I am wondering if any of you had luck gluing things to your yak and what type of adhesive did you use. I want to put a base for a camera mount on my boat and I of course don't want to drill holes in it. I was looking at different kinds of marine glues, but wondered what type/brand did others user successfully on their yaks.

Thanks

Marine Goop works well, though I'm not sure in this situation. It's how I attached my sonar to my hull. It may also depend on your hull, some have smooth deck (like wilderness systems) and others are textured (like ocean kayak).

Neumie, was your hull smooth or textured? My boat is textured. And do you remember where you bought Marine Goop? Is it at most hardware stores?

Thanks for your help.

The polyethelene materials used in yaks is really not the greatest for adhesives. Most guys use adhesive for extremely light objects. I would not feel comfortable attaching a base + camera with it.

It's good to be very careful about drilling holes, but at some point, you're probably going to have to do it. Use a cheap plastic cutting board as backing, stainless bolts and nylock nuts. I like to throw in a couple rubber washers myself.

If you're thinking this set-up will be temporary, you could look at the suction cup mounts that touring yakkers use with some type of leash attached. Maybe you could rig one up yourself.

http://www.amazon.com/Kayalu-Gear-marine-grade-Industrial-Nylon-coated/dp/B003HTTDMM

If I were going to add a camera mount, it would probably go in a rod holder. Most kayak plastics i.e. polyethelene, do not provide any sort of decent bonding. You can force the issue by scuffing the surface to get a mechanical bond that is better, but it still isn't that great. Another option would be to attache the camera mount to something already tied down like maybe a cooler or something.
One thing I would make sure of is that the camera was secured firmly to the kayak. You could loose lots of money overboard and never know it.

Will, it's inside the hull, so smooth. Marine Goop is readily available at home improvement & boat stores. But like others have said, best to bite the bullet and bolt the camera mount.

Have you considered attaching it to your crate instead?

IMO, if you still want to attach it to your yak you'll want to prep the area or scuff the surface with some sand paper before you glue it to the outside. FSO can adhere the base to your yak for ya. If you want someone else to do it for ya. He uses different types of special oppoxy like adhesives. Seen one of his that cures hard & is PERMANENT! Send him a PM. He should be back by now. FYI I haven't adhered anything to my yak.

FSO? Ya still lurking?

Zip Tie (black), Adhere (use zip ties to hold till cured) or Bolt (stainless)

If you can attach to a natural feature of the yak ( rod holder, mast step etc. ) then work from that point.

I use ram Mounts for my most cameras and put a small backing plate inside. Even if I remove the mounts, I am looking at three 1/8" holes which will patch just fine with hot melt glue.

If you do glue it on, put a good safety line on it. The flex of the hull with use and temp changes will eventually release the bond. If I am near a sharp corner in the body (which reduces flexing of the hull) I use epoxy and scuff the mating surface pretty good regardless of the texture on it.

If you are putting it on an open area that will flex with temperature changes etc. then Goop is the best way to go as it is flexible and a bit more forgiving.

Post up some pics when you get to shooting,

Good luck, Phill

Academy = Marine Goop