James,

I just built one of these while waiting for my order of marine ply to come
in so I can get to work on a Michalak Vamp I;ve been thinking about since
January.

After talking to Richard Frye who built Yakoo, I changed the design
slightly by widening the spread in the center by 2", all other dimensions
are the same. This increased the rocker slightly so I added a 1 1/"4 high
keel full length on the bottom.

As for stability (which is why I made the yakoo change, Richard says it
makes the boat more stable in a turn), I'd agree with what has been said
before, tippier than a canoe. I haven't spent any time in a kayak so I
can't comment there. First couple of times I had it out I just sat on a
cushion, found that very tiring. Bought one of those folding low beach/sand
chairs and use it now, much more comfortable.

I made mine from 5.2mm Virola underlayment plywood from Home Depot, poly
resin, 3" glass tape-- used Bondo for some of the fillets, went to resin and
wood flour when I ran out of Bondo. Coated the inside with resin, decided
not to coat the outside when the weight hit just over 50 lbs-- the keel is
glassed, so that added some weight. Still manageble and easy to get on the
roof rack, but not the 40 lbs listed.

I do think the 7' paddle in the plans would be too short though. Granted,
I increased the beam by 2", but my paddle is 90" and I could use another
foot. Unfortunately, using a double paddle has aggravated a shoulder
impingement I've been fighting for a while (rowing doesn't bother it), so I
don't know how much I'll be using the boat myself-- but it's a fun and
fairly quick build and is fun to use.

I used one coat of Kilz primer and a couple coats of Krylon oil enamel and
it'll be stored outside-- so it's just about worst case scenario for a s&g
boat-- Poly resin, water resistant (not waterproof) ply, stored outside.
We'll see if it falls apart in a couple of years, but this was an experiment
anyway. Looks good (or so everybody tells me). I don't know whether a keel
is really necessary though. It does track straight but isn't all that easy
to turn in tight quarters unless you lean quite a bit. If it were built to
spec that might be better.

Here's a really cheap and cheesy page with some build photos:

http://geocities.com/craicer001/boatpics

No text, anybody who's researched s&g building has seen stuff like this a
million times. Too bad I couldn't find any semi-gloss paint though. I did
repaint the inside with "almond" Krylon after being nearly blinded by the
white gloss the first couple of times out!

Go on a build it, it's a fun boat and even if you use epoxy it's still not
an expensive boat.


Good luck,


Rick
"James W. Sloan" wrote in message
...

all canoes are tippy. you have to get used to using them. like riding a
bike.

Yep...I've managed to roll myself out of a 17 foot aluminum canoe in flat
calm water!


13 ft by 30 inches is normal for a solo canoe. the sides should be about
1
foot high.

OK...I just never had the proportions visualized. I was wondering if this
was close to "normal" for a solo canoe. The sides are cut 1 foot wide with
a
1 3/8 relief for some rocker. Looks like the end result is 10 5/8 high by
the plans, given the nesting on two sheets, I'll add what's available as a
little extra freeboard.

you can email the seller of the plans to ask what the capacity
is at 4" of draft and at 6" of freeboard.

The plans were free from Jaques at bateau.com. I'll check the site for
some
info, I hate to bug the guy on a freebie, especially for such a simple
boat!! What the heck, I'll just put her together and give it a shot. If
its
too tender for me, I'll pass it along to a nephew.

Thanks,

James