I tried skinning my first SOF in the clear vinyl (actually "smoked" tinted vinyl, but the same thickness that Tom uses). Its not particularly durable, I changed to fabric after wearing through the vinyl along the keel just turning the boat over on the saw horses... Certainly the vinyl is easy to work with (no deck seam to sew up!). Without any fiber reinforcement, the clear vinyl will be much more easily punctured or abraded through.

I did make a spray skirt from the left-over vinyl though, and yes, it turns a kayak into a solar oven!

: After reading the link that Dave posted I am impressed. I knew the skins were
: tougher than they looked but I wasn't expecting what I read. The Grandson
: test with the polyester is more what I expected but the nylon really
: surprised me. I would have guessed a screwdriver would have done right
: through with some effort.

: What about the Clear PVC Tom uses? Tom?? I would assume it wasn't as tough as
: the nylon but it makes an impressive boat!! Here in the south it would
: have to be winter boat because it would be like a paddling in a
: greenhouse. A Sea Sock would be required!!