D5 Keel strip

[caobrown]

I am starting a D5 build project to build as a dinghy to go ashore from our cruiser, and for having some fun sailing. I am considering the idea of adding a 3/4 inch wood strip along the keel to help protect it when pulling the boat up a beach or a rocky shoreline. Has anyone tried this? Any suggestions?

[Fuzz]

Depending on how much wear you think you will have you can add a piece if sacrificial wood, glass or metal. Any one of those can sure save the hull.

[OneWayTraffic]

I glued an Aluminium strip on mine in 2017. It's still on there. Sand the strip, then sand neat epoxy into that, then add thickened epoxy and screw or tape into place. My strip was thin enough that I needed nothing other than the stickyness of the epoxy to hold it in place. For my C17 I used a 2mm piece of Aluminium and needed to screw it in. I removed the screws after the glue set up and filled the holes. Solid as.

[Netpackrat]

On my D5, I added some extra layers of fiberglass to the bottom of the skeg for extra protection, and I have touched it up with filler a time or two and not noted any penetration through to the wood. To my thinking that's better than using a strip of wood that will get chewed up and need to be replaced eventually. I'd rather just touch up the sacrificial glass layer.