Tail Repairs and Questions

[Moongazer]

So I know a lot of you have experience with Mertailor 'Realistic Latex' tails. Well this one I got from Blue Mermaid knowing it needed repairs.

And boy does it. The fluke is completely hollow and fills up with water, essentially becoming a HUGE water weight (I can handle it as I'm a very strong swimmer, but pool edges have become my friend). I can't tread water or swim backwards. So after reading multiple threads on here, I thought "I'll just poke a hole!". Boy did that go wrong, haha. The hole, which was only about 1" to start with, is now 3-4" after only 2 swims. The holes on the other side are however still the same size.

After being convinced not to gut the Fluke (Thanks Iona!) I spoke with my friend who is a movie set decorator/designer and asked her if she had any ideas. And she did! She said to grab some aquarium tubing and stick it into the water logged area to act as 'filters'. It's a great idea and finding out the tubing came in blue and green was amazing! However, after adding some to the Fluke, I find it's missing some sort of Artist 'flair' but can't figure out what it would be.

If you guys could give some ideas/input to what I should and can't do, that would be amazing! I've attached pictures of what I have so far.

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b361/0ceanprincess/Snapbucket/11B8DE8B.jpg
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b361/0ceanprincess/Snapbucket/21274B8F.jpg

[Ashe]

Couldnt really tell what you were asking, but then again, its late ;) If you are needing ways to incorporate the tubing into the tail design, here are some: Maybe cover the tubes in some fabric and desguise (cant spell lol) them as tendrils? if you do do that, you should also add some tendrils to other parts of the tail, ie. End of fluke, top (waist), maybe a dorsal or heel fin?

[Moongazer]

I was thinking of some iridescent fabric but I'm not sure how to attach it to the tubing.

Anyone know if I was to put some liquid latex between them and make it almost like another fin, would that work? (Trying to disguise the tubing)

[Mermaid Lorelei]

You could glue the fabric onto the tubes and use them as ribs. A piece of fabric on one side or both sides. You could use E-6000 as it is very strong, clear, and waterproof. It would also be easier than latex.

[AniaR]

you can glue the inside of the tail down with a fast drying caulking- then use CLEAR alex plux to cover up the seams. Use the alex plus sparingly as it takes a while to cure, and use it after you have done the inside because you can use the hole in the seam on the side to glue it down. That's how we fixed my mertailor tail :) You don't actually need the tubing. If you do this and allow it the proper time to dry it should stay glued down AT LEAST a few months, probably closer to 6 depending on how often you use it. And do this stuff in a well ventilated area, wear gloves, and a mask

[Moongazer]

So Raina you're suggesting I cut it open and glue it all down? Or just insert the caulking through the hole? I'm just trying to figure out how to seal the neoprin to the neoprin and neoprin to the mono fin without channels for the water.

[AniaR]

use the hole. just insert the nozzle and then spread the caulking around using your hands on the outside of the tail. When you feel like you have enough in there use a rolling pin to make sure it's all flat. It should be all over the monofin except for the foot pockets. Then seal up your hole in the seam with CLEAR alex plus on the outside along the seam after the inside is dry and stiff. You wont need to drain anything because it'll all dry solid. The alex will dry clear and you wont have a hole. This was how he makes the tails when he sells them glued down and I did it myself 2 times and Raven did it when I sent her my tail. You may wanna roll your tail down as far as you can first so air can get in easily to make it dry faster. It'll take a while to dry but should be good for a long time.

[AniaR]

you can also tint clear alex plus with createx to cover those paint scuffs too. Just remember it can take a while to cure.

[Moongazer]

Thank you so much Raina! I'm going to head to a home depot tomorrow and see what I can find! The tips are awesome!

[Winged Mermaid]

Last I heard from you and a few others when you put that stuff inside the tail it never fully cures (at least in a weeks or a month or two) and can cause bad to severe reactions if you swim in it when it hasn't cured fully. So it wasn't the best thing for the job. That's what I remember, anyhow! Also from what I've seen the tin cure latex doesn't adhere to the monofin. It just ends up drying to the neoprene shaped around the monofin but doesn't stick to it. From what I can tell, that's what makes the monofin shape and ridges so obvious in Mertailor tails. I spent hours cutting out the excess caulking that was everywhere on the inside of my Mertailor tail with a razor knife so I can try and redo it properly.

Here is what I told her about that:

"Honestly unless you want to get the monofin out to repair, modify, or replace it, I wouldn't open up the fluke. It's a huge pain! You do need to glue the fabric/fin down to help, but you can do that without gutting the fluke. know what most people would advise you to do would be to use tin cure latex (such as ALEX Plus), but I would advise against that. It takes forever to cure (months) and if you get in the water before hand you can have a severe reaction to it. Plus it my experience the stuff will adhere the neoprene together but will not stick to the monofin. I've hard of people using tin cure silicone (such as GE Silicone, waterproof) with more success since it has a shorter drying time, but I don't have any personal experience with that. Those who do use a caulking gun to put it into the fluke then roll it out evenly with a rolling pin.

The tricky part of gluing down a monofin is that the recreational fins are made of polyethelene, which is a type of plastic. So what may stick the neoprene together may not stick the neoprene to the polyethelene.

However with my old Mertailor tail, which may be the same materials as yours, I don't find it to be a big problem. Basically the neoprene is stuck together but the monofin isn't adhered to the neoprene. The fluke gets water in it when I swim, but it doesn't balloon up with it. That's more of a neoprene vs neoprin thing though I think. Anyhow, it doesn't really hinder me. What DOES if if there's an air bubble in the fluke, but that comes out when I get in deep enough water to put my fluke downward and the air bubbles come up.

For my fin I'm going to try and use E6000, which is an industrial crafting glue. Basically sticks to anything, haha. That stuff is amazing, but read the labels and warnings and be careful with it if you decide to use it.

The OTHER option, which may be way easier, is to just create vents in the bottom of the fluke where water can pass through so it won't get trapped. I believe Fish Butts does only this rather than mess with gluing down fins. People who have had issues with Mertailor tails or self made tails prefer this option rather than messing with glues, ridges, and all that other stuff. Just be sure, since it's an older tail especially, that you use something to strengthen the hole edges so they don't rip or anything with use. A industrial clear glue would be good for that."


By the way, if you want to try and repair or patch the hole that got bigger, you could use seal cement (I got mine on ebay for cheap) and even some extra neoprene or neoprene patches to repair or strengthen the surrounding area.

[AniaR]

that's why I didn't suggest putting ALEX inside the tail- just use it for the outside seam so it bonds to what's already there. You can use anything for the inside of the tail that is fast drying that you deem workable and safe. Just keep in mind even if it's silicone caulking that dries in 24 hours it'll take longer inside a tail. Alex was what I had my negative experience with. After that we just went with a generic silicone that dried super fast. It doesn't even have to be clear because it's inside the the tail

[Winged Mermaid]

Ahhh, okay, there's that missing link of info! Noted! And it adhered to the monofin too? I'm also looking into the whole fluke issue since I gutted mine and need to re do it.

[AniaR]

yes, but I suggest rolling it, and then putting something heavy on it to start the drying process. Raven was able to get alex to stick to my monofin and it lasted for 6 months or so, but here it's just not dry enough and you know all the troubles I had with it! Mimi's been using silicone on the inside now that she has it.