Day Five - Protecting the Rods And Reels

Installing foam on the sides to protect the rods and reels

With the paint work finished, it was finally time to to get the boat ready for fishing. The Hewes has rod racks on both sides of the boat beneath the gunwales and unless I padded that area, rods and reels stored there would bang against the sides of the boat during a run out to fishing spots. The only way to avoid that was to pad padding to the sides, but the challenge was to find padding that wasn't stupid expensive. I found the answer on Amazon - Yoga mats

Amazon to the rescue - Yoga mats

3M adhesive spray & Loctite Marine Adhesive

Amazon had Yoga mats in a 72" X 24" size made from 6mm closed cell foam in a slew of colors. I chose a muted mustard color that would complement the exterior color of the boat (creamy yellow) and ordered two mats. To adhere the mats to the sides of the boat, I bought a can of 3M Super 77 adhesive spray and a tube of Loctite Marine Adhesive Sealant.

Before foam

Step 1 was to clean the sides in between the rod racks with rubbing alcohol to maximize adhesion. The rod racks divided the sides of the boat into three sections and the center section was measured. The dimensions were marked on the back of the foam with a Sharpie and the foam was cut to size with scissors.

Center section ready for adhesive

I sprayed the 3M adhesive thoroughly on the back of the foam and then added a bead of the Loctite adhesive sealant all the way around it, a half inch or so from the foam's edge. I climbed in the boat and pressed the foam onto the center section.

Center section glued in place

The process was repeated for the front and back sections, then once again for the other side of the boat.

Rear section with both adhesives applied

The entire exercise took two hours or so and cost less than $40 for all the materials. I didn't have enough time to add foam to the rod racks themselves but that will be the next step.

The finished product