Best all-purpose adhesive/sealants

[spelt with a t]

What tapes and glues do you use for at-home and in the field gear repair?

[Jerry Adams]

McNett Seam Grip for non-silnylon – except I don't use non-silnylon very much and it dries in the tube after a couple months

Silicone diluted with mineral spirits – not real strong though, has a tendency to peel off

Epoxy – this lasts in the tube for years – I just sealed a pin-hole leak in my Prolite mattress, glued together some aluminum tubes, fixed the catch on my GPS,…

[Mike W]

I use another McNet product (have used it for years on my fishing waders). Aquaseal comes in very small tubes (in their repair kits) that fit nicely into my FAK.

http://www.mcnett.com/Aquaseal-Urethane-Repair-Adhesive-Sealant-P320.aspx

[Daryl and Daryl]

I use adhesive backed insignia cloth a lot. Sticks well to most things and lasts….forever? Comes in 2" wide tapes and wide fabric.

http://www.kitebuilder.com/catalog/advanced_search_result.php?keywords=insignia+cloth&osCsid=ce282376f6af3408d09e9fc6b1c1f059&x=7&y=7

Adhesive backed ripstop might be as good but I don't have as much experience with it. It usually only comes in 2" wide tapes.

I've also had great luck with strapping tape. I'm referring to the clear stuff with white threads running through it. Quality and attributes vary from one maker to another, however, it is tough to know if you have a good one.

[Ken Thompson]

Kenyon repair tape holds up very well. Available in a myriad of colors.

[Nico .]

I've had good luck with the McNett Tenacious Tape for repairs on rain gear and pack fabrics. I keep a small length of it in my repair kit. In fact it's still what's holding the tear shut on both a pair of wind pants and a pack.

I also have a small tube of seam grip. I've only ever used it to patch a pinhole leak in the field on a TR Prolite pad, but it worked well and the patch is still holding some 4 years later.

[Max Dilthey]

I dislike Gorilla Glue and Gorilla Tape. There's some flex to the adhesive, so if you can't cure it you get a colossal mess and slipped repairs.

Just my personal experience!

[spelt with a t]

I haven't used Gorilla Glue, but have been disappointed by Gorilla Tape. No better than brand name Duck Tape IMO. I will have to give Kenyon and Tenacious Tape a try to compare.

I find Seamgrip hard to work with (maybe thinning it would work?). I will pick up some Aquaseal to see how I like it.

Any experience with Shoe Goo, or other products that aren't marketed towards outdoor sports use? I see more use for flexible cures than rigid, especially for repair. If I'm fabricating something that needs a rigid bond I would probably research a particular epoxy for it, but in the field I don't think I would take one unless I had an item that I knew a general-purpose product couldn't adequately repair.

Thanks for all the suggestions so far.

[Jerry Adams]

I think Shoo Goo and McNett Seam Grip are pretty similar – I've used both – the ingredients are the same

They're both pretty thick

And after the McNett "dried" once, several days later, I touched two surfaces together and it made a huge mess. You have to rub some powder on the surface – like talc or I used some wall board material that I scraped off, just because it was convenient

[Rusty Beaver]

Tear-Aid repair patches. http://www.tear-aid.com/

I have little experience using it for backpacking specific purposes but consider it a must for wilderness multi-day whitewater kayaking trips. I have seen it hold a cracked kayak (2 cracks, one 6" long on hull below seat) together for 60 miles of rocky whitewater. Another friend used it to repair his cracked kayak and continued paddling it for the remainder of the season in continuous class 5.

I have full confidence in this stuff for any type of backcountry field repair.

[John Martin]

McNetts Tenacious Tape, Silnet and their Goretex repair patches work fantastic. There is also a product called rapid fix that is like a super glue on steroids it has an adhesive and a welding pounder. If you can"t glue it you can build up a weld that will hold. I have a rock that I picked up on a hike that looks like a fish. My kids dropped it and it broke I welded it and it has been sitting outside for two years in the elements and it is still holding.

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