: "Oldest" son? that suggests that there is at least one
: younger son--and maybe a daughter?? How big is the family? Are
: you building a boat for each person, or are you thinking of one
: or more doubles so a strong paddler can work with a weaker one?
: Two kids can go nuts by themselves and leave the parents
: paddling in some relative calm? Whats the complete scenario
: here?

: While Nick runs the website, and Guillemot Kayaks, he doesn't mind
: discussing other brands on this board. Or other types of kayaks.
: All the models you are discussing are from one designer. Before
: you get too focused on just what he has available you should
: look at several other designs. The people who design these boats
: (in general) are very congenial and would love to answer any
: e-mails you might send them. Before you select one design, see
: if you can find people near you who have built that model.
: And see if you can paddle a model of that design.

: Considering the time we invest in the construction, many builders
: consider a short trip to visit a woodenboat rendezvous to be a
: necessity. They get to try out several models on one day and
: from that they have really good information on how the boats
: handle. They can also talk to the builders, and find out if
: there are any problems with instruction materials, tricky areas
: that need special attention, and so on. Since you want to build
: several boats, your project will be speeded along with this
: additional information.

: My general formula is that completion is a factor of time and
: money. If you are short on money you end up taking more time. If
: you want to cut the time, you spend more money. Meeting other
: builders is an excellent opportunity to prove my formula--and
: sometimes save you money and/or time. You may be able to borrow,
: rent, or buy precut forms from someone who has already built a
: design you wish to build. Maybe they'll have a strongback for
: sale, too. If you can get these parts used you save on the cost
: of the materials to make them, and really save on the time
: involved to make them. Laying out the patterns and cutting the
: forms can be 1/6th of your building project. You can put 2 to 10
: hours into building a strongback you'll use for these projects,
: and then never use again. And when it is time to clean out your
: garage you'll go to a kayak show and find someone who will buy
: it from you, cheap, and take it away!

: I like canoes. Let me put that disclaimer first. I believe that for
: family paddling and for camping a double (canoe or kayak) is
: much better than 2 single kayaks. With two paddlers (and a
: rudder) you can alternate paddling, or one can take a rest, yet
: still make progress. In bad weather you have twice the
: horsepower to move the craft, and the longer boats can get a bit
: more speed. These will be bigger boats, and have more reserve
: capacity for carrying food and camping gear. When you come to a
: portage, one person can carry the gear, and the other the boat.
: Or, both can carry the boat, and then each can make a second
: trip to carry their own gear.

: A double can be built with a large open cockpit. That is faster to
: build than two smaller cockpits. It also allows the boat to be
: paddled by a solo paddler. Just move a seat to the center of the
: boat. No matter what the designs show, ANY double kayak can be
: built this way. In fact, you can make two decks for a given hull
: and swap them out as you wish. Several years ago we had pictures
: from a Hawaiian paddler who made a triple with large hatches
: that could be exchanged for cockpits. He could paddle solo from
: the center with closed hatches, or take out his wife and kid.

: Right now you are excited about paddling kayaks. You can feed that
: thrill by making boats NOW, instead of waiting to winter.

: Check out Tom Yost's designs at www.Yostwerks.com. Many of his
: designs have been made from wood strips and plywood. The plans
: are free, and a good worker can make most of a boat on one
: weekend, and finish it the next. Such speed is rare,
: particularly for new builders, but possible. Yost covers the
: frames of his designs with a PVC reinforced plastic fabric.
: Others use painted canvas, or clear vinyl plastic. With the
: clear or prefinished fabrics there is no time waiting for the
: the finish to dry. Once the skin is on the boat, go paddle it.
: With all other construction methods your work time is limited by
: waiting for glues to harden or varnish to dry.

: You could easily cover the frames with panels cut from thin plywood
: and have a solid wood boat, too. Check the archives for
: "plywood Walrus" and you'll find some pictures of how
: Mike Hanks did this with a Skin-on-frame design (Walrus) from
: George Putz's book on Wood and Canvas Boatbuilding. (The book is
: available online--check amazon,com) People built boats this way
: for years. Then, at some time in recent history, they took apart
: the panels, threw out the internal frame, and reassembled the
: panels with fiberglass reinforcing the seams. Voila! Stitch and
: glue construction was invented.

: There is really no reason why a SOF design can't be covered with
: wood strips instead of fabric or plywood. For hundreds of years
: bigger boats were built by putting bigger boards on bigger
: frames. Pull out the frames when all the strips are assembled,
: (or leave part of it inside for added strength) glass the inside
: and outside.

: You have a lot of options. I wish you well in exploring them. Time
: you spend now in planning will reduce the time you spend this
: winter in construction.

: Good luck with your projects.

: PGJ

Hi Paul,

Plywood needs developable surfaces, fabric doesn't. While some of Tom's boats might be built of ply, I'd be very surprised if they all could.

Bill H.