: What is the acceptable
: tolerance for strip thickness? Should the strips be cut thicker, like
: 9/32, to allow for planing smooth? Also, some strips have burn marks from
: the blade.

Don't sweat it. I cut my strips on a bandsaw with a fence that was too short and got quite a bit of variance in my strips. The target was 1/4" but I saw variance about like you're seeing. I was worried that I'd fair right through in spots, but as it turned out, I still had A LOT of wood left after some serious fairing. Actually, I can't really say 'don't sweat it', because the remedy for this strip variance means a bit more fairing -- a bit 'more sweat'. But not much. The plane will make quick work of it. And the planing is one of the more enjoyable tasks anyway. It's a cool experience to see your kayak becoming nice and smooth after looking at it for the past few months with its rough wood, glue drips, and staples.

Dean