: After making a few fiberglass/carbon fiber coamings, I've decided
: to make the next one of wood. The riser is strip-built; I've
: *tried* cutting thin strips of WRC, using a heatgun for 'the
: bends', and wrapping these around the rim of the riser. Quite a
: few gaps, and several cracked strips. I do believe I'll scrap
: this first attempt, and give it another go.

: Any suggestions? Be specific; I'm taking notes!
Hi George,
You may consider what seems to be a different way of making the cockpit riser and lip, which is to laminate 1/8"thick marine ply in the horizontal plane,using epoxy.The idea is to cut out the riser using three or 4 laminates,they don't have to be full rings out of one piece, to make it 1/2 inch high.Use food wrap to keep from sticking to the boat.The lip is done the same way.I glass in between the lip laminates for piece of mind.This process takes a while but results in the strongest.I then put Cedar stips on top of the lip.For a refinement I don't have the riser laminates directly vertical,I stager them in the fore /aft direction,I have them so the end result is a decently large radius under deck at the front and also a decent radius [2"] on the top of the back so no "sharp edges" are presented to the panicking, re entering wet kayaker.I continue the inside riser surface with a laminated & glassed [2 x 1/8] plywood seat back AND sides so it is really easy to get in and out, as there are no snags to catch your clothing.I cut the cockpit hole, back part, three inches forward of the plans, generally, as I use the riser as part of my back rest[when I slob].Most plans seem to have a gap between the [extra,superfluous] seat back rest and this surface.I don't see why this is a good idea as the above result is aesthetically and functionaly correct,in my humble opinion.cheers from Paul NZ.