:. . . My wife's chuckanut I think will get 8 oz
: polyester and some blue paint since her only build request is
: that it be blue...

All blue, or a white hull and blue deck? Do you plan to use anything to seal the wood frame before you skin it?

: ... I'm toying with the idea of finishing mine
: in clear vinyl. Are you aware of any sites that contain a
: tutorial on how to use this material?

Tom Yost's site, www.yostwerks.com has info on using the reinforced PVC. The clear vinyl is easier to stretch since it is not reinforced. You can use his method if you want. Any good info on stretching woven fabric will serve you, too.

Yost glues his material into a removable skin for his foldable boats. With wood-framed boats which are not designed to collapse, you can just staple the vinyl(or fabric) to the gunwales with stainless or monel staples, or use copper tacks. Same as skinning with canvas or polyester. Generally the hull is covered fist, then the deck fabric is applied, with the staples holding the deck also going through the hull fabric. Finally, you cover the seam with a wood strip 1/4" to 3/8" thick, and as wide as the wood under it, or about 3/4 to 1 1/2". This can be held on with long staples--if you can find them, or with stainless steel or bronze screws. Using screws allows you to remove this rub strip for easy replacement of the strip or the skin. Tightening the screws pinches the skin material between the rub strip and the gunwale. Go easy with the staples for the hull; everything that goes on after with add more attachment.

If, or where, you would slit fabric,and if you can't stretch the vinyl to fit, you can slit the vinyl and glue it back together with any of the good Vinyl cements on the market.

In a nutshell, start at the middle of the boat, staple one side, work on the other side, pulling the covering taut, and stapling it. Work forward a foot, doing one side, the then other then work back a foot. Keep moving from the center of the boat to the ends, a little at a time, pulling out wrinkles as you go.

PGJ