mfrankel

Thanks. The Curlew example explains alot. And the moral is, just because you can build a paddle a boat doesn't mean you can design a boat.

Okay, I understand that you can't shrink a particular boat to get the same result for a smaller person. (And for the record, I would have no objection to adding a Shad to the fleet.) My next question is: For flatwater paddling, can a short lightweight person get the same performance out of, say a 14ft kayak, that a larger person would experience out of, say a similarly proportioned 15ft kayak?

Dear Jeff: I recently built and posted pictures of my Ravenswood. It is exactly what I wanted and I am pleased with its performance. Now my wife wants one. She is ready to move on from our tandem. She is 5'1", 115lbs. Although she can paddle the Ravenswood without any apparent problem, I thought it would be an improvement for her to paddle a smaller kayak. I was thinking 92% of the Ravenswood. If this is a good idea, for the appropriate fee, would it be possible for you to program your computer to print me out full size plans for such a scaled down version? Mark Frankel

7 Steps to attach skin to coaming when using plywood rings for coaming: 1. Lash lower ring to frame 2. Lay heat n bond strips on lower ring. Heat n bond is very flimsy and won't to stay in place on its own so I used small scotch tape strips. 3. Put the skin on over the coaming. I stapled the top separate from the bottom so that was real easy. 4. Iron the skin to the coaming. The heat n bond makes it stick.like glue. 5. Paint the the small strip of skin covering the coaming ring. If you look at the pictures in my first post, I shot a photo while waiting for the paint to dry. 6. Once the paint is dry, you can cut the inside of the coaming with a scissors or exacto knife without making the skin fray. 7. Screw the top rings of the coaming into place. If you pre-drill before lashing, you can reach under the skin and screw from the bottom.

Georgian Bay pics?

I prefer a seamless deck so skin is stapled. 3/16 in rub rails cover the staples. Skin is George Dyson's 8 Oz polyester.

What is the best way to install the Kudzu Craft store back band on a Ravenswood? I finished the kayak today and the back band installation is not obvious to me. Sunday launch planned (with or without back band). Will post pictures after the launch if I can figure out how.

I always thought that almost all varnish sold is actually varnish (which is really not all that natural), but with added urethanes or polyurethanes, ostensibly for greater protection, at the cost of (some say) a more plastic look. It is really hard to find varnish without the added urethanes or polyurethanes. Based upon my research, the closest you get to a true varnish at the big box stores is Formby's Tung Oil, which seems to me to be a thinned varnish. Ironically, it is decidely NOT TUNG OIL. Which only confirms Dave's gripe. I would not recoommend true varnish for coating skin because you want the protection of the poly additivies. But I assume Dave must be a woodworker, because for furniture that you want to be able to touch up or re-coat in the future, most of the woodworking magazine experts generally adivse real varnish because once it hardens, it is difficult for anything to adhere to poly.

1. Is there a non-cosmetic benefit to coating a wood frame with oil? 2. What looks better on the skin: gloss paint, semi-gloss or flat?

Thanks, with that settled, I can go out and buy the wood for the strongback.

I am going to try it. To deal with the flimsy bottom ring, I intend to lash the bottom ring to the frame. Then, heat bond the skin starting from the lashing points - alternating sides. Should I remove the lashings before screwing the top rings into place?

Jeff: Thanks for the speedy delivery of the Ravenswood plans. The instruction manual was a big surprise. I am probably going to go with a plywood coaming. I was thinking of using Heatbond to attach the skin to the lower part of the coaming before screwing the top on. What do you think?

Jeff - Do your kayak plans include a drawing for the coming?

I saw a you tube video that shows how to use heat n bond to join the fabric on the bow and stern without sewing. I used the technique on Dave Gentry's Chuckanuk and on his Ruth. It worked pretty well and was easy and fast. It does not look as nice as a sewn seam. I don't care about that.

I have learned the hard way that planing on a very thin setting does not work well. You can make a jig to solve that problem in about 30 seconds. Just glue some cheap sandpaper on to a piece of plywood. Use spray adhesive for fast application, fast drying and and even coat. Then put the wood you want to plane on top of the sandpaper, and run the whole set up through the planer at a thicker setting.

I launched my Dave Gentry designed "Ruth" rowing wherry yesterday. Compared to kayaking and canoeing, at my decidedly novice skill level, I found it satisfying to able to stretch out and use any number of muscle groups to power the stroke. And unlike the heavy weathered rowboats that you typically see around boathouses, all of that effort results in real movement. Unfortunately, these are only fleeting first impressions because after 20 minutes, there was a sizable puddle in the boat. When I got home I put the boat upside down on sawhorses and could see no pinholes. So I flipped it over and filled it with a couple of inches of water with a garden hose. There was very noticeable seepage along the keel and lower stringers. I could see no areas wear the finish had rubbed off however. The skin is 8oz polyester finished with 3 fairly thin coats of dura-tuff applied with a foam roller. I let the finish cure for a week. The only thing I can think of that could have cause a problem is that quite often I popped the skin away from the stingers. I thought this would create more flexibility, but it could also have broken the seal of the finish and left pin holes between the skin and the stringers. Either that or I messed up with the Dura-Tuff. I am thinking of either (a) applying a couple more coats Dura-Tuff to the bottom of the hull, or ( switching to spar varnish or paint for those coats. The issues in my mind are (a) whether I created the problem by popping the skin in which case the solution is more Dura tuff, ( whether the problem is the Dura-Tuff in which case the solution is spar varnish or paint, or © whether I am totally missing the real problem and the real solution. Any advice would be appreciated.

Anyone have a checklist of minimum supplies to keep on board a kayak for half day excursions in normally calm waters?

Several years ago a woodworking magazine, (maybe Wood), compared exterior clear finishes for durability. The winner by a long shot was exterior base paint. Spar Varnishes were not even a close second. I did not realize it before I read that article, but exterior base paint is clear and then color is added. I don't know how clear because I have not yet had the opportunity to try this technique.

I have applied one coat Rustoleum thinned and one regular. The coats were not thick but the boat seems to be sealed nicely. Do I apply a third insurance coat or leave well enough alone?

I am a couple of weekends away from completing a tandem kayak (Dave Gentry Chuckanut 15) for my wife and me. Except for a few afternoons of leisurely canoeing in the Everglades, I have rarely been in a boat of any kind since Boy Scout camp during the Nixon administration, and when I have, I hated wearing a life jacket because they are bulky, hot and uncomfortable. I know I need to buy a couple. What should I get?

Dear Jeff: That is great news about the canoe plans. I was originally hoping for a Double paddle version, but after further reading, I got the sense that a double paddle canoe invovles trade-offs in terms of comfort and/or seaworthiness. I also think that my bad memories of single paddle canoeing are probably not valid because they date back decades to when it would just be me another little kid struggling with a big heavy canoe on a deep cold choppy lake. I now realize that it was a mistake to compare that experience to my more recent memories messing around in rented plastic kayaks with a double paddle on placid sunny baywaters. I could go either way and would trust your judgement. Mark

I am a newbie and I agree that a tandem canoe should be next on the agenda. If I am going to allocate alot of my time, garage space, and energy to building any boat, however, it won't be quick and dirty. It will be like your Stonefly but flatter on the bottom for total stability so that small children, their mothers and their grandmothers, will not feel insecure. There is no such sof design on the internet. The only designs I am aware of are the beautiful but tippy geodesic canoes. In other words, you've already designed every manor of performance vehicle, and I know that it won't be exciting for you, but for many of your customers, we have to first put a family car in the garage just to have the conversation about getting a sports car.