Welcome back, KK, and what a lovely job!   Small wonder you are getting commissions to build, if I read your Blog comments correctly.   Great lines to those Guillemot designs - love to build one myself one day.

Just started in earnest on the Shearwater 17S&G - blank panels cut out and will be cutting (planing, actually) the scarf joints this weekend ready for epoxying early next week.   Getting quite excited.

I very much like the style of your cockpit rim and coaming, made of vertical strips it seems.   Did you glass the inside of the coaming and run the cloth underneath the adjacent underside of the deck?   Would appreciate any other info on that aspect of the build as I'd like to try that on the Shearwater.

Congrats again and best regards from Oz...

Wordsmith

Hi, What kind of kayak carrier is on top of you truck under part three???

Hahahaha, because of the size of my truck, I have to use Thule Hullavators.  They are pricey, but worth it to me.

Kev

Hey Wordsmith,

How are you my friend?  Glad to hear you are moving right along with the new build.  I guess the wife hasn't seen the epoxy drips on the floor?

As far as my combing, it is standard on strippers.  You use the scrap strips for the body, and then rip some ash 1/4"X 3/8" to lamenate the rim.  And yes I glass the WHOLE thing.  I do cheat however.  Instructions say to glue the strips onto the yak, I made a form out of 2X material and staple the strips to it, glass it using 6 oz tape so it holds it form.  Set it on the yak to scribe the depth and cutout, and add more glass to hold it to the yak along with a fillet.  Let me know if you want and I can email you pics.

Kev

I think photos would be of great interest to many others as well as me, KK, so if you can, please do post them here, or e-m to me.   One thing I have wondered about this approach - given that the deck ply is very thin - 3mm or so - how are the vertical strips secured to it around the cockpit cut-out while setting them in place? By the sounds of things you pre-fab the entire set-up then glass and fillet it to the cut-out - presumably your pics will show this.

I look forward to seeing them!

Wife is (was) happy - using tips from this site I managed to get all the epoxy blobs from the prior build off the tiled patio floor - aka kayak workshop - but today committed another crime!   I dropped a really heavy plane onto the tiled family room floor just entering the house from the patio, and the cast-iron base took a large chunk out of one floor tile, right at the doorway!   But I think I can fix it with some epoxy and maybe a bit of colourant.   Fortunately it was only a chip taken out and not a  L-A-R-G-E crack.      The house is only 18 months old, so you can imagine My Beloved was not at all pleased!   Aaarrrggghhhh!

Cheers from Oz...

Wordsmith

Hey Wordsmith,

An old tile setters trick... use auto bondo to fill the holes aka large cracks, and then use fingernail polish to color it in

But my question is how is the plane?  did you nick the blade?  Is the plate still true?

Beautiful job Kevin! What kind of woods did you use on that?

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Ogata (eric)

Hi Eric,

When you coming back down for that paddle I owe you?  The long curve from bow to stern is Mahogany, the rest is AWC, WRC, and the dark is Aromatic Cedar.  They call it that so they can charge more for it. LOL  It is in fact a dark WRC.

And thanks for the compliment, coming from you, it means a lot, your yaks are awesome!

KK

Hi Kevin,

You know what? You're right I should skip out of here and go paddling. After all, you only go around once in this life, so grab for all the gusto you can get. I heard that in a beer commercial so it's probably pretty good advice.

Oh man, but it's such long and tedious drive, (... Denny's, McDonalds, Cracker Barrel, Denny's, Denny's, Burger King, Waffle Hut, McDonalds, Arbys, Cracker Barrel, Huddle House, Denny's...) down I 95. I always feel like I'm stuck in one of those old Hanna-Barbera cartoons where the scenery keeps repeating in an endless loop.

I'm sucked up in life here now and trying hard to convince myself to just pack it up and go. Well, if I don't make it this spring, definitely come hurricane season, ... I'll get back down sooner or later.

What's the water temps down there now?

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Water temps are in the mid 70's, air temps in the 80's, beach bikinis in the 20's.  Perfect time of year to paddle around here.  Remember Hurricane Season brings bath water temps, and sweaty days.