: Sitka Spruce comes in small sizes and is far lighter than bout
: anything else.......for many years it was used in sailboat masts
: for its strength and light weight...... And since the resin adds
: lots of weight. you might think of waterproofing it the old
: fashoned way they did it in the ""good ol
: days""
: :)

: Lewis

First build? There's a compulsion to follow 'more is more' when it comes to applying epoxy. That'll add the ol' weight real fast, and.... the boat is no stronger. My first build weighed in at around 42# - my second was 30#. Guess which one gets used the most? Read Nicks, Robs and Vaclav's websites (among many others), they all promote the same thing - learn to squeegee the excess epoxy off. I do believe Uncle Nick even has a video, on this very website, demonstrating just how to do it. Lots of other 'tricks' - eliminate the internal stem, don't ever do an end-pour. In short, 'Less is more' are words to build by.