I have had two people email asking for an 'update', so I thought I would post a pic here.
I used the 8 oz nylon from Mr G Dyson (drove to Bellingham to pick it up and meet Mr Dyson) really nice man, and waaaaay cool shop!!
Anyway, the nylon was really nice to sew. I used the Morris method. I sewed it fairly tight, but there were some wrinkles and puckers. I was told that they would disappear.... and they did ! I sponged on some warm water, and after a few minutes I could see the skin was tightening. I used a hair dryer to gently heat the skin on the outside and inside and it tightened right up.

Coaming is red oak ripped into 1/16" strips and laminated around a ply form. Sewed on with the artificial sinew used for the lashing. It is covered with tape in the pic.
I sealed the nylon with poly from HD, tinted with artist oil paint. I tinted all coats, lightly for the first few coats. I found that adding the oil paint then a bit of poly, mixing it really well, then adding the rest of the poly worked well. It was blotchy, but really evened out on successive coats. I used a clip-style light (from Ikea) and a cereal box as a 'hood' to make a little 'oven' to warm the poly before applications. This seemed to thin it...
This pic is poor, not really showing the yellow tint well. Successive coats are brighter... I will be adding the decklines within the next week and will post finished pics.
Excuse the mess of my 'photo studio studio / workshop'... It goes to show that even without a 'shop', you can build a kayak if you're willing to put up with the mess!

kelly