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View Full Version : Holes in my Contrail.



Fairway
12-06-2012, 18:14
I've got about 15 tiny holes in my TT Contrail. REI sells a sil-nylon repair kit (http://www.rei.com/product/783049/gear-aid-sil-fix-repair-kit) that includes a special adhesive. The kit looks small. I don't think it will cover all the holes I've got. So, here are my questions. Is this "special adhesive" really necessary? Can I patch these holes with some spare sil-nylon and a liberal application of silicone+paint thinner? Will this fix last for another thru hike?

Franco
12-06-2012, 18:54
Hi It depends on how big the holes are.
My Rainbow recently (on loan) fell off a bike in Japan and resulted in a few small (2-3mm) holes and a couple of dime size ones.
None of the holes were in an area that comes under a lot of tension.
So for the small ones I just put some painters tape on the underside, painted some silicone on the top and that was it
(you peel the tape off easy enough)
For the larger ones I cut a round patch of silnylon, put a thin layer of silicone on that and the same around the hole, let it stand for about 15 minutes than stuck the patch over the hole and put some weight on it.
It can take up to 48 hours to fully cure.
You can get some spare silnylon from TT, just send them a request inside a self addressed stamped envelop.
BTW, do make sure you use the right silicone, so stuff like SilNett or the GE2 , not the generic bathroom type.