: Hi Mick,

: Wow! Almost couldn't keep with your description!! Actually, we do make really
: nicely bookmatched decks, but we don't start with plywood. We essentially
: make the plywood and use bookmatched veneers for the face. Actually, we
: form the whole deck in one piece and vacuum bag it in a mold. We use three
: layers of veneer with three layers of 6 oz cloth between the veneer layers
: (the third cloth layer is on the interior). Lots easier than sanding off
: the backs of the plywood!! With this process, we can use all kinds of cool
: and bizzare looking woods. Anyone for a Brazillian Rosewood deck?

: Grant

Hi Grant

you're already there, you make your own ply!

So 2 big questions
1/Can you get book matching or 2 continuous turns of veneer 18 feet long by 30 in wide?
Or2/the real big one - Do you get 4 turns or matches of veneer 9 or 10 ft long by the same 30in plus or minus???

I would suggest that you sell the wife, kids and house to get it as it'll be worth it. If you make and sell kayaks, you automatically will get 1 or 2 thousand more for such unparalleled matching. Even if each veneer costs you $250, it'll be worth it. Like simply no one else is doing it. You really have a possibility of having instrument quality kayaks.

One of the huge problems I have with stitch kayaks, is just that they have to use a mostly characterless and variation free wood in order to look at all uniform. The result is a featureless field. If you unfortunately get different colored woods, the wierd joins in the middle of the yak get pronounced and the yak becomes mottled and patchy. And that's one reason why so many pple want to do a different deck in order to at least bring some interest and continuation to bear on this mottled or plain base.

So I'll assume that you can get the 4 veneers 30 in wide, because it's worth much much effort to obtain. If you can make one sheet of quadruple matched ply at 5' x 20', you're laughing. Otherwise make 2 at 5' by 10 and either butt joint the middle or scarf by starting by cutting off 3cm on the male side so that the scarfs get perfect grain matching(like a 1/10 scarf in 3mm ply gets 3cm offset). The cool thing is that it doesnt' matter how much you cut off as loing as its/ the same on bothe joins, the grain runs right thru the 20 feet (or less w/ whatever you cut off)

So now you have the possibility of making unparalleled magical kayaks that meet and join from end to end across the deck and across the hull as well !! The whole kayak can sing as one or as how you plan or design it! Many many possibilites. Wildly varying grains and colors will make more striking and obviously unified yaks!!

But the other possibility is for the rest of the stitch industry. Like you're the man! You now know what to do and have the skills to do it. Think if you could supply the quadruple sheets to the rest of us. Now that I know the possibilities, I would pay big time to get such possibilities and I bet others would too. I think the other major companies just buy racks of ply and cut out the patterns. Since you have the basics and just making sheets is probably not too difficult, you could train a couple of juniors to make sheets for a specialty business on the side , and continue making yaks for your pleasure. Or get a licence and be a specialty maker and supplier for all the other stitch yaks around.

And say you could buy quadruples at less than 30 in. You could still supply ply or patterns making continuous strips. but not all around the yak. Maybe two sets, one for the hull and one for the deck making a less expensive package. And if way way way less that 30 in, you could make single pairs of continous strips at a still lesser price and the continuous grain result continues to be superior to what is out there now.

Grant, I've read you posts in the past and you have always given out ideas and discoveries to us all - plans, methods, fittings etc.

So sometimes payback does come around . . . . .

big time.

-mick