Mike, when I bought my Mariner I also got a used glass Poquito approx 12'X19" for my 6 yearold at the time, she weighed about 60 lbs. Later I made a Pygmy 13,13'X22". My observations, small kids don't like to sit for long periods of time like parents might. Boats that are advertised to fit 100lbs to 200lbs really don't fit both sizes of persons. It is much easier for a 80lb person to speed up and dance around in smaller kayak than a grownup sized boat. It makes it more fun for kids to be able to get out and swim around and climb on the kayaks than to sit and paddle for a long time. My daughter informs me that it is much more fun now that she has learned how to roll. I got a kick out of her learning how to roll in 15 minutes, while teaching grownups for the third class just how to hip snap well. Most of the small boats are very wide in proportion to a kids size and still have a large wetted area. The pygmy 13 is great for 90 to 120 lbs people, the pygmy 10 should really be considered for the lighter paddler. I think there is a tendency to think that since a larger boat is described as adequate for paddlers between 120-220 lbs that there might be a similar scale for smaller paddlers, for example the pygmy 13 might sound ok for a 70 lb 7 year old but it is big and stable enough for her to stand up in or sit cross legged.

One of the things that you will love about making a small boat is that it will be very,very light and more fun to transport to the water than your own boats. The other option is making a very quick dory like kayak out of one sheet of plywood and minimal glass, I made one for my nephew in a week. The cockpit is formed by big front and back bulkheads. It weighed about 15 lbs, made it by eye so it was too tippy and required ballast and skeg, but he and everyone else thought it was great. have fun