What are the latest fixes for drive well crack?

Well, it's happened again, like clockwork, just as it has just about every 2 years …I now have the same crack in my Outback hull as I had in the three Outbacks before it (just in front of drive well at the "dowel"). Understandably, after sending 3 previous replacement hulls under warranty, Hobie will not send another.

After evaluating my paddle/pedal habits, I can only think that these constant hull failures have to do with my physical size. I'm 6'-3" and weigh around 275 pounds. My shear size might be exerting too much constant downward stress on the pedals. I doubt that the problem is miles (maybe 4 miles twice a week, and only in late spring/summer/early fall), or running into underwater obstacles (I rarely bend a flipper rod, and no more than a few degrees over a year's time). Yes, I can pedal fairly strong when I have to, but truth be known, I'm over 60 years old and a 4-mile walk is my maximum, so I doubt that I'm that much harder pedaling-wise on the hull than many of you.

Anyway, it looks as if I'll need to buy a whole new Hobie. Am thinking of Revo 14.

My problem is how to fix my 2012 Outback hull for occasional use. I've been told that Flex Force is good for a temporary fix, but that this fix will not last long. I'm no boat nerd, so I'll have my dealer do the fix.

Does anybody care to chime in their 2 cents on Flex Force, or any other fix? Thanks!

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Absolute kayaking corrupts absolutely.

I would drill a small hole at each end of the crack to prevent the crack from getting any larger. Then, I would make a small plate out of aluminum or some other stiff material that would cover the crack and surrounding area. Drill a few holes in the material so you can use a few screws to hold the plate in place over the crack. Get some of this stuff, mix it up, apply it to the plate, cracked area and screw holes, screw the plate into the hull and let the epoxy completely cure.

That or plastic welding is all I can think of that will really work.

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Waterman at Work - Kayak Fishing Photos, Video,Kayak Rigging - Blog

I have a VERY old Outback that I bought used from a guy... very cheap... he didn't tell me it had a leak, which was ok with me because I got it so cheap. The leak was in the fwd section of the drive well. I was constantly pumping water out of it thru the seat access hatch with my hand pump. I tried several different epoxies and sealants, leak always came back... I finally picked up a handfull of those plastic welding strips from my dealer, had a heat gun with a very small tip. I scraped the split until I got a "V", cleaned it with acetone scraped a little more to open it up, cleaned with more acetone, then started heating it. The hull plastic began to melt and as it got closer and closer to about the consistency of putty, I began feeding those strips into the crack and surrounding area. Fed about 4-5 of those strips into the area and kept smoothing with a flat tool. That was about two years ago and this thing is my loaner to friends... been used and abused but hasn't leaked since..