Has anyone here ever made/used a plywood sea kayak. I ran into a couple
using one last summer, and the more I read about them the more I'm
interested in making one. According to several people who sell plans
(who aren't biased at all...) these kayaks are lighter and stronger then
their fibreglass equivalents. I was hoping that someone here would have
some comments or recommendations.

Thanx in advance

Bryan

I think there are two broad classes of "plywood kayaks", the rough kind made
in school shops (etc.) from hardware store plywood, and the more modern
kinds made with thin specialized plywood and sheathed in fiberglass.

The two main sources for premium kits a

http://www.pygmyboats.com/
http://www.clcboats.com/

The best resource I've seen for kayak building in general is this web-board:

http://www.kayakforum.com/KayakBuilding/index.shtml

It's sponsered by a builder of stip-built boats, which are very beautiful
themselves:

http://www.guillemot-kayaks.com/

HTH

A friend and I built a couple stitch-and-glue canoes last year and have
enjoyed them immensely. At first the process sounded like more than we could
manage but in retrospect it was quite easy and enjoyable. The hardest part
was the sanding and sanding and sanding and also the sanding. But I am
planning to do it again on another design I like. Experience teaches you how
to lessen the sanding load by the way you apply the epoxy. We learned a lot
with the first boat, so the second went much quicker.
The CLC site has a lot of good information regarding stitch-and-glue - don't
miss their Shop Tips section and the FAQ's.
We did not build a CLC boat, but found the CLC site full of usefull
information.
If you build from plans or kit, I don't think you will be disappointed with
a stitch-and-glue boat.

Bill

PS don't skimp on the quality of the Occume plywood used.

"Bryan Heit" wrote in message
...
Has anyone here ever made/used a plywood sea kayak. I ran into a couple
using one last summer, and the more I read about them the more I'm
interested in making one. According to several people who sell plans
(who aren't biased at all...) these kayaks are lighter and stronger then
their fibreglass equivalents. I was hoping that someone here would have
some comments or recommendations.

Thanx in advance

Bryan

We used our boats hard for both fishing and recreation, the worst that
happened was that the paint was scraped off by repeated beaching on rocks
and sand and wore through the epoxy and glass cloth and exposed the wood.
After sanding down, I reapplied additional layers of glass cloth and epoxy
to those areas that take the most abuse. I don't anticipate the same problem
this year. All boats require maintenance, wood boats more than others. The
decision you have to make is the weight reduction - expense - pride of
ownership of a boat you built - vs. maintenance worth it?
Myself, if I spent the amount of time and energy required to make a
beautiful cedar strip planked canoe/kayak. I would always be mindful of the
potential damage I could cause to the finish by using it the way I have use
my stitch-and-glue boat.

To me, I got back my money spent on materials, in enjoyment, the first year
I used it.

Reply off line if you are interested in pictures, etc.

Bill

"Paul Stivers" wrote in message
...
"BB" wrote:

If you build from plans or kit, I don't think you will be disappointed
with a stitch-and-glue boat.

I was wondering what periodic maintenance is involved?

--
Paul S.

I've built a few from CLC, Pygmy and one Merganser from Shearwater
(Eric Schade).

They're only about 5lbs lighter than a fiberglass kayak if you outfit
it identically AND reinforce it for the same level of durability.
Understand there's a wide range of weights and durability for glass
boats but that's my experience.
Pygmy tends towards high volume and a good range of handling
characteristics, CLC tends towards high volume and values the building
experience with handling a second thought, the Shearwater Merganser is
a good medium volume design.

Read everything about epoxy exposure and safety,,experiment with the
goop before building. The Guillemot forum is the definitive online
resource for kayak building with a wide range of other paddling
related issues.

Issues of maintenance and durability are dependant upon use and
construction.

Paul Stivers wrote in message ...
"BB" wrote:

If you build from plans or kit, I don't think you will be disappointed
with a stitch-and-glue boat.

I was wondering what periodic maintenance is involved?

With normal use you would probably sand and paint the boat once
every year or two depending on how shiny you want it.
As far as the origional question, mostly you are right. A wooden
kayak will usually be lighter (...stronger? I am not so sure, stronger
is relative to the type of use and other variants) but of course will
not have the absolute form of a nice rotomolded or glass kayak. That
being said, with the technology available and the calibrated Epoxy
pumps, anyone can build a beautiful boat from wood, even with minimal
skills and tools... see CLC or Pygmy, etc...
One of the best marriges of form and stitch and tape in my opinion
is the Guillemot free S+T plan.

Scotty, The Stitch and Tape King! from SmallBoats.com...

I'd like to thank everyone for your replies- you've all been very
helpful. I have oe remaining question - in looking at some of the pages
I was directed to I came across designs for "skin and frame" boats that
were collapsible and home made. Anyone have any experience with these?
For myself these would be better as I have to drive 9-10 hours to the
coast, and it would be a lot easier/cheaper/faster if I could fold it up
and put it in my trunk...

Bryan

Bryan:

We have a large number of plans for kayaks and canoes in the "Canoes and
Kayaks" section of the web site, including plywood only, and skin and
frame. I'm currently building a skin and frame version which will be
carvel-planked with thin lattice.

http://www.dngoodchild.com

Cheers,

DNG

Bryan Heit wrote:

I'd like to thank everyone for your replies- you've all been very
helpful. I have oe remaining question - in looking at some of the pages
I was directed to I came across designs for "skin and frame" boats that
were collapsible and home made. Anyone have any experience with these?
For myself these would be better as I have to drive 9-10 hours to the
coast, and it would be a lot easier/cheaper/faster if I could fold it up
and put it in my trunk...

Bryan

I just saw your address. Their is a company in Edmonton (Waters
Dancing? Dancing Waters?) that sells plans and kits, and could help you
with building lessons or whatever.

GaryJ

Bryan Heit wrote:
Has anyone here ever made/used a plywood sea kayak. I ran into a couple
using one last summer, and the more I read about them the more I'm
interested in making one. According to several people who sell plans
(who aren't biased at all...) these kayaks are lighter and stronger then
their fibreglass equivalents. I was hoping that someone here would have
some comments or recommendations.

Thanx in advance

Bryan