Glad to see more SOF canoes! Nice job on yours, too.

I recommend 8oz polyester from George Dyson - GDyson@gmail.com
It's pretty darn lightweight, but still tough. It responds very well to heat shrinking, too, so no need to bust a gut trying to stretch it over the frame when skinning.
There are much lighter options, though with questionable durability. The 8oz is as light as I feel comfortable with - but the late Platt Monfort's "Geodesic Airolite" skin boats use much lighter stuff (his website also talks about how to make the skin tougher, too . . . .).

Looking forward to seeing the finished product!

Dave Gentry

: Hi all,
: I am looking for advice on skinning options for an SOF canoe. I
: know similar topics have come up before, but couldn't find
: anything quite right in the archive.

: What is the lightest weight skin and coating you can use, but still
: get a reasonably durable boat? The boat will be used on mountain
: lakes, so it wont so much be run into stuff in the water, but it
: will likely get rammed into branches during portages. I am
: partial to things I can sew on, but am open to all suggestions.

: What I am working on is a boat that I can schlep into mountain
: lakes around Banff. Weight is a factor, the finished frame is a
: hair under 10 pounds (and admittedly slightly overbuilt) so I
: want to add as little more weight as possible.

: About the boat itself, its 11' x 28" x 13" the frame is
: mostly red cedar, with a yellow cedar thwart and stems and five
: ash ribs (the tree was grown in Calgary so its really dense
: wood), I didn't so much use plans as I just built something that
: looked right, I blame the inspiration for the boat on DGentry
: and his transparent wee lassie. I have had it on the water with
: saran wrap, and it is way more solid than you would think should
: be given the rib spacing, it paddles well, tracks straight, and
: is as stable as rec boat.