: Following on my Sea Otter R build, I expect to look to a Sea Tour
: 15 R build, for refinement. Will increase height of front
: cockpit bulkhead by about 2.5 cm. I have a few questions, whose
: answers can help with planning.

: 1) I like the Corey goop on 12 oz. nylon -- except that I could not
: achieve a real nice finish. Just didn't have a deft enough touch
: with the squeegee. So, I'm wondering: why not finish up
: application of the polyurethane by running over it with a
: 4-inch, low-nap roller, as used with epoxy over fiberglass?
: Anyone tried this, or have any thoughts?

: 2) I think I'm ready to try a floating coaming. I saw that Terry
: Reed used 3/32 slices of oak to laminate around a form. Since
: I'll use cedar again for stringers, is there any reason I could
: not laminate 3/32 slices of cedar, instead? I'm thinking either
: 18/32 or 21/32 thick, and 1 inch high, topped off with a 1/4
: inch plywood ring (because I want to do a bit of keyhole on the
: inside edge). Will it be strong enough? Or, must it be taller,
: or of a heavier wood? I'd hate to cinch it down for stitching
: and hear a nasty crack!

: 3) So... we're sure I can routinely pick up the boat by the
: floating coaming? Previously, 1 or 2 people said 'yes,' while 1
: person before that had said 'no.' Not yet a great consensus...

Can't answer question 1, I used oil-based paint on my kayaks. On cotton canvas.

Q 2. That should work fine as long as you can get the cedar to bend cleanly/nicely, not an impossible task. Laminated, it should be strong enough, though I prefer a harder wood for an coaming. I used pine/fir/spruce? (not sure which, tis called red deal here, probably Scots pine) another "difficult" timber to bend. With a ply ring glued on top, the entire coaming will be quite stiff.

Q 3. It shouldn't be a problem. I mostly pick up by the masik but for short carries balance the kayak resting the coaming on my shoulder with the kayak 'on its side'. Lifting the kayak by the coaming just lifts it off the masik and isserfik a bit.

Mike Savage
South West Cork