Chas, I cut my cedar on the contractor saw with the fence modified with a hardwood board attached to the side. It is waxed along with the table top. I use board buddies to hold the wood down and snug to the fence with a featherboard in the front of the blade. When you cut the lumber a side kick is a very good asset. I use a out feed table when alone, lumber up to 12 feet long I can hold on the table saw without to much trouble.

All my lumber is sorted and goes through all the processing as seperate groups of strips. The wood goes through the planer to finish the 1/4 thickness, then I router the bead and cove. I use a Lee Valley router table with a Dewalt 3hp router. The set up uses three featherboards on the fence, one in front of the router bit and two after the bit. The front one helps hold the wood down on the infeed and the other will keep the wood from rising when you pull the strip through. Use a side board to hold the strip tight to the router fence.

The strong backs in the pictures I made from 3/4 inch MDF. The plans come from Bear Mountain. I have built three canoes on these forms and have used them to put a Stitch & Glue CLC 17LT kayak together. They make great 16 foot long tables. The long length allows you to glue up the plywood panels with no problem.

When I get ready, I will cut a couple of hundred board feet of white cedar so I will be able to colour match as much as possible. I have about 2000 bd ft of white cedar stacked in my back yard so it is easy for me to pick and choose. All this lumber is 16 feet long.

There are two kayaks being built right now so the colour combinations come out really nice. Buddy is building a Guillemot 19 with a white cedar hull and a striped deck. I am building the Cape Ann and am using white cedar for the front portion and red cedar in the rear with a flame pattern inlayed into the front and rear deck.

Good luck in your endeavour. Hope this is of help. Regards Erich.