Kurt,

I would definitely recommend glassing the decks. Even with 4mm okkume I would glass them. You can get quality glass and epoxy for cheap at Raka, I like their 3.25 oz for light weight and strength. I don't see a problem with the woods you mention unless the outer plys are too thin. I used 1/4 maple with an ultra-thin veneer (for a coaming) that chipped and splintered a lot, I also had problems because of sanding through the veneer.

As far as voids are concerned, hold a bright light up to the back of the plywood, you will see the voids. Don't use any areas that have large voids, they will cause problems down the road or creek as the case may be. The decks of kayaks are put under strain during wet re-entries, or stablizing it while getting in and out, or cartopping, or dropping the kayak or gear on top of the kayak.

A little glass, and no large voids go a long ways for protecting your work. If you are afraid of the cost, don't be, I was able to build a 17' x 22" kayak of my own design, including glassing of all surfaces inside and out, for $150.

Mike

: Greetings!

: Okay, it's settled then: I shall use real, live okoume (one of seven ways I
: have collected for spelling it so far) for the hulls of my Mill Creek 13s.
: But I'm stubborn; now I want to use red oak, or maybe birch, 1/8"
: plywood for the decks. It's really pretty, and just half the price of
: okume (another way I learned to spell it). I am thinking it is permissable
: for the deck material to have voids in it, since it isn't a part of the
: boat that helps one to evade the sport of swimming. But there must be a
: flaw in my logic, for I never hear of anyone else doing it. Could I be so
: lucky that it is because no one else has such a huge selection of
: 1/8" plywood before them to pick and choose from? Or is it merely a
: symptom of my habit of drinking a Mexican beer before attempting to spell
: occume (bagged that one just last night)? So how 'bout it for cheap
: plywood decks?

: Also, it seems CLC now recommends us to 'glass our decks, whereas they did
: not before (this straight from CLC as of today). I wouldn't mind saving
: costs in epoxy, cloth and weight by ignoring their newly-hatched advice,
: but if it heads off a problem down the road, why then I'm all for it. Any
: comments on this from more experienced hands?

: Cheers,
: Kurt