. It's actually important to sand a taper on the original gelcoat on the surrounding area down to the un-gelcoated repair to insure a better bond with the new gelcoat. Then slightly overfill the repaired area with gelcoat, allow it to fully cure, then wetsand the new gelcoat down to the original level with successively finer grits. The use of guide coat can be very helpful with this.

@@scottcummins9021 The wind was 2mph. I put the boat on the V-bars without the bungees or bow line, and got in the car to change into my drysuit. A microburst hit, lifting the boat off the V-bars and it landed on the parking lot, separating the hull to deck joint on one side of the bucket.

Thanks for that info, I will definitely keep that in mind. I will also try and feather the edge of the repair as best as I can.

@@paulreavley5900 😹 Good idea! A couple years ago I was paddling the Zen and large tree sized log suddenly appeared coming over the wave in front of me and I had no time to really react. Luckily, it was riding very low in the water and I surfed right up onto it. Of course I became instantly unstable and fell in. It took a bit of effort to get the ski off the log from in the water with the waves and such.

This run was from the McQuade safe Harbor to the Duluth lift bridge.

Paul, the first couple of days after the incident I was pretty down about it. Not just about the heavy damage to the V9 but also because my friend’s OC-1 sustained damage. But if there is one consistent thing about me it is that I like a challenge. Once my mind committed to the repair it has been all go. Now that I have started and are seeing some results I am 98% certain that I will end up with a reliable V9ish ski, although it will be a little heavier, and maybe not as pretty. 😸 I will post an update in a couple days or so.

@@gregf.5643 I was using a Malone with Kayak Pro v-bars (the v-bars weren’t the problem). I will go back to adding an extra strap around the vehicle side rails.

@@davidGrainger Yikes. Skis are generally so light and big it doesn’t take much to get them airborne. I am glad you were able to fix the Nelo and it sure helps to have composite experience. Looks like I am gaining a little experience myself.

@@waverideraus4882 Yes, I am making temporary hatches to access the major damage from inside. Separating the hull halves really isn’t feasible as they are also glued together at the stringers and not just the seam.

I am glad you enjoy the videos! They are fun for me to make.

No, that’s the Flex, I have had it a couple of seasons. My other ski is the V9.

Thank you Rhett, you’re a lot to do with the number of runs I got in this year!

Low 40s

He paul - i have a gopro max with a short battery life. Tim has. Gopro 9 housed inside and external battery case that gives it really long battery life. I paddled the first 9 miles on my own and then tim joined me for the last 7.5 miles.

@@longdeaddude I liked it. The cockpit fit was great and I hadn’t even padded it out fully. I found it a bit less stable than the V9 but it isn’t a big jump, maybe less than the difference I found when going from the Think Zen to the V9? On this run anyway I didn’t have any concerns with stability and I never swam unintentionally. I think it’s a bit more maneuverable than the V9 and I seemed to oversteer a few of times. I definitely noticed the nose release easily several times which was a bit of an eye opener, allowed me to pop over waves and maneuver more easily. A very intriguing ski for me, I would love to get more time in it at some point.

SUP foil

Thank you! I like the belt leash for several reasons. It doesn’t get under my legs in the cockpit while paddling and it is out of the way on remounts. Another reason is I can’t disconnect the leash near the shore when landing or surfing shore break because of the rocky shoreline. The connection at the stern results in low resistance in surf compared to a leash connection in the cockpit.

@ Thanks very much; makes sense. Can you relate who makes the one you use?

@ meta leash

@@ttrayn1000 Perfect - much appreciated.

Thanks! It sure resulted in some nice swell this morning, wish I hadn’t been working!

55

Our fall has been very summer like, not a lot of wind!

It’s an Excel Infinity 3/2. I also have an Infinity 4/3 and hooded 5/4 - great wetsuits!

@@ttrayn1000 Thank you! What are your water temp thresholds for each?

@ That is a bit complicated because it depends on more than the water temperature. Air temp, clouds or sun, wind strength and wave conditions are all factors that I consider when choosing a wetsuit. One extreme we can have in the spring is air temp of 70 F with sun but the water may be 35 F. Obviously the hooded 5/4 would be best if you end up in the water for an extended period but you would absolutely over heat while paddling. Today the water and air temps were in the low 40s F and I wore my 4/3. I was a little warm but conditions were big so it was safer with the 4/3 vs the 3/2. There is some balancing risk vs comfort while paddling, especially when working hard on a downwind.

@@ttrayn1000 Thank you so much for helping clear my questions. Really helps this newbie.

Did you try a dry suit ?

We will!

Jake!

Yes, my hamstrings tightened up when I stepped off the bike. Didn’t help that I also had a nice mtn bike ride 2 days prior. That is why I chose the V9 over the Flex as I knew I would be tired.