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Clark Craft Blanford Kayak


Jim Stumpf

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After hijacking Mikes post asking about skin materials I figured I should post my own thread. The boat is the BK 22 15 ft double touring kayak, designed in the late 40's by dutch designer P.W.Blanford. The hull is poplar stringers and marine ply frames with mahogany trim and merranti coamings. Megan also built a 13 footer (3 years ago) with cedar frames and trims. Joe and I built a pair of sister boats for the CABBS (www.cabbs.org) display at the MidAmerica boat show in 2003. After several years of great service I tore a hole in the bottom about 3 years ago while moving it on a canoe dolly and it has been sitting behind my garage in a storage tent ever since. With spring ahead of me and the Core Sound covered for the winter I decide to put the old girl back together. This morning I touched up paint around the stem bands and re-varnished some of the rub rail. An another hour of misc touch ups over the next day or two and she will be ready for service again. I am very pleased with the color scheme this time around, the circuit breaker green was OK on the original boat but I think these colors look very retro.  I dreaded starting the project and almost cut the frame up but it turned into one of the most enjoyable projects I have worked on in awhile, easy to work on for only an hour or two and it was a small project without a long commitment of time and not at the last minute trying to meet some event or deadline. I look forward to enjoying her on the water again this spring.

 

Link to the project on Picassa    https://plus.google.com/photos/106668203767680037177/albums/5851234630766107153?banner=pwa

 

 

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Thanks for looking ,

 

Jim

 

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Very nice work John.  Fine looking design too. Nice to see it saved/restored. I really like open cockpits.  Looks to be both stable with the harder chine amidships and easy moving through the water.  Happy safe paddling. R

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  • 3 months later...

Hi Jim,

 

I have just posted a question about a kayak weight limit and saw your post.  I have rebuilt a 14.5 ClarkCraft kayak that I think originally was from the 60-70 era.  Anyway it is no longer canvas nor has the outside trim but the coaming looks very similar.  Thing is when I sit in it the bow is almost out of the water and flips very easily.  By the time I move far enough forward to level it out I am really wedged into the narrowing part of that large 49" opening.  Any tips for me?  And I agree it was a fun project. 

 

Thanks,

Mike

Oregon, WI

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  • 4 weeks later...

I haven't weighed the kayak but I would guess it to be about 60 lbs or so with the floor and seat in. The canvas is what adds weight, I could have used a lighter weight synthetic but it would have not been the same kayak as the designer had designed. The rub rails add some structure as well as a cap for the fabric seams. Many SOF boats have a sewn seam the length of the deck, this is designed with the hull and deck fabrics lapping at the gunwale and then covered with the rubrail.

 

Jim

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