Hal Hammond Posted June 26, 2022 Report Posted June 26, 2022 Ravenswood—low volume and standard. The LV has been varnished with poly urethane and is ready to be covered. With the frames cut and stringers made, the second on went together quickly—three days from frames in the jig to FROG. It’s startling how fast they come together when everything is prepped. Laminating and then sanding and finishing the coaming is the slowest part. Takeaway from the coaming is to use very thin, straight-grained stock. I used African mahogany (wood store had a nice piece of 8/4) but next time I’d use maple or oak as Jeff recommends. Also cut it very thin. The book said 3/16ths, I went with 1/8, but next time I go for 3/32s. 1/8 was as thin as I could get on my table saw but if you have access to a band saw set up for re-sawing go thinner. The mahogany looks great but the grain was a little squirrelly. I don’t think it was worth the extra effort. Looking forward to getting them launched now! Hal 4 Quote
Hal Hammond Posted July 12, 2022 Author Report Posted July 12, 2022 We’ll, we got the frames skinned and painted. They turned out very nice and they’re a pleasure to paddle. Thumbs up from my hardworking wife who wondered what she had gotten into with the hours of lashing and sewing. 1 Quote
Hal Hammond Posted July 12, 2022 Author Report Posted July 12, 2022 The green one, now named Kermit, was skinned and primed in time for our trip from Colorado to the Upper Penninsula of Michigan. The blue one (Grover) made the trip as a bare frame. We skinned it after arriving and then painted them both. We used Rustoleum Farm and Implement paint in John Deere green and Ford blue. Frame weights were 18 and 19 pounds respectively. We haven’t weighed them fully finished with foot and back braces but I’m guessing they’re sub 25. They are extremely responsive in the water and the low volume Ravenswood fits my wife well. 1 Quote
Scott Pettigrew Posted July 13, 2022 Report Posted July 13, 2022 @Hal Hammond Very nice. I'm reading the description of the Ravenswood LV on kudzucraft and the low stability discussion. How do you perceive the stability related to other kayaks? I'm thinking this might be my next kayak build. I like the lighter weight and shorter length relative to my Vardo. Quote
Hal Hammond Posted July 15, 2022 Author Report Posted July 15, 2022 My only other experience is in tubby plastic boats and super tippy flat water rowing shells. The Ravenswood LV and STD are certainly less stable but not a problem once you’re in them. You do have to take care entering and exiting though. My wife is 105 lbs and the LV feels really comfortable for her. Same for me at 160 in the STD. They point and track very well. Basically they goes where you point them, regardless of wind. They’re really easy to paddle and inspire confidence, even in mild whitecaps. In a rowing shell, you simply tip over if you let go of the sculling oars. In the Ravenswood, you can sit comfortably with the paddle resting on the coaming, even in wind and waves. My wife has less experience on the water but adapted to her LV within minutes. She loves her kayak! We wet launch in knee deep water. The trick is to get one leg in and extended and drop your bottom into the boat quickly. If you hesitate, you’ll likely roll unless you have really good balance or if you’re bracing on something solid. I dumped it once but my wife, being more flexible than me, hasn’t had a problem. I haven’t tried her kayak yet but will once we return to Colorado. We’ll weigh them both too. Guessing they’re pretty light. I can easily lift them into the cartop racks on our minivan—that was one of our critical goals, that they be easily cartop-able. Mission accomplished. HH 1 Quote
Hirilonde Posted July 15, 2022 Report Posted July 15, 2022 The amount any boat is used, is inversely proportional to how much of a PITA it is to get to and into the water. Light weight matters a lot. 1 Quote
andy00 Posted July 17, 2022 Report Posted July 17, 2022 On 7/15/2022 at 1:34 PM, Hal Hammond said: We wet launch in knee deep water. The trick is to get one leg in and extended and drop your bottom into the boat quickly. If you hesitate, you’ll likely roll unless you have really good balance or if you’re bracing on something solid. I dumped it once but my wife, being more flexible than me, hasn’t had a problem. Hal: Nice boats! The trick to getting into and out of them is to place your paddle behind the cockpit and use it as an outrigger, keeping your weight on the paddle side. This can be done in just a few inches of water at a beach or off a float. Video is attached. You can find more elegant videos on YouTube. Fair winds! IMG_8632.mov Quote
Hal Hammond Posted July 23, 2022 Author Report Posted July 23, 2022 Scott, I had a chance to paddle my wife’s Ravenswood LV. I like it a lot! I’m 5-9 and 165. The LV sits a bit lower and is less stable than the STD but the tighter fit is nice. It’s more like you wear the boat instead of the boat wearing you. Two pics, me in the green LV and then me in the blue STD with my wife in the LV. If you’re anywhere near Denver and would like to try either one, let me know. HH Quote
Scott Pettigrew Posted July 24, 2022 Report Posted July 24, 2022 @Hal Hammond Thanks for the report. I'm about the same size as you, but would probably opt for the bigger boat. However, I'm leaning towards building a short shot next; would like to experience the multichine design. Decisions...decisions. Quote
Hal Hammond Posted July 24, 2022 Author Report Posted July 24, 2022 I really liked the Short Shot too. I was planning to build two until I found that here was no short shot LV. 165 is on the line so it depends on how you plan to use it. If you’re going to load it, go bigger. If not, then maybe LV. If I were starting over with the knowledge I have now, I’d probably go with two LVs since we paddle pretty light. Btw, this is what Jeff said… HH 1 Quote
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