I was one of the posters when this issue first came up several years ago. John Lockwood, Pygmy's founder, called me and we discussed it at some length (can't beat that for customer service). I know John gave the issue considerable thought. Apparently he decided not to change the technique. John's been building boats a bit longer than I have and I would not second guess him. As I said before, on the finished boat one has to look closely to see the seams.

George F. Johnson