> I am going to tape the deck and hull of my guillemot this weekend and
> wanted some advice on two strategies. This is the part of the project that
> I have not been looking forward to and wanted some pointers.

> Method 1

> I have heard of people tacking the tape in place with some dots of hot
> melt glue to get the tape positioned and then wetting it out with a brush
> on a stick. This assures that you get the tape positioned correctly and
> all you have to wory about is wetting it out. I assume the 5-10 dots of
> glue won't materially impact strength.

> Method 2

> As discribed in Nick's book, I would wet out the tape outside the boat and
> roll it out inside the boat position along the seam. This method assumes
> you get a complete wet-out of the glass and chalange is to get the tape
> positioned and smooth.

> I am leaning towards method 1 but wonder if getting glue in the glass will
> create problems. The thought of rolling out two layers of wet fiberglass
> tape and having them line up seems like high potential for a mess.

> Any thoughts

Jack,

You should use only BB sized dabs of hot glue about every 6-12 inches -- you probably won't even see them under the wetted glass. Structurally they are insignificant.

Using this method also assures that you will get glass all the way into the ends of the kayak.

This photo is taken from those included with a set of Redfish plans. I use open-cell foam hot-glued to the end of a 1/4"x 1/4" x5' piece of scrap to push the epoxy around and into the ends.

Hope this helps,

Joe

Redfish Kayak & Canoe Co.