: I had not considered the idea of being able to run a second seam to
: tighten it up more... thats interesting. I am planning on taking
: it from the shop into another room thats airconditioned to a
: chilly degree, and misting the nylon with a garden sprayer as i
: skinned it.

: Thanks!
: john r

Monel or Stainless steel staples are the best choices if you are stapling.

Standard staples will rust out in a few years, but they were commonly used anyhow. A rub strip held on with closely spaced stainless steel or bronze screws will hold the fabric long after the staples rust away. When it comes time to reskin the boat removing the rub rails may be all that is involved. Once the underlying staples have rusted away the fabric will just fall off. Of course that means the rub rails are not going to be replaced frequently, so make them of something more durable than redwood or cedar. Pine, spruce, or fir should be inexpensive options which won't dent as easily. Clear ash is becoming very available by me at a reasonable price. Lots of ash trees being harvested to deter Emerald Ash borer infestations.

I believe you asked about why one method over another. Simple. Primitive cultures didn't have staples and had to sew things. Modern builders are using aluminum, fiberglass, and other composite materials for the stringers. These are just too hard to staple into, so it is back to sewing, or using an adhesive. Besides the vinyl glue Yost uses, there are "Boy Scout" folding kayaks which use contact cement to bond cotton duck canvas to plywood, and the Geodesic Airolite boats(www.gaboats.com) use a hot-melt adhesive.

With wood stringers you have many options.

PGJ