Back in 2008 I built a Njord for a Spanish customer totally out of hardwoods: Honduran mahogany, curly maple, cherry, and black walnut. Pretty as heck and not that heavy. For an 18 foot long boat it weighed in around 43 pounds if I remember. One thing to remember, the hardwoods are a much more difficult to work with and they are definitely a LOT more difficult to sand! Worth the effort though.

Dan

(sorry, back to being a ghost until the spring...)