: I'm sitting here trying to get up the courage to build a kayak. I have had
: Nick's websight bookmarked for about four years!! I really appreciate the
: resource this list provides...June is my target month (!) to start. You
: folks are great encouragers!

: Thanks,
: Chuck

O.K. Chuck, they've all shown you the easy part, TALKING ABOUT IT!, so, now how about we get you started.

What kind of tools do you have? There are many different methods to this madness, and for each one, there is someone out here that has tried/used it. Don't let everyone scare you off telling you that you have to buy certain tools or materials. Some of this stuff can get expensive and for all intents and purposes, you may only be using them once and not need them any more.

If need be, you can get by without any big power tools, and very few powered hand tools. There are many options out there other than purchasing $1,000.00 worth of tools. In my case, I Had to build a barn/shed to store all the "stuff" from my garage in order to get the boat bench into it. That was near $2,400 and took a couple of months of boat building time. In fact, it took too much time and I started my first boat, a Putz Walrus, in my house until the space was available to build in the garage.

Since you've been lurking about for 4 years, you probably know all the different areas to build. And the tools you may need, but there are some you can definitely do without.

I picked up lots of scraps of plywood, dumped from a few cabinet shops, at a pallet manufacturer here local. But, if you locate a few cabinet shops around you, you could probably find plenty of scraps of plywood that would be big enough to cut out all your forms. None of the chunks have to be very big. Most shops can't use pieces smaller than 2' square, and then there may be some that have found flaws on some bigger pieces and they can't use them. It's worth checking out. You, for some reason, have chosen to wait a month to start building, but, you can do some phone or leg work and find some of the incidentals before hand.

Call the local high schools or colleges and ask to speak to the wood shop teachers and see if they can cut your strips or forms. Definitely Do Not purchase your wood there as they usually have a tremendous mark up on their stock to the students. They always have some students that are without projects and lots of spare time, and I don't recall ever hearing of a school shop that had too much money alloted to them for projects or tools and sharpening. You can talk a deal with the instructor and usually easier than the office people. It may cost you a few $$$ but, certainly less than the local cabinet shop will charge.

"IF" you need to purchase a power tool, I think you will find the more versatile peice will be the Table Saw. With that, you can cut your own stock for the strongback, be it internal or external, and your boat stock. If you need to cut curves, you can use a jig saw rather than buying a band saw. An ROS is a good investment for all your sanding, but, not totally neccessary. Fairing boards and Scrapers are much cheaper and will do the same work, albeit a bit slower. If you are building a stripper, you can use a router to cut the bead and cove, but, again, it is not neccessary. Many use the bevel system for their joints. But then, you probably already knew that.

I suppose another very important question would be: Are You Married?? and if so: Is She Kayak Tollerant?

Expense is mostly determined by: What you want to build, What flavor, How quickly, What tools you are willing to work without and will you get any help or support from a "significant other?"

Hope some of this helps to get you rolling.

Rehd