Roger,

Looks good. You'll have to come up and join us on one of our South Sound Wooden Sea Kayaker outings. I look forward to seeing it in person.

I can't remember what wood you used for the frame. How flexible is it? My first one has a lot more flex than the last one. The first turns much easier, but it is also shorter and wider than the last one. Flexibility will increase rocker in the water. Get used to it and I think you will find that it turns nicely when up on edge. It won't turn like a whitewater kayak, but you usually won't want a sea kayak to do that, most of the time you will want to be going straight.

I lowered the sole (floor) on both of mine, and am very glad I did on the one with the 20" beam That one would be awful with the center of gravity up any more than it is. Try a partially deflated thermarest seat for a little bit of comfort without raising your center of gravity too much.

What kind of a paddle are you wanting to build? I like the native styles quite a bit, I'm still trying to decide whether I like Greenland or Aluet style better.

Mike

: Thanks Rehd,

: The stepped floor worked just fine. I actually didn't think about it much.
: When I pulled into Blue Lake Park, the attendant told me he was locking
: the gate in 45 minutes. I only got to spend 15 or 20 minutes on the water.
: I was in such a hurry that I left my shoes on. This small lake is down by
: the Columbia River in Troutdale Oregon. The wind comes out of the Columbia
: Gorge and blasts this community. My precarious launching method is due to
: the wind pulling on the kayak. When I first got in the kayak I was sitting
: on an insulation pad that put me up too high. Once the pad was removed,
: the stability greatly increased.

: I never was able to kill the weave. This didn't seam to hamper the kayaks
: performance. Speed seemed excellent. It was hard to tell though in the
: strong wind. The paint I used was semi-gloss. I'm happy with its
: appearance. I bought an entire gallon of the white and teal so I'll be
: able to do touch up for years to come on the finish.

: Roger

: PS Let me explain the paddle. This is a white water kayak paddle from the
: 70's. Haven't built my sea kayak paddle yet. That'll be my next project.
: Even with those big surface blades the kayak didn't want to turn. I wasn't
: willing to put the kayak on edge today.