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Hi Matt.

Any thoughts on when in april the “green stuff” will be available? Could you make it available for preorder?

I’m also looking at this. I live in Europe, so I’ll need a 22ov appliance.
I can se a lot of people using hotair guns, but then you’ll need an extra hand to apply pressure.
There is also a lot of heat sealing irons around that seems interesting, but few of them seem to get hot enough.

This raises a question. I guess the the fabric has specified…[Read more]

This is something similar to what I use,

http://www.ebay.com/itm/vtg-thermo-scientific-type-1900-hot-plate-tested-and-heats-steampunk/182528277299

Be sure to check to see what the temperature range is before you buy one

Mike

You will need a hot plate that can hold a steady temperature.  They have some used commercial ones on the big auction site that should do the job for under $100.  The one I have is about $400 but it is more than necessary in my opinion.

I preheat the hot plate to 240 with my irons on it.  I like to have two of each size on the hot plate.  I use…[Read more]

Sounds good! I think if you lay out the patterns efficiently then you might even be able to get away with just one meter for doubling up the outside of the tubes (depending on how high up the walls you want the lamination to go); I think 2 m should be plenty, and you might have enough left over for other things too.

Hi Mike,

I’m interested in trying this method, too. A cheap hot plate would probably work as a heater, or even a clothes iron held in a cradle – anything that would maintain a consistent temperature.

About how long do the irons stay hot before you need to reheat them, and how many of a given size do you need to make so you can switch between…[Read more]

I’d like to add another option for your heat sealing.  I use a commercial hot plate and some “irons” in various sizes to make my welds.  The hot plate is pretty simple and can maintain a steady heat of about 240 degrees.  The irons are home made with aluminum square stock cut to different lengths from 3/4″ to 3″ affixed to cedar blocks with JB we…[Read more]

Interesting – thanks for the post!

I picked up a military surplus Valad Heat Sealing Iron off eBay like one of these: http://www.ebay.com/itm/VALAD-SEALING-IRON-HS3T-150W-120V-HEATING-PARTS-TOOL-HOT-ELECTRIC-MILITARY-USED-/172624490089?hash=item283138ae69:g:Sb0AAOSwoydWqAl8

I didn’t have much luck with the clover either, this is much heavier and seems to hold the heat better.…[Read more]

I see it as a valuable addition to the toolbox that will be used on other jobs too. I have the 1500W version but there is a 1080W version on ebay for the price of a Clover iron, though you need to get the 20mm nozzle separately. Anyone who’s done any gas welding will find this a natural tool to use, though you need to develop some specific skills…[Read more]

Are you still liking the hot air gun Lyn?  I imagine this is probably the best route to go for the folks that want to do a lot of raft building, and I could use it for other plastic welding too..

Lame!  They have a heat setting of 1 – 4.  Needs a 5 perhaps..  I was surprised when I opened the package it only says it’s 10 watts!  Hard to believe it could do anything with 10 watts, but the heating element is right in the pad.  I did find that it never ever ever got too hot, which is nice as after a while I stopped even bothering to test it o…[Read more]

Thanks for the insight Matt! Saftey is definitely the number one concern on any trip. I agree that in most whitewater applications, a hard shell kayak will out preform a packraft – especially in terms of durability. That being said, I don’t plan to use the raft for anything too extreme (at least dusing this stage in its development). I do however…[Read more]

Hi Daniel – as of early April 2017 I’m not aware of anyone paddling any difficult whitewater in a DIY Packraft… 2017 will be the first full year they’re out there in the wild, however, so that may change soon.

In the interest of managing expectations, I just want to start by saying no lightweight inflatable will ever be as tough and…[Read more]

Hi Daniel – as of early April 2017 I’m not aware of anyone paddling any difficult whitewater in a DIY Packraft… 2017 will be the first full year they’re out there in the wild, however, so that may change soon.

In the interest of managing expectations, I just want to start by saying no lightweight inflatable will ever be as tough and…[Read more]

My Dritz Petite Press arrived today and this one does not get hot enough to seal properly. Others report that the Petite Press works for them, so there may be variation among them (as there is with the Clover irons). I will try to modify mine so it works (it is almost hot enough), but at this point I cannot recommend it.