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A lot of those pictures are taken just a few minutes down the road from here. Sebastian lost quite few boats too. There are a lot of half sunk boats all throughout the Indian River - navigation hazards.

Ditto, dont squeeze it all out. Same applies if your laminating two pieces together for a transom or stringer. Joel boatbuildercentral.com

We are just getting things back to normal after Frances. No bad damage, just all utilities had problems. We did not have electric for 2 weeks! I hope the clean up and restoration is better for you guys. Joel Boatbuildercentral.com

A 1/4" plywood panel laminated with epoxy and directional glass is stronger and lighter than a thicker plywood panel with only one layer of glass. With the glass on either side, you have a composite sandwich. You might do a search on this "I-beam" property of sandwich cores. Trust the designer Joel Boatbuildercentral.com

A layer of 4-9 oz glass will do a lot of things for your boat... Prevent checking Increase abrasion resistance Stiffen up the boat Joel Boatbuildercentral

Yes, those prices are right in line with our kits. In our kits, the CF is sandwiched between two layers of a biaxial fiberglass sock. Also, the CF material on those sites are not exactly the same. Ours is a unidirectional material. Its not a secret by any means, but you do have to buy several thousand dollars worth to get a decent price. :shock: We include the epoxy in the kits. We can also put in (at no additional cost) a post cure epoxy - phase 2 resin from system three. A couple hours at 140 degrees is all you need. We do not list it with the kit because post-curing could be scary to builders just wanting a small spar, but for the larger one is makes a lot of sense. Joel

Thanks for the heads up Frank. I do check out this section from time to time, but it might have taken me a few days to find this post. 1)You can use the same diameter - 2.5

Before you give up.... http://plywood.e-boat.net/categories.php For full disclosure, this is one of our sites. Our prices on Okoume 1088 are very good. Meranti 1088 is the best deal in my opinion, but the Okoume is 20% lighter. Joel

Relative to other boat building projects, its very easy. If someone has the experience of building the boat first, they will have the "feel" for the epoxy work. The epoxy in the kit is just our regular stuff, but in the future we might use a post-cure epoxy to make it stiffer and (more importantly) raise the heat deflection. This would add another potential stumbling block for the amateur (post-curing) - the regular resin is plenty strong. Right now the mast would need to be painted white to avoid getting too hot in the summer sun.

Hi Frank, We do not have any scantlings drawn up. The thickness really depends on the skill of the builder. When making the test spars, we used a lot of resin - then squeezed it excess out. The kit has a biaxial fiberglass sock that sandwiches the uni-directional carbon fiber sock. One of the best things about the kit is the shipping (comes in a small box via UPS). We have a 2" diameter spar built with the same lamination as the kit. We have been planning to test it to failure - just have not done it yet. Joel

Here is a link to a builder who is using our carbon fiber mast kit. It has good pictures of the kit and the construction. http://www.lmorocz.com/BoatBuilding/krakenbait.htm Joel Boatbuildercentral.com

Yes, the wood I plan to add will not be structural at all. Its 100% for looks. The boat will be built the same as if there is no wood at all. The actual sole will be H80 Divinycell with 2 layers of biax on either side (45/45 and 0/90), vacuum bagged with epoxy.

Im building this one with foam core. The sole will be foam core as well, but I was thinking of putting a thin layer of wood for looks. I want to do something special with the deck. Thanks for your advice. Joel

Ah yes, I know what you mean. The teak work on that boat is impressive.

your right, I remember seeing his site - I thought it was a teak deck. Its the same boat Im building :wink: Joel

I want it to have traction, so definately will not varnish it. Any problems leaving it rough?

Thanks Dave. I will make a post there as well. Joel

Does anyone hae experience using cypress as decking? If so, how did you lay it down. I am thinking of using it for the sole of a flats boat Im building. Teak is too heavy and expensive, so I'm looking for alternatives. Thanks. Joel Boatbuildercentral.com

I am always amazed at how amazed people seem when they see my boat. Its only a flats boat, and its still upside down. As for why I want to build boats; Im not sure, but I know it has to do with their shape. I have pretty much zero desire to make anthing else. Joel

I removed the post. I didn

thats a good price, and Im glad you went with the better wood. Joel Boatbuildercentral.com

If your going to glass over the hull, you could probably get away with a less grade wood. The price difference in Meranti 6566 and 1088 is larger enough to save some money. If you email your BOM to me, I will put together a epoxy/glass kit that will save you some money. Joel Boatbuildercentral.com

We have Carbon Fiber mast kits. http://www.boatbuildercentral.com/products.php?id=36 Joel

Why not make a new artificial reef out of it. Or better yet, donate it to someone who could use it as a prop on a playground - then you get a tax right off.

We will be offering a epoxy/plywood kit for that boat as soon I someone e-mails me the BOM Joel