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Some general information about your Puffin Kayak
Patches and Reinforcements
Punctures and abrasions to the kayak skin are
easily repaired with the enclosed repair kit.
• Cut a patch to cover the damaged area plus
3/4" around it.
• Round the corners of the patch.
• Clean the patch and the area to be covered,
and apply a thin coat of adhesive to both
surfaces.
• Wait until the adhesive feels dry and apply the
patch. Make sure the surfaces are pressed
together well.
Note: The smooth side of the
patch should face out.
• Apply adhesive to the side that appears
embossed.
The kayak can be used immediately after the
repair, but the bond will get stronger for several
hours as the adhesive cures.
You can add reinforcement to wear areas. The
keel line is the most exposed to wear, and we
recommend that you add a keel strip if you
anticipate a lot of abrasion. After some use it is
easy to see which areas are exposed to wear.
Simply install patches of same color fabric or
contact your dealer for a keel strip kit.
Punctures of the air tubes can be repaired with
the adhesive in the repair kit and a patch. The
patch material in the repair kit can be used on
the air tubes as well. Follow the procedure
described above. It is important to clean the
surfaces well before applying the adhesive.
Note:
Adhesives work best on rough surfaces. We
recommend using fine sandpaper before adhe-
sives are applied.
Note:
303 Protectant and other similar products will
protect canoe skins and air tubes from harmful
UV rays and help extend the life of your Puffin,
but we never use protectants on our own boats.
Nor do we recommend that you do.
The reason is that you can not apply a patch
without completely removing the protectant from
the area to be patched, and the protectant has
to be removed with a chemical solvent.
Also, the Puffin skin’s PVC coating has very
good UV resistance without any protection and
should last for many years.
We recommend that you store your Puffin
Kayak in the shade whenever practical.
