: I guess wood has a lot going for it and I'm sure this is another question
: discussed in the past but...

Yes wood has a lot going for it in strength to weight ratio and aesthetic beauty.

: Plywood seems to be stronger than "natural" wood against direct
: impacts due to the plys, and I guess foam cores have also been used
: (surfboard construction is going thru a phase now since the foam is not
: environmentally friendly) but has anyone used some type of plastic strips
: to strip build a kayak? Most people seem to go on "expeditions"
: with a plastic kayak maybe for greater peace of mind.

If you think about it Dave you are describing a fiberglas kayak with a gelcoat on the outside, glass strips, as in fibers, a core material in between, often with just the resin forming lightweight honeycomb type cells and another layer of glass reinforced fibers making the sandwich. All this is infused in a waxed mold to hold it in shape until the resins kick.

Wood is amazing but also look at all the things made of exotic composite schedules in the marine and aerospace field.

: Maybe thick, sort of stiff, rubber instead of wood as a core, with something
: other than epoxy? And is there nothing other than varnish or paint to
: provide uv protection? Polyurethanes are cheaper but sound not as user
: friendly overall. Spreadable, cheap, silicon rubber would be nice. Wood
: looks nice and all but...

Reg