Are Adhesive Keel Guards Effective?

[harringtondav]

New boat coming mid Aug...I hope. We boat on the upper Mississippi river. So sand bank/beach stops are frequent. Previous Larson boat had it's gel coat ground off to pink glass and roving at the front of the keel. (I patched B4 selling).
New boat, new car: Pucker until that first door ding. But if I can get ahead of the sand grind I'd like to try. I've seen, but never used keel guard/protector products.
...thoughts? recommendations?

 

[dwco5051]

Yes I would recommend for your situation. I talked the powers above me to have one installed on the last patrol boat I operated. There were many times we would have to go to shore and could not pick the ideal spot It probably added several years to the life of the hull.

 

[lineman09]

i would definitely use one if your going to beach it alot, just make sure you use a quality adhesive ...

 

[Scott Danforth]

Yes

 

[MRS]

Yup would do

 

[JASinIL2006]

Yes. we beach on the Mississippi all the time, and our keel guard has held up really well for many years. Prep is very important, as is following the directions explicitly. But it really sticks well if you do that.

 

[Stinnett21]

Yes. we beach on the Mississippi all the time, and our keel guard has held up really well for many years. Prep is very important, as is following the directions explicitly. But it really sticks well if you do that.

Echo this. Mine has held up, and still looks well attached knock on wood, for 12 years. For extra strength you could run a bead of 4200 around it if you wish. I haven't done that but if I ever see it starting to come loose that is what I will do to buy time. Again, as JAS says, prep and following directions is key.

 

[JASinIL2006]

I ran a bead of 4200 around the edge, too. Not sure it makes any difference, but the guard is still firmly and completely attached.

 

[3rdtimesthecharm]

They are worth the money.

 

[Jermy-Jinky]

What length would y'all recommend? I've got one on my shopping list for my 16' bowrider, but not sure how long I should get.

 

[Scott Danforth]

What length would y'all recommend? I've got one on my shopping list for my 16' bowrider, but not sure how long I should get.

they have charts on their websites. for the average 16' boat, maybe a 6' keel guard as you mount it about a foot below the winch eye in the front and back about mid way. on my 19' boat, it was an 8'

 

[JASinIL2006]

KeelShield (which is what I got) recommends a 6' length for your boat. I think I got one a foot longer than recommended because the shore where we beach doesn't drop off very quickly, so I wanted to protect a bit more of the keel.