Adhesives (for f/glass boats) - discussion

Building sea kayaks - see the Sea Kayaks page

Compass - illuminating a deck mounted compass - discussion

"Finishing a North Shore Calypso" - excellent illustrated article by "Erling" on completing a "bare hull" Calypso. Relevant to other f/glass work, fitting seats, decklines, footrails etc.

Gel coat repairs - see "Repairing f/glass" below.

Hatches - discussion on making VCP hatches fit, easing removal etc.

Keel strip - good articles from Sea Kayaker magazine and one from Atlantic Kayak Tours on fitting / replacing a keel strip. See also this discussion and this discussion

Lap belt for a surf boat - discussion with links to pics and details of how to do it.

Leaks - tracing leaks and likely causes and possible fixes - discussion

Outfitting sea kayak cockpits / seats - discussion here and here. See also these articles from Kayak Fit.

Outfitting sea kayaks - article with ideas and suggestions for modifying sea kayaks, installing pumps, tow-lines and various other things.

Pumps - fitting an electric pump - this discussion shows a submersible pump installation - this one has a detailed description by Jim Wallis of his installation. This one by JulesT is also very interesting. See also the section on pumps in the article on outfitting sea kayaks.

Renovating f/glass boats - discussion

Repairing boats (UK resources) - Rockpool Kayaks www.rockpoolkayaks.com is recommended for repairs, and Sea Kayaking UK (formally NDK) also seem to offer a generic repair service. A.P.E Fabrications in Anglesey tell me they do kayak repairs. Bournemouth Canoes can arrange repairs. The major manufacturers usually offer a repair service for their own boats, certainly Sea Kayaking UK (formally NDK), P&H and Valley Sea Kayaks all do. Mike Donald (Marlin Sea Kayaks) near Edinburgh has been mentioned here. For repairers in Banbury, Southampton and Dorchester, check this discussion. Marine Revolution are based in Dundee, they say they have workshop facilities to repair polyethylene kayaks and fit accessories. Techsure (UK) are in Livingston, near Edinburgh, and can repair plastic boats. Sea Kayak Services are based in Weymouth, Dorset and are dedicated to providing a high quality service to all sea kayakers.

Repairing f/glass kayaks - DIY - picture sets here that include repairs to g/fibre and gel coat. See also this nicely illustrated article from Sea Kayaker magazine on gel coat repair. See also this discussion for a mass of detail, including techniques and suppliers of materials. Also see this discussion

Repairing f/glass / kevlar kayaks - very detailed article by Chris Bolton on doing repairs to composite boats.

Repairing f/glass - material sources - CFS Fibreglass Supplies offer a mail order service.

Repair kit - article with suggestions for a repair kit.

Repairing side-seams on f/glass boats - discussion

Sails for sea kayaks - Laurie Ford offers some thoughts on designing and fitting sails on his site. The Maatsuyker Kayak Club has this article with some designs. The New South Wales Kayak Club has a link to a simple sail design and this article gives some ideas. From New Zealand, plans and instructions for a Polynesian style sail.

Seats & backrests - discussion

Seats & kayak outfitting - discussion

Seats - lowering the seat in a P&H boat - discussion

Seat replacement solutions - discussion

Skegs - "tuning" a rope operated skeg - discussion with a link to an excellent "how-to" article. Fixing a cable operated skeg - this discussion will help, as will this one.

Spray decks - make your own spray deck. See also John Doornink's superb DIY spraydeck page and the Baker Brothers also have a nice description of how to make a spray deck (no pics though.

Clothing & Tent Related

Clothing / tents - repairs - try these folk - "Maintain", Units 1-3, Harker Industrial Units, Harker, Carlisle, Cumbria CA6 4DS - 01228-674410 - repairs and alterations to outdoor kit and lightweight tents. Also try Lancashire Sports Repairs. Rubberman has been mentioned as well. Scottish Mountain Gear can repair tents, Goretex cags etc.

Clothing - cleaning, maintaining and storing garments made from breathable fabrics - excellent advice and info from Kokatat (PDF). Additionally, don't store (or dry) kit with latex seals in a room with any electric motors - they produce ozone, and ozone damages rubber and latex.

Clothing - reproofing - Nixwax is supposed to be good. (Although the "wash in" proofing may damage latex seals - apparently)

Clothing - repair tape / material - discussion

DIY kit making - have a look here for some interesting ways of re-cycling your beer-cans into lightweight stoves, and designs for home-made tarps, shelters, tents and rucsacs to name just a few of the bits of outdoor kit you can make yourself.

Latex seals - replacement - Liquid Blue offer this service, as well as making some kit. So do Canyon Gear. Rubberman has been mentioned as well. Drysuits Ltd do too. Trident offer a replacement service, and a DIY kit. For a DIY solution, see this discussion which contains excellent pictures of how to do it.

Spare parts - things like buckles, fasteners, D rings, zips, fabrics, cord, bungee & webbing are available from PointNorth.co.uk. Ace Supplies also have a lot of interesting "bits".

Equipment Related

Navigation Board - superb idea from Julian Patrick for organising charts/maps.

Paddle leash - article on making your own.

Paddles - making Splits / Jointing systems - discussion that includes reference making your own splits using the Lendal sprung button system. There is an excellent photo-article on making a set of splits on CoacH2O - if you do this, I'd suggest making the cut off centre so that when the spigot is fitted, the two halves are the same lenght.

Paddles - making Greenland paddles - excellent article from Thomas Yost's site. Check out the Baker Brothers site, or (if you'd like a carbon fibre one), check out Duane Strosaker's page. Shaman Kayaks is also well worth a look for the wonderful images of boats, paddles and other traditional goodies. Check out JulesT's description of how to make a greenland paddle.

Paddles - repairing f/glass blades - discussion

Paddles - freeing stuck Werners - this seems to be a common problem, this discussion has ideas on freeing them.

Stoves - spare parts for - base-camp.co.uk seem to be a good source of bits for both old and new stoves. Needlesports hold stocks of spares for Primus, Trangia, Jetboil and MSR stoves as well, or can get them quickly.

Tow lines - article on choosing, making and using a towline for a sea-kayak.

Trolley - excellent article by Mike Wood on making your own from an old golf trolley. As is this one on a Kayak Trolley made from pvc pipe. This is a superb, simple and cheap DIY trolley. Here's one you you can make for £12.98.

Misc Items

Poop Tube - a neat way of packing out human waste, made from pvc pipe.

SeaPaddler.co.uk have some good material on their Handy Hints page.

Storage solutions - illustrated article with a variety of ideas for storing sea kayaks.

Van conversions - discussion with links to some relevant sites about camper conversions.