Ah...the selection process. A fun thing all by itself, but I must admit that I deliberated too long before making the decision. I chose a Mill Creek 13 from CLC Boats based on carrying capacity and the usage (Duck hunting, deer hunting, stability, and gunkholing and probably some very limited touring. and my size (200 lbs). I'm in the process now of cutting out parts from plans and patterns. I looked at the web sites and CLC had the most info on the comfort stats that I was looking for as described above right down to shoe size. The thing I've noticed on the kit building sites I've visited is carrying capacity, size of the eventual paddler and such things are missing. I'm sure an e-mail will clear those situations up, but often wondered why they aren't there to start with.

AS for the farming out of some of the process, I agree with the post below. You have to do the glass work to put the boat together anyway. You might as well finish it up and then you willl KNOW what the boat is, and every detail of the process for future mods, repairs, etc. It's not that difficult a process. And cutting out parts from plans is a lot more daunting in the boatbuilding books than it is in actual process, as I'm finding out.

no matter what the deal, kit or plans, the most important advice I can give is that you need to do each and every step to the best of your ability. It makes the entire process go according to plan, so to speak. Shoddy work will show up at the worst possible time, rest assured.

Have a great time, enjoy the process and enjoy the boat when it's done!

Dave S