Keel Bands for Tender - Where to buy?

[Arida]

Hi,

I have an old Bonwitco "Unsinkable" dual skinned dinghy which has been reduced to being used as a tender, previously on the beach at Emsworth and now stored in a dinghy park. During this time it ha suffered significant damage to the keel (and elsewhere) which has breached the outer skin in several places. Luckily this is not the end of the world, being a dual skin boat, although it does seem to be getting heavier....

Anyway, I plan to patch up the damage to the keel in the next few weeks and would like to fit a keel band to allow it to be dragged around without the damage happening again. I beleive stainless steel is the material of choice and I guess in needs to be maybe 2.3M long and maybe 2cm wide. However I have not been able to source anything off the shelf.

Does anyone have a source of suitable stainless steel strips, ideally in the Portsmouth/Southampton area? Alternatively, has anyone had any sucess with other materials? I was wondering about a couple of anodized aluminium door threshold strips - obviously they will quite quickly suffer surface corrosion but this should be pretty much self limiting and they are cheap.

Regards,

Rob

 

[NormanS]

I've been very satified with my dealings with metals4u.

 

[Lakesailor]

I bought a length of 1.5" wide aluminium strip from a metal stockholder (or a fabricator would probably supply the same).
it was about 1/4" thick and easy to drill and bend.
Did the job very well on my grp tender on a shale landing.

You can just see it in this pic. The damage was caused by the storm in 2005. Easily fixed.
I never bothered painting it on the basis that no-one wants to pinch a tatty dinghy.

 

[Stork_III]

Classic Marine do brass keel band. http://www.classicmarine.co.uk/boatstore/product.asp?P_ID=155

 

[Arida]

Thanks for all the replies. Those Classic Marine brass keel bands are surprisingly reasonable, but perhaps a bit over the top for my beat up old GRP tender.....

 

[ripvan1]

Harrisons in Rodney Road, Portsmouth may sell you apiece from stock. Go toend of Eastern Road, across the lights and they're by the roundabout on your right.

 

[apogee]

Try a scrap metal merchant.

 

[Arida]

Thanks again all.

At the risk of answering my own question, I was quite surprised to find this at Wickes:

http://www.wickes.co.uk/Flat-Bar-Aluminium-23-5mmx2-5m/p/188152

Price perhaps a tiny bit high but then no need to factor in delivery costs or to wait for delivery. They also have a number of other aluminium sections available, both flat and angled.

Regards,

Rob