Re: [Paddlewise] P&H Capella Leakage

Kevin said:

<<Jim,
Could it be that you have not sealed the hatches down well? On some VCP
style hatches, it takes some effort and time to push the rubber edge of
the
hatch all the way against the base of the hatch opening.>> <snip>

This is where a protectant lubricant can be beneficial. There is that
little bit less friction to push the hatch "home" with the application
of something like 303 on the inside. The big oval VCP hatch often looks
like it is sealed, when in fact, it isn't.

Some of the actual VCP kayaks had problems a few years ago with their
own VCP hatch instillation. The hatch rim material is a hard plastic
that is glassed in place from underneath. Their used to be a problem
with water seeping past the inner diameter of the deck cut-out hole,
then around the plastic flange of the ring, then migrating past the
fiberglass. It was difficult to diagnose, as the hatch cover obliterated
the view during water leak testing. I've been told the problem has long
been rectified now, but this may be a problem of a similar nature with
the P&H kayak. You need to run some non-viscous epoxy into this rim
crack to get a good seal - that was how the retailer used to fix the
problem. I know, because mine leaked at first. I fixed my own in the
end. When I modify kayaks now and put my own VCP hatches in, I glue the
in place first, after sanding the plastic to 80-grit, the
epoxy-fiberglass them in place.

Good luck. Hope you like leek soup!

BC's Ya
Doug Lloyd (ah, a pun with no polemical suggestion!)

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