I'm building a Guillemot for my wife. I want to keep it light so she'll be able to lift it atop her Honda CRV. For that reason, I didn't put a second layer of glass on the "football". I don't think she's going to be paddling in many extreme situations, so I think it'll be all right.

I want to know some strength vs. weight considerations regarding filling the weave on the glass on the inside of the boat. It won't show, so I don't need to put on extra coats of epoxy to get that shiny, smooth effect. However, if I just put on one coat of epoxy when I wet out the glass, will that sacrifice any strength?

How about if I just fill the weave in the cockpit area? Any reason to? Any reason not to?

I want the boat light, but also strong enough to last. I'm also a bit concerned about strength because I had a lot of imperfections to sand away. I'm worried that I did so much sanding to get the surface fair that the skin of the boat is no longer 1/4" thick.