Category Archives: Sports Equipment

pouring an air-free transducer base when installing a depth sounder

Depth Sounder Installation

Above: Pouring an air-free transducer base for installing a depth sounder. Draining neat (unthickened) epoxy through a hole in the bottom of the mixing cup will leave the air bubbles behind on the surface. A putty dam on the hull ensures the correct size and shape for the depth sounder base.

Jim Costello of Dallas, Texas, asked the Gougeon Tech Staff about a depth sounder installation that called for mounting a transducer to the hull of his 1983 Bayliner Capri Classic.

“The user manual for my new Hummingbird fish finder says that the transducer can be installed in the hull with a slow curing epoxy. It says to try to eliminate all bubbles. I have WEST SYSTEM 105 Resin, 206 Slow Hardener, 404 High-Density Filler, and 406 Colloidal Silica on hand. What if I just mix up some peanut butter thick epoxy paste and use that? Or do you have any other suggestions? I can mount the transducer on a part of the hull that is thin enough for the application, according to Hummingbird. Thanks.” Continue reading →

Repairing a Hockey Stick

by Captain James R. Watson

Above: The final step in this hockey stick repair is applying a layer of fiberglass tape to the repair area with G/flex 650 for additional reinforcing.

Ice hockey sticks are exposed to cold temperatures plus high shock forces from contact with the puck as well as with the ice and skates. Hockey sticks can be wood/fiberglass laminates or composites of carbon fiber or aramid. The stick blades often chip and split with use and have to be repaired (or else replaced at $50–$150 each). A customer who repairs and maintains hockey sticks for a local team had been using a conventional epoxy for repairs and found that it often chipped under such use. Continue reading →

A properly engineered Scootboard chassis. Even without the resources of a well-equipped test lab, Bill Bertelsen, GBI’s test engineer, was able to gather useful composites data using the equipment at hand—in this case, a spring clamp, a ruler, a digital camera, and an 8-year-old girl.

Fortifying a Spare-Parts Scootboard

by Bill Bertelsen, GBI Test Engineer

Above: A properly engineered scootboard chassis. Even without the resources of a well-equipped test lab, Bill Bertelsen, GBI’s test engineer, was able to gather useful composites data using the equipment at hand—in this case, a spring clamp, a ruler, a digital camera, and an 8-year-old girl. ,

“Daddy, can we build a scooter from these old pieces of wood?” Continue reading →

non-skid catalyzed gelcoat

Repair Your Non-Skid Surface

With a flexible non-skid mold

by Tom Pawlak — GBI Technical Advisor

If the patterned non-skid on your production-built fiberglass boat needs repair, you may be interested to know that flexible molds are available for making professional-looking repairs. Continue reading →

installing a basketball goal with threaded rod

Installing a Basketball Goal

by Brian Knight—GBI Technical Advisor

Above: Bob was installing a basketball goal with threaded rod and needed to know how much tension the rods would hold.

Bob Warters: I am installing a basketball goal in my driveway. My pole has a 10″ diameter flange on the bottom (9″ bolt hole diameter) with six holes for ½” anchors. I intend to use ½” stainless allthread (threaded rod) for the anchor bolts. If I drill 9/16″ holes in the concrete 3½” deep and use your system to fix the threaded rod to the concrete, how much tension would you estimate the rods would hold? The concrete is about a year old, it’s 4″ thick and has ½” rebar on one foot centers.  Continue reading →

SAE Supermileage vehicle

Composites on Wheels

by Captain James R. Watson

Boats are my first love, but I get excited about projects like this Supermileage® vehicle, other SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) and airfoil carved-foam bicycle. My job offers great opportunities to talk to some of the most talented and positive thinking people around: sculptors, inventors, rocket builders, and good ol’ boatbuilders. Folks who envision and tinker with a desire to experiment, improve, compete, make a living or just play around.  Continue reading →

How I Repaired a Wood-Cored Diving Board

And made it better than new!

By Bruce Niederer — GBI Technical Advisor

Backyard pools can be a joy. They can also be an expensive, time-consuming headache. While I don’t have any ideas about how you might escape the cleaning and chlorination chores, I do have an idea that might save you the cost of replacing that old, weather-beaten blue diving board that has faithfully stood a stoic guard over the deep end all these years. Continue reading →