Gellcoat gouge - Any easy/simple solution?

[jerfo]

Hello, so I have a 1970's old town canoe that is my fathers, it's truly a heavy beast that has seen quite a bit, and it has a few gouges in the gelcoat on the keel. (photo below)

I'm not too experienced in canoe repairs and I really don't want to fuss around with nasty chemicals for hours and fancy tools and pigments. I'm looking for a straight forward solution to get me going.

I saw this stuff, it even comes in a nice red.: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MMM1M2O/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It seems like a good product, you just squeeze the tube and a thick paste fills the gouge and you sand it after. However after further reading, It appears you can't use below the waterline..Onwards..

That lead me to thinking about some 3M marine adhesive to seal it up, something like this:https://www.amazon.com/3M-05206-Mar...dp/B0000AY6DG?ie=UTF8&*Version*=1&*entries*=0

It only comes in white but I could easily tape off the gouge and spray paint it red. Has anyone tried repairing it like that?

I'm open to other easy repairs, I just don't want to get too in depth with it and drive myself crazy. Thanks for any help in advance.

Photo of damage: http://tinypic.com/r/241v902/9

 

[sailsman63]

Never done gel coat repair myself, though there have been several threads about it around here, worth going through.

One thing to keep in mind is that "Below the waterline" when applied to marine products means "Pretty much permanently immersed" Such as a boat that is left in the water for days or weeks at a time. Most canoes will do just fine with a "Topsides only" marine product.

 

[scoutergriz]

I would just use some marine epoxy ribbon and a can of car paint spray to hide it

 

[dogbrain]

If you want it to come out nice you could get an actual gelcoat repair kit from Wenonah or another canoe manufacturer. It's a little more expensive than the things you listed above, but they send it with everything you need including gloves, sandpaper of various grades, buffing compound and directions for use. You do have to go buy a tiny thing of MEK as a catalyst, but you can get that at any auto parts store. It's not that difficult to do. I doubt the color will match exactly, but what the heck. There are a number of tutorials online to get you started. Good luck!