From: Patrick Pierquet <ppierquet@teltech.com>
To: "'baidarka@lists.intelenet.net'" <baidarka@lists.intelenet.net>
Subject: [baidarka] "Monster" coating for skin boats?
Date: Mon, 27 Jul 1998 09:51:31 -0500
I just wanted to pass along some information about a family of 2-part
urethane coatings, that look like they'd be excellent for kayak
coatings. The material is made by a company called Cal
Polymers(562-436-7372; 2115 Gaylor St., Long Beach, CA 90813) They're
described as "extra tough, abrasion resistant" urethane elastomers, and
they were originally developed for severe applications such as valves
and seals, wear pads, heavy duty hose coverings etc. There's one
product called "NF 1500-SP", that is formulated specifically to bond
with nylon. Here are its stats, compared to Gaco Hypalon:
Strength(psi) Hardness(Shore A) Elongation
Hypalon 700 psi 78 to 83 350%
NF1500-SP 6,000 psi 88 560%
Some pretty impressive statistics. One drawback I see is that the
urethane products are 2-part, and once you mix the two parts, you gotta
use all of it, and use it fast.(Sort of like using epoxies, I guess) I
ordered a quart kit of this material, and applied it to samples of
4-ounce heatshrink Dacron, and Dyson's 8-ounce nylon. It seemed to work
well, although it did not penetrate the material very well(formed more
of a surface coat). I used it at a temperature of about 75 F, and it
"set" in about half an hour. Even though it's not fully cured, it's
EXTREMELY tough and flexible. I may use it, or one of the other Cal
Polymer urethanes, on my next boat.