Pingvin SOF Kayak

[chris.lewis.425]

Greetings Kudzu Craft List!

I'd like to start by thanking Jeff for the effort he's put into his book (I have a signed paper copy and the Kindle version). I've also found his website helpful and mostly appreciate the videos he posted to Youtube, which is how I found him and got started on this adventure.

A little about me. I'm a married father of 3 kids, 23, 20 and 12. I live in the Seattle area and have been on and around the water my whole life. For those of you familiar with the area, I've even kayaked through Deception Pass. Thank goodness it was calmer than this:

I've worked with wood since I was a kid, but have been away from it for many years. Jeff's videos, website and book were all of the motivation I needed to dive back in. I don't have a big shop, just half of a two car garage, but made due by hoisting the kayak and strong-back up to the ceiling when not working so my wife can get her car back in.

This boat is my homage to a local stitch and glue design called the Pinguino from Pygmy Sea Kayaks. It is 14 feet long, but has a fairly wide beam as it is for my wife and she does not want a "tippy" kayak. I'll make another one with a 24" beam for myself when this one is done.

I didn't have much luck keeping a strong-back straight in our wet winter weather, so I bought a plywood I-beam called a Trus-Joist and then planed the top perfectly flat. It works great and won't move around like dimensional lumber.

The frames are MDO plywood in honor of my grandfather, who taught me the joys of wood working and had a house on the salt water where I learned to "Mess About" in boats. He used it for all kinds of things and it just reminds me of him. The bow and stern frames are baltic birch. Very nice, but expensive around here. The rest is cedar, although I added a thin oak cap strip on the top deck stringer and will do the same thing for the keel.

Given the multi-chine design, there are a lot of lashed joints and my fingers are somewhat sore, but it has really beautiful lines.

I'll post some photos after dinner.

Take care,

Chris in Seattle

[chris.lewis.425]

Here are some photos:

Side View

Quarter Bow View

Straight On Bow View

Looking Forward

Looking Aft

Straight On Stern View

Quarter Stern View

Next weekend I'll add the floor boards and finish the keel.

Thanks for looking!

Chris in Seattle

[Aethyr]

Looking nice

[P Doug (WA)]

Going to be a nice kayak. I like your idea for the strongback also.

[chris.lewis.425]

This project is coming along. The frame is finished and oiled. I used a cool product called Verde made from rosewood oil. No smell and a really good penetration. We'll see how it holds up over time.

I'll post the obligatory FROG photo this evening. There are a lot of lashes on a multi-chined boat! I've ordered some spectra thread for sewing the skin on and it should be here in a week or so. Hopefully my fingers will have recovered enough to begin sewing. I also broke down and bought a hot knife for cutting the fabric. Looks like I'll be making a few of these so it seemed like a good excuse to by a new tool.

I've already started cutting frames for a second one, this time with a 24" beam. Sure wish I had more room to store boats. I've got all kinds of ideas running through my head.

Jeff, you may have unleashed a monster! Seriously, thanks again for the inspiration and the efforts you put into your website, your videos and your book. Great to have a source for materials at your store as well. I had to laugh, though when I opened up the foot braces and found they are from a company in Everett WA, 15 minutes from my house. That's e-commerce for you!

Chris in Seattle

[P Doug (WA)]

I went out to Pygmy to check out this kayak. It is a great looking kayak. Did you have the plans or off-set tables to chart the frames?

You won't see me doing Deception pass! Beautiful place though. Whidbey Island was my second home when I was growing up. My folks had a home at Sandy Hook for years. I wish we would have kept it after they passed away.

[chris.lewis.425]

P Doug - This boat is an "Inspired-by" version of the Pinguino. I drew the plans myself using Visio and just looked to Pinguino photographs for inspiration. It's not an exact copy on purpose (trademark, intellectual capital, etc.). I thought it was serendipitous that it was called Pinguino, as my wife's favorite animal is a penguin. I'll let you know how it handles when I get it in the water. No telling if I got everything right yet. It sure looks pretty though. Nice smooth lines, the extra beam I wanted to make my wife happy and it really pops now that the wood is oiled. I told my wife that it was almost too pretty to cover.

To make my drawing I created top/bottom and side views and then lofted the frames from that using Visio's measuring function. I was able to switch back and forth to make sure that my curves remained fair and when I was happy I printed full sized patterns for the frames and stuck the templates to the MDO with Easy-Tack spray adhesive. Some quality time with a jig saw, drum sander and a router and the frames were done. I did not do an offset table.

The build method is primarily Jeff's direction from his book and other things I gathered off of the net.

Chris in Seattle

[chris.lewis.425]

FROG Photo: I've had some issues uploading, but here it is (I hope!).

Chris in Seattle

[P Doug (WA)]

Chris, I came back to your thread to look at your boat again. I just noticed in the picture above, it looks like you laminated a strip of wood along the front og the stern, bow, top stringer and keel. I was wondering what the purpose/function is. Sure looks nice. I'm really anxious to see progress pictures.

[chris.lewis.425]

P Doug - I've been waiting for some Spectra thread to show up to sew the skin on. It should be here today.

I added an oak rub strip (glued on) to the top stringer (.5" x 1.25") for a smooth, lash-free surface to sew on and a matching strip to the bottom stringer for the same lash-free surface, general durability and to give a wider surface than the 1/2" plywood to mount my UHWM plastic rub strips to.

It's just a .75" x.25" u shaped molding I made on the table saw and router table that fits the 1/2 plywood bow and stern pieces and the keel stringer (.5" x 1.25"). It's got a .125" roundover on the exposed surface to make a smooth surface transition. It makes a nice, continuous surface that should be more durable under the skin than the cedar when it comes to supporting the fabric's inevitable encounters with rocks and barnacles. Weighs almost nothing and leaves no exposed plywood end grain. BTW - I bent it around the stern using a steam in place method where I soaked the wood with a rag and then hit it with a heat gun to get it to relax around the corner. I then clamped it in place and let it dry. It had some springback, but nothing a clamp while gluing couldn't deal with.

Disclaimer - This is my own design to suit my own purposes. I'm trying things out that occur to me to be good ideas, but are not proven, so duplicate at your own risk (or benefit).

Chris in Seattle