bhart

I like the brick wall as an alternative to grass. Looks good. I am also building a Shad, but took the summer off to do other projects. I am looking forward to starting back on my shad this winter. I can't wait to launch it in summer of 2014.

I agree. If there are no other options, I would pay $150 to cover a kayak. That said, $150 is definitely near the top of my range.

Thanks for the encouragement. Sewing still seems like a long way away at this point ... still have to complete the lashing, install the floor, seal the frame, laminate the coaming, and apply a finish to the coaming. I'm also planning on building my own greenland paddle and probably float bags too. I'm just going to have to be patient. It will all come together when it's time. I anticipate progress will slow as soon as the warm weather arrives in a week or so. There's landscaping, camping, and mountain biking to be done. It's a fun project. I am enjoying the building process, but also anxious to hit the water.

I haven't had a whole lot of time to get in my shop over the past week. However, I did managed to make some progress. They are predicting more cold weather and even snow this week in MN. That's not normal for the beginning of May. It seems spring will never get here this year. On the bright side, bad weather makes it easier to stay inside and work on my Shad. In the final stages of fitting the bow: Beginning fitting of the stern: Picture of the front half after lashing: Side shot after lashing. The kayak has a nice sweeping profile: I had to order some more sinew. I must be using too much sinew for each joint, because 1 roll is supposed to be more than enough to complete a kayak. I guess I'm not alone, according to the Kudzu ordering page, it's a common mistake of newbie builders.

That is an attractive kayak. Great pictures!. The shots look very peaceful and scenic. I wish I was closer to finishing my shad.

I corrected the height of the bracket at the 11''7' location, and I like the results. It only takes slight clamp pressure to make the keel and bow notch mate properly. The keel now has a gradual upward sweep toward the bow. Thanks for the help. I'm back on track.

Jeff, Thanks for checking the plans. I appreciate it. This definitely sounds like a solution.

Dave, I appreciate the advice. Thanks

I have not tried another piece of wood for a couple of reasons. First, I have lashed almost all the frames to the keel, and I have completely lashed probably 4 frames to the gunwales and strings in the center section of the boat. Another reason is that no matter what piece of wood I use for the keel, it will have to be bent downward between the first 2 brackets to fit the notch angle that was designed into the bow pattern. I just thought it would be worth asking some questions since something did not seem right. I'll stop thinking and move on with the project.

I have considered removing a small amount of wood from the bow piece. I still may do that. But, I didn't want to make that change until I received some feedback from the forum community. I figure Jeff designed it the way he designed it for a specific reason. I know a fair amount about woodworking, but I'll admit I am not very knowledgeable about kayak design or boat building. To my eye, it seems like the keel should be more or less straight from the second bracket to the bow bracket, then arch upward from there. Looking at the plans, that's what it appears to do as well. However, if that's the case, why would the bow pattern have an angle at the location where the keel attaches to the bow piece. As I said, I don't know a lot about kayak design. If that section is flat verses a bend, how will that impact the way the kayak handles and tracks in the water?

I thought I would give an update on my bow/keel fitting. Here is where I started (angled gap between keel stip where it meets the bow assembly): I used a clamp to pull down on the keel stringer between the first 2 frames. I was able to get rid of the gap. Note the frame that is part of the bow assembly is not 100% verticle. It angles ever so slightly forward toward the bow tip. This seems to be the closest I will be able to get it. Hopefully, it will not be an issue : This next shot shows the amount of bend I had to place in the keel. The keel is pulled down approximately 1/2" where the clamp is: This shot shows the entire keel section between the front 2 brackets. Does anyone have an opinion on if this looks right or wrong? Should I move the clamp closer or farther away from the bow to make the keel bend differently? : This is just another view of the front section of the of the kayak: I'm still not entirely sure I'm handling this correclty. When I look at the plans I don't really see any downward bend in the keel between the first 2 brackets. I guess pulling the keel down by only a 1/2" does not sound a lot, but to the eye it looks like a lot.

It makes more sense now. I'm glad I asked questions. Otherwise, I would have made the wrong decision. It's very helpful to have a forum like this. Thanks for the quick responses and advice.

Jeff, It helps to know that there is definitely supposed to be an arch in the keel between the those brackets. I wasn't sure since the brackets are the identical height which seemed to indicate the keel should be straight in that section. Now I know that assumption was wrong. About how much arch should I be putting in the keel? Should I expect to pull the keel down 1", 2", 3"? Over the weekend, I did experiment a little using a clamp to pull the keel stringer down between the bow bracket (located at 15'7") back to the next bracket (located at 11'7"), However, as you mentioned, it seemed to me like it would take a lot of force. I was concerned that once I removed the kayak from the strongback the keel might want to straighten out and end up pulling the bow down. My dilema is ... I have no way of knowing what too much force feels like. It's almost like I will have to lash it all together, remove it from the the strongback, and see what happens. That's a little stressful, but may be my only course of action at this point. By the way, the hole in the keel was a newbie mistake. I will be filling that with a dowel and structural epoxy (T-88). Thanks for the response. I may have more questions as I work though this.

Jeff, I appreciate the response. The keel stringer is not bowed. I put a straight-edge on it between the 11'7" and 15'7" brackets. Note, per the full-size plans, both of these brackets are the identical height and interchangeable. I may load some additional pictures when I get a chance this week.

That sounds like good advice. I can keep making progress while I'm waiting for some more feedback on the issue.