Hey NickL,

I used quarter sawn white oak for the rub rails and skids on my EP and loved the way they turned out.  They were tough to bend into shape, but are great against the abuse rub rails constantly get from every direction (e.g. docks, oars, car topping, etc.).  

One thing I was told after the fact is that oak doesn't play well with epoxy.  I had one problem with the rub rail adhering at the bow, but I wrote that off to being tortured into the rather sharp curve on the 8' rail.  After fixing that, I never had any trouble. 

Your application of a straight strip right down the edge of the skeg should be no problem whatsoever.  It should give you very good wear and tear protection.  I would probably still go with some sort of metal though.  I used a rub strake.  

   CaptainSkully.  Thanks for the respnse.

 I will go with the 1/2 in oak.  I am giving the EP to my son..  He  will use if for trout fishing in a lake with granddaughter.

I have building boat addiction like you.  This is my 7th boat.  I have built 6 between 2002 to 2012.  ClC Skerry with sails, two PYGMY kayaks, one double. 1 redfish king cedar strip kayak.  Black pearl  kayak (17 ft by 9 inches deep) from Norway, And another cedar strip kayak.  I also owned fiberglass kayaks and feathercraft folding kayaks.  I either sell them or give them to family members.

 I am now 80 years old and building this EP for therapy.  I only have the skeg to put on the EP and resin. I will take some RV time off and finish in September.

 Being old can be boring.

Thanks for you advice and suggestion. I appreciated it to refresh my memory.

NickL

   Why not use mahogany? It's very durable, even without a coating. I used it for the outwale and regret not have used it for the four 'knees'. Not cheap but very nice looking as well.

Success,

Dick Stada, NL

In my woodworking experience, oak is much harder than mahogany.  However, on the Janka scale, White Oak scores a 1360 while Royal Mahogany is at 1400.  Hmmm...  I guess I'm glad I made the rubrails on my PMD out of mahogany after all.  Plus, it's sexy as hell when varnished.  Win-win!

Hey Nick,

Not to hijack the thread, but you've got a few years of boat building on me.  I'm almost 50 and only have built an EP and a PMD.  However, the NanoShip 3.0, Tenderly XP, Peapod, W17 and some more classically built boats like a Welsford Navigator, Devlin Wompas Cat and a Quattro 14/16 or a Oppikat are on my short list.

I am not putting on an oak strip.  I went to a friend's shop, and he had 1/2 round brass. So I am installing the brass on the skeg.

NickL