Matthew,

Free lumber is the best kind. The rest of us are green with envy. Build with it, by all means! While pine is not quite as light, you'll only add about 3-4# or so to the weight of the boat. Jay Babina uses pine quite a bit on his Outer Island strip kayaks.

Dean

> I am a carpenter and have been planning my first strip-built kayak for
> quite some time now. My last job involved the removal of siding from a
> 1930's house. I found this siding to be old growth yellow pine. The growth
> rings average 30yrs/in. I have finished milling the siding down to
> 11/16" x 3" boards ranging in length from 4' to 24'. The
> majority of the lumber is straight grained with few knots. If I rip the
> board the grain will be running correctly for strtip-building.

> Is this "free" lumber worth using? If I use it will I have a
> problem with the high resin content in this wood and the epoxi? I know
> from reading the past discussions on the bulletin board that it will weigh
> more than cedar but will it be too heavy for kayak building? (Ave. wgt. is
> 2lbs. 8oz. for a 3/4"x3"x48" board)

> Thanks, Matthew