: Has any body got a clue if there is something like a maximum lenth to which a
: canoe can be built with 0.75 x 0.25 inch strips. And if construction wise
: there is a limit could it be increased by increasing the size of the
: strips? The reason I am asking is that I have plans of constructing and
: building a dragon boat to be crewed by 50. (double rows of course) The
: ideal length of this boat would therefore be about 25 meters. If the boat
: would have enough rigidness in some way or another the handling in and out
: of the water would be no problem.

I have zero knowledge of Dragon Boats. I would say anything is possible but would need to have a lot more glass on it and additional structural supports inside. At those extreme lengths you are going to be creating a lot more stress when the craft is bridging waves.

I have been assisting a carver from the local tribe and he is using 3/8" strips for 27' doubles and has some 3/4" strips ready for a 51' eleven man canoe that is 27" wide. The existing racing dugouts are about 1" thick with a layer of glass inside and out, and are constantly being repaired. So I would consider going thicker on your strips unless you have that competitive racing philosophy of "building them light and often".

Also you can consider using 3-4" wide strips at first and then go narrower in the curves.

Hope this helps.

Reg

: regards
: Arthur