> I'm planning on building George Dyson's baidarka (an Inuit Kayak).
> Although George uses an aluminum frame, I plan on using wood. I'm
> thinking of red cedar for the frame pieces that run from stem to stern
> and ash for the cross members. White oak is also a possibility. Any
> comments on my material selection? Thanks, KTK

Hi Karl, I'm currently building a wood-framed baidarka. I'm using spruce cut from a construction-grade 2x10 for all the longitudinal parts (gunnels, stringers, keel parts). Deck beams are yellow cedar, and ribs will be either ash or yellow cedar.

Red cedar tends to be soft and brittle (at least that's what I have seen- maybe you can get better quality stock), so you may need to increase the dimensions if you use it for the longitudinals. It would be excellent for deck beams, though. Ash or white oak would be heavy and overkill for deck beams. I would use them for the ribs and coaming instead, since they're very strong and steam bend well. I recommend spruce for longitudinals if you can get it in your area.

If you haven't done so, join the baidarka mailing list. Also, get a hold of Wolfgang Brinck's book The Aleutian Kayak. There are several skin boats, both aluminum and wood framed, in the Kayak Builders of Southern California kayak registry- see link below. You will also find instructions on how to join the baidarka mailing list. Have fun building.

Rick Rubio