Hi Jay,

In my infinite wisdom as a boat builder I have laminated Kevlar to the bow and stern of a couple of my boats over the years in a search for the very solution you describe. I have not had the resounding success you seek.

While the Kevlar is as tough as its hype and has provided impact and wear resistance to the hull, it has also brought along some unique characteristics for maintenance and appearance.

When repeatedly abraded by sand, rocks, stumps and all the other flotsam that hides beneath our hulls, the epoxy component of the layup will eventually be driven out of the Kevlar fabric leaving the fibers behind to do what they will.

What they typically do is create a wonderful, fuzzy surface that is very difficult to keep maintained. The fuzz will do nothing kind for your boatspeed and looks like crap. Oh, you can get after it all right with utility knife blades (or production clippers that have blades for Kevlar) and keep it to a dull roar, but the repeat visits to the process soon take their toll on your passion.

I've found that a layer or two of S-Glass on the outer surface will come very close to the strength as well as the wear protection and it has all the repairable potential you seek without the relentless upkeep. It can also be worked easily after you do the layup. That's somethnig that Kevlar is not really good at doing as the process of feathering the edges of the cloth will raise that beautiful fuzz and put an interesting cotton candy effect on your sanding disc.

I refer to this as my expedition layup. I give the hull surface the two layers and carry those wraps up the bow and stern to the shear. The maintenance has dropped to a once a season thing for the hull surfacing work unless I have it out on a particularly nasty trip. It's repairable, paintable and can even be done bright.

There are also harder epoxies available than the formulations that are used for traditional canoe and kayak construction. Ask your supplier about the Shore D component from the material data sheet and tell them what you are going for. Make sure it can be used at room temps as some of the blends require an elevated temperature for a post cure.

I buy my resin from an outfit called Technology Marketing, Inc. They have a resin that might work for you and can supply it in gallons.

Specs as follows:
PR1414I (resin) PH3417 (hardener) (Blue) 100:10 mix ratio, Shore D of 90D
Silicon carbide filled system for abrasion resistant surface coat or die cast applications. Extremely hard and wear resistant.

No affiliation. They've just been VERY good to me with all my needs. They're not known in the boat industry as most of their products end up in production aerospace applications wetting out carbon fabrics.

Chris