: Rob- On the plans that I have, station #7 is 21" wide before it is
: stripped. Adding the thickness of 2 strips and glass puts a finished boat
: over 21 3/8". My reducing the stations put me very close to 21"
: after stripping. It is splitting hairs, I know, and it probably did not
: make a huge difference in the way the boat performs. I figured that at
: 150lbs. a little less volume couldn't hurt. Thanks again for a beauty.

: Ken

For those who wish to follow my plans instructions I suggest visually aligning the sheer strip with the sheer line of the stations which would make your deck 21”.

So you say the hull would be 21-3/8”. On the stations, yes. However, once the stations are removed, and before the interior is glassed the hull will be flexible (as will the deck) to change width all over the place. This can be your peril or a gift.

A peril if you’re not aware of restricting and checking the supposed correct widths of hull and deck when glassing the interior surfaces. You can end up with a hull and deck that vary by inches.

A gift because you can alter the width of the kayak built on the same set of forms simply by building a narrower ( or wider) deck and then changing the hull width to that dimension before glassing the interior. Once the interior is glassed the hull will maintain the new width.

My apologies if I did not mention this when we talked about your altering the Shooting Star width when you bought the plans.

Now I ONLY suggest making a change in the hull width of about an inch. More than this and you WILL start to effect hull characteristics .

All the best,

Rob Macks
Laughing Loon CC&K
www.LaughingLoon.com