: Hello all, I am building my first of two kayaks and am at the point
: of needing fiberglass. My research has found quite a difference
: in the cost of 3.2 ozx 50" 50 yd glass, style 1165 from
: Thayercraft $115.00 and 4 oz x 50" 50 yd glass, style 1522
: from RAKA $259.00. I am new to the use of fiberglass and need to
: know if the RAKA product is that much better than the
: Thayercraft product .

Since no-one will do this I'll directly answer your question: The fabrics are two different beasts. Buy the style 1522.

Style 1165 is 3.7oz TIGHT weave (60x52) fabric. Yes, 3.7oz. It's a very nice fabric but it WILL be much harder to wet out crystal clear. I would not recommend using it as a first-time fiberglasser.

Style 1522 is 3.7oz PLAIN weave (24x22) fabric. It's THE standard, often called 4oz, cloth for clear layups and is known as a surfboard cloth. It has a soft weave and is very drape-able. It's very nice to work with and wets out easily.

You can buy the 1522 through either company. Thayer has a 27" wide x 50 yard roll for $115 with shipping (http://www.thayercraft.com/1522.htm). It's exactly the same as RAKA's. 27" is wide enough to cover the hull on most narrow kayak designs. Check the width before you order!! With a soft tape measure along the hull from sheer to sheer at the widest point. Price-wise Thayer is slightly cheaper: Thayer 27" = $3.067/SY versus Raka 50" = $3.730 (Raka's 30" works out to $4.04/SY). Like I said: It's the same fabric.

To confuse you even more Thayer also stocks style 21522 in 27" width. It's virtually the same as the 1522 (22x0 versus 24x22) but is slightly stiffer and even cheaper ($87.21 for 50 yards = $2.326/SY). The 1522 is much softer and is easier to work with.

Amount: Assuming you have 18' long kayaks and use one layer inside and out. You'd need 24 yards of glass per boats. It's a very conservative number. It assumes no nesting of the fabric and assumes a lot of waste. For two of these, 27" wide x 50 yards should be more than enough (assuming the width is OK). Otherwise you'll have to buy the wider cloth.