: I had : forgotten you used Paulownia. That definitely explains the

: Is Paulownia suitable for kayaks? I'm going to use redwood in the
: hull for an Outer Island and wondering whether a lightweight
: deck would compensate for the slight extra weight vs. cedar, as
: I'm trying to keep the boat at 35 lbs. or less. I also want a
: "blond" deck and wonder if this wood fills the bill.
: All thoughts appreciated re: strength, beauty, and anything else
: apropos!

: Thanks in advance,

: --Scott

Hello Scott,

Paulownia is very light- nearly half the weight of cedar. It is similar to balsa, but much stronger than balsa. It is still more fragile than cedar, but works well for kayaks. I am building the deck of a SUP out of it. It works easily but it does get a little "fuzzy" when you saw it and requires a really good blade and sharp planes. Wear a good dust mask when sawing. Just like balsa, it makes a fibrous sawdust that isn't lung-friendly.

It is light in color and darkens just a little when wet out. There are sometimes streaks of purple and gray when you first cut into it but they bleach out in UV rather quickly. When wet, it is a light pale yellow like beech, but sometimes has very light brown streaks and seems to vary by region. I have seen New Zealand Paulownia that had a slightly brown hue. The stuff Brad sells at WSS comes from Georgia. It is manilla in color, which seems to be the norm.

It is moisture and rot resistant. Of course it will be epoxied, but nice to know if you get a scrape in the skin. Another property is it bends very easily, although it gives no warning when it breaks. 1/8" strips will easily bend by hand around a coaming. I just took a scrap that is just a hair under 1/8" and bent it around a 12" radius circle (the seat of my workshop stool) with ease.