brambor Posted October 29, 2009 Share Posted October 29, 2009 My 2 year old Seals Neoprene spray skirt has two small tear holes. Nothing a little Goop couldn't fix. I probably did it in during the 4 rolling lessons I just absolved. But it just made me think about soliciting advice here. For rolling, surfing and overall an active kayaker's usage what would be the most durable and dry combination for a spray skirt? I thought all neoprene was the solution and it may be...but what about a quality goretex skirt or a combination of neoprene with goretex or what? (a tuliq?;-)) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pintail Posted October 29, 2009 Share Posted October 29, 2009 I cannot for the life of me understand how learning to roll would damage your sprayskirt, Brambor! Far more likely would be abrasion damage sustained whilst practising rescues: lifting kayaks across your cockpit, turning them over, etc. For this reason any sprayskirt should be a substantial, good quality item. I prefer neoprene, myself. You should use whatever is most comfortable for you. Being able to repair small damage with "goop" seems to me to be an answer to your own question, no? (You'd never find a goretex cover that is elastic, I think? So that it would not fit more than one kayak, in the event that you own more than one boat) By the way, tuiliqs are very comfortable and very <warm>! They are not a year-round piece of equipment. The Inuit themselves replaced them with something much more akin to our own sprayskirts in summer. (I do not wear my tuiliq except over an ocean cockpit: I do not even know if it fits over my keyhole-cockpit equipped boat) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brambor Posted October 29, 2009 Author Share Posted October 29, 2009 It did a lot of reentry rolls and maybe the skirt got damaged there. Yes a bit of goop will fix this. I have actually started with a neoprene skirt because it seemed to make most sense to me at the time and therefore I have no experience with a nylon skirt or a goretex skirt. I was opening this up for a discussion hoping to learn about different opinions. that's all. rb I cannot for the life of me understand how learning to roll would damage your sprayskirt, Brambor! Far more likely would be abrasion damage sustained whilst practising rescues: lifting kayaks across your cockpit, turning them over, etc. For this reason any sprayskirt should be a substantial, good quality item. I prefer neoprene, myself. You should use whatever is most comfortable for you. Being able to repair small damage with "goop" seems to me to be an answer to your own question, no? (You'd never find a goretex cover that is elastic, I think? So that it would not fit more than one kayak, in the event that you own more than one boat) By the way, tuiliqs are very comfortable and very <warm>! They are not a year-round piece of equipment. The Inuit themselves replaced them with something much more akin to our own sprayskirts in summer. (I do not wear my tuiliq except over an ocean cockpit: I do not even know if it fits over my keyhole-cockpit equipped boat) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob budd Posted October 29, 2009 Share Posted October 29, 2009 I have a neoprene skirt that has a reinforced border which should take more of a beating for rescuing others. I would wonder how much more breathable your legs would be in a cockpit with a Goretex spray skirt as no breathable membrane works (well) beneath a neoprene skirt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suz Posted October 29, 2009 Share Posted October 29, 2009 My 2 year old Seals Neoprene spray skirt has two small tear holes. Nothing a little Goop couldn't fix. I probably did it in during the 4 rolling lessons I just absolved. But it just made me think about soliciting advice here. For rolling, surfing and overall an active kayaker's usage what would be the most durable and dry combination for a spray skirt? I thought all neoprene was the solution and it may be...but what about a quality goretex skirt or a combination of neoprene with goretex or what? (a tuliq?;-)) Neoprene is more abrasion resistant than Gore-Tex. If you are practicing in a pool, you will find that the chemicals will prematurely age EVERYTHING you use in the pool. I tend to relegate old stuff for pool use and not my new things. Usually rescue practice ruins skirts more than rolling practice. Check out your cockpit rim for any rough spots and sand them down as they can tear through skirts pretty easily. Also - little tidbit I learned from Snapdragon owner Rich Wilson - don't use your sprayskirt on your boat for a cockpit cover and don't throw in a washing machine as the agitator can prematurely age your spraydeck/skirt. Suz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob budd Posted October 29, 2009 Share Posted October 29, 2009 ...don't throw in a washing machine as the agitator can prematurely age your... Or use a rotary machine also saving much water and extending the life of all your garments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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