: Well, they can be scaled to fit my posterior -;) While not
: "advanced" I'm perfectly comfortable in most 20-22" sea
: kayaks in any condition that I would dare to paddle. Under 20" and
: depending on hull type - it depends...

: To give you more of an idea of what I'm comfortable with right now - the CD
: Rumor is a little too unstable to relax in when the water is choppy or
: while sirfing down 2 foot wind waves, though I probably will not tip over
: in it unless it gets really dicey and I should not be out there in the
: first place. Just the low stability takes more energy than I think I want
: to spare on it. I think I would not want anything less stable than it for
: the foreseeable future and ideally I want just a bit more stability.

: The Petrel is just about right stability-wise and I can probably take a
: little less stable boat and still be relaxed in it and not think about
: stability.

: The 18" wide or so Sea Rider I imagine would be b/w the Rumor and the
: Petrel stability-wise, if not closer to the Petrel, since it is longer and
: flatter for more of the hull than the Rumor. Just guessing - may be wrong.

: I am currently getting better in the Valley Rapier 18 - it is at most
: 18.5" at the widest at the waterline under/behind the seat, but much
: skinnier elsewhere, being a pronounced swede form and rounder at the hull.
: In the Rapier I can fairly comfortably handle 2-3 foot wind chop with some
: bracing here and there but I'm not 100% yet in it too, and I imagine if I
: were to go in steep waves over 4 feet or so if they are breaking, I would
: swim from time to time with it.

: I did ask Nick - he says no plans; his was a one-off for a customer. I guess
: I can adapt the strip version's plans to a SOF... As I mentioned, this
: will be my first one, so I have no "preferred" construction
: methods - but easy and cheap construction is a priority (would've built
: the strip version otherwise, but that would be at least 3x the cost and
: much more time to do right).

: Thank you all for the suggestions so far. I found some building instruction
: online (on what I think was instructables.com) and looked at many photos
: elsewhere, read some of the wood boat building books as well, and there
: are a bunch of skinning videos online that I thought were very good. Once
: I decide on a few more details, mainly the bent ribs vs. plywood cutouts
: and the glue vs. stitch (or combination of any of these for different
: areas), I'll probably gather enough courage to get the wood and get
: started.

I suspect I'm considerably heavier than you but the Yost boats are just a little less tippy than the Rumor for me. I've wanted to paddle the Rapier but around here they are pretty rare. Still if you're going to build a boat, might as well be one you're comfy in.

Bill H.