Has my 2008 Revo finally given up the ghost?

Hey folks,

There's a similar post about the older style mirage locking twist cams and the bolts leaking. Well, doubt my bolts are leaking, but I am taking on copious amounts of water now.

Quick background:

- Bought two used Hobie Kayaks about 1.5 years ago (2011 PA 14 and 2008 Revo 13) from a local Austin guy who bought them at ACK south Austin (off I-35 frontage road)
- They needed a lot of attention, esp. the V2 mirage drives, practically re-built them with GT stuffs etc.
- After my first trial trip I noted the Revo mirage drive felt "squishy" compared to the PA14
- Came to this forum only to discover that my "squishy" issue was due to one of the cam columns (the HDPE extruded tube in which the large SS hex allen head bolt screws into on the STBD side was cracked, and warped out of shape.
- Found out about a repair method here (user name: roadrunner and possible a drsteelheadcatcher) helped me with some posts about using Loctite 3035 special epoxy for low energy plastics like HDPE and splitting PVC pieces and taping one side to serve as a clam shell. Smear the epoxy all in and press the PVC clam shell pieces together around the cam column. I did this on both sides but even better I put two allen wrenches into each bolt and tied a loop of string around them and twisted the string some (tension) to pull them together some so as to sort of set, like a bone fracture, before doing this repair.
- End result was great and the columns are still great, rock solid.
- I contacted the guy who sold me the yaks about this and I could tell he felt really bad, and in the end he ended up paying for the $50 Loctite 3035 epoxy (stuff isn't cheap)

So that's the history, I love these two yaks, they serve me well. I have both rigged for sailing and as you can see I made a stowage tube for the sails and paddles. So much fun...I uses them at least twice a week here in central TX. Planning a BTB trip to small oil rigs 2.5 mile off-shore this June/July.

Now today comes along and my fishing buddy and I are 3 miles up the Colorado River when notice he's listing very bad to port. We stop and find out he's got several gallons of water in the hull. At first perplexed, but within just a few moments standing there at the shore I saw the crack near the port cam seat area.

So I'm coming here first to solicit for ideas before I break out spare HDPE and torches. Any advice here? I will also say that as a backup on the underside (inside the hull all around the cam seat area) I smeared copious amounts of Lexel sealant as a security measure for any leaking. So I think if this went to a thermal weld repair I would need to remove it from the underside?

Options I know I have:

- Buy a new kayak (super low probability, I really don't want to)
- Pay ACK to repair it? Honestly, if I was instructed how, I would rather do it myself.
- Repair myself with advice here.
- One concern I have about thermal hdpe repairs is one I've done in the past seemed to make the HDPE more brittle. If I do a repair, I want it done, and done right the first time.

Options I'm unsure about:
- Support from Hobie as a second owner with a bill of sale and original POS from ACK south Austin

@mmiller @Matt Miller

Sorry for the large images.





Thank you,

_________________
Thank you,
Roy Niswanger

I would think if the cam column is still solid, a good plastic weld would fix that as its not inherently a high stress point in itself. Probably weakened by years of inserting end of drive shaft. Try sealing the crack first to make sure its not leaking elsewhere

Maybe even a stainless steel shaped protective washer plate under cam knob to prevent end of shaft hitting hull?

Cam columns are rock solid with the wrap-around PVC clam-shell repair and copious amounts of Loctite 3035 epoxy (stuff really does stick to HDPE). This repair was done about 1.5 years ago, still holding strong.

I understand your washer idea, I'll try that but don't wan't to bind the drive shaft. I'll see.

The leak is certainly coming from that crack, verified by filling front half with water while on trailer, on a decline driveway with the trailer tongue on the ground. Also when wife uses it water doesn't come up high into the drive well area and therefor no leakage. But when I or buddy (230lbs) with fishing gear use it the cams are almost constantly covered with water and therefore gallon leakage every 30 mins or so.

Yes, I think a standard plastic weld procedure will work. I ordered this quality iron: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0007 ... UTF8&psc=1 I will NOT use the included black Fiber-Flex but insteal use a scrap piece of the same Hobie Revo HDPE.
Did a lot of youtube research, seems Polyvance is a leader in plastic repair industry. The cheap 80 watt irons just don't work well. I will also use two strips of SS wire mesh as stitches on each side of the crack. I will also melt two holes with a hot nail on each end to stop propagation. I will also clean off with a SS wire brush the Lexel from the underside and prep with acetone and then use a glob of Loctite 3035 on the underside. We'll see how this goes.

Thank you,
Roy

_________________
Thank you,
Roy Niswanger

Well, I finally fixed it and fixed it for good. Best way to describe this is through the below youtube video. Basically I bought the after-market Click-N-Go system from Lightning Kayaks ($75 shipped for the pair) and retrofitted them to the Revo that had the cam locking system. Note I mention another guy who did this already not that long ago. He simply used the click-n-go system as-is and drilled two new holes and used nuts. I didn't like this because: A. 4 new holes in an area that was already compromised from stress and previous repairs. B. The system effectively raised his drive 1/2"+ which I know from dry testing that caused the drive sprockets to hit the bottom edge of the mirage drive opening/well (I explain it all in the video). So I cut and SS tig welded the click-n-go mechanisms to lower where the drum shaft sits. Now I'm only at 3/16" rise from stock which is acceptable. Below is a picture of the retro fit as well:





-Roy

_________________
Thank you,
Roy Niswanger

Excellent video! It looks like you did a thorough job of working through the issues and customizing the parts accordingly. Let us know how it turns out!!

Field test was good, now to make the install bomb proof with copious amounts of Loctite 3035:



-Roy

_________________
Thank you,
Roy Niswanger