Patrick,
Most S&G kayaks use 4mm Okoume. It weighs about 12 pounds per sheet. How does your ply compare? Epoxy is, roughly, 8 lbs a gallon. Weight goes up fast if you use it excessivly. 'Glass only needs it's own weight in epoxy to do the job. Six oz. 'glass needs only 6 oz. of epoxy for a square yard. That leaves a lot of the weave showing.
If you use exterior glass you'll need 2-3 times as much epoxy per sq. yd. That's because the exterior weave must be filled. Using fillers to fix scew-ups is more weight. Okoume hulls have such nice verneers that they usually get by without fairing compounds and fillers.
Interior fillets are another offender. A fillet with a 1/2" radius is sufficient. Bigger ain't better.
Live and learn.
Good luck on your travels.
Charlie

: Before I start picking my first kayak apart, let me say that I love it. I
: loved building it. I love paddling it. I loved getting pulled over while
: driving down the road when someone wanted a closer look. I love storing it
: on my living room wall (actually my wife's idea - I didn't object). And I
: can only speak endearingly, even when being critical. I'm sure you all
: know what I'm talking about. But my God, is she heavy! 74.5 lbs. CLC-16.

: Enter dilemma: I've got the hull of my wife's and a friend's boats (also
: CLC-16s why make one when you can do two?) stitched together and the
: fillets are in, but I don't want another barge if I can help it.

: I'm using 1/4 luan (sp?), which is a little heavier than 3mm Ok. Maybe a lot
: heavier. I don't know. I know I used a little too much epoxy on my first -
: as many probably do on their first kayak. I believe plans called for 1-1.5
: gallons, and I used 2 and some change. I remember not sanding as much as I
: probably should have before I glassed the hull, because... well... I
: wanted to paddle and not sand. I had a dookie-schmutz fill or two between
: the deck and hull, because my "hurry it up" didn't get the sheer
: clamps planed down all the way. But 74.5 lbs! (I wish more people around
: here built kayaks so I could see the smaller details of a careful build)

: Any advice on what to do/not do/do differently would be greatly appreciated.
: I can't imaging how it would feel to carry even a cumbersome 50 lb. boat
: on my shoulder (sniffle).

: Thanks.

: Patrick
: Kentucky, but Germany-bound!