I don't see that design but mabe you mean the sea-island-sport.

I paddled a Shearwater Sport at a demo and enjoyed it, but I have not built it. However, as a stich & glue you should be able to build one just fine. My WD12 build was both fun & sometimes frustrating. Just keep at it, don't expect perfection the 1st time but mostly only you will notice the imperfections.

I would like to build another but it is not in the plans, or budget, for now. In 1 1/2 years I will have my third in college at once.

I paddlle a Shearwater 17 which at the beginning was a bit of a challenge for me.  Time in the boat, along with lowering my seating position about 1/2" - 3/4" has gotten me pretty comfortable.  When I first saw the info on the Shearwater Sport I thought - Wow, that's what I should have built.  Then last September I got a chance to demo the sport.  Frankly, after the 17, it felt like a barge.  There is no substiture for getting in the boat and trying it out.

So, if you can, paddle several options.  If you can't, then list the features / particulars you are looking for in your boat and then identify the boats that meet those needs.  Come back to this forum with your list and candidate boats and you will get lots of advice on what on your list is important and why.  This, in itself, is a fun part of the project.

Good luck, Paul

Thanx all for responses. I'm not new to kayaking, just building. Right now I own two, both Perception boats. One is a Carolina, and I can't remember the other one (I've had it for a very long time). Been kayaking for about twenty years.

Building looks like it would be a good winter project.

I will second the idea to demo a boat before building one. I attended a demo day last October and glad I did.  I wanted a boat that was stable so that I could fly fish out of it.  I had my heart set on a Mill creek.  Joey Schott from CLC recommended that I try a couple of boats and I decided on a Wood Duck 12 hybrid, met my requirements to a tee.  Liked it so much that I just built a second Wood Duck, a  WD10 hybrid for kids and grandkids.  I find myself now trying to justify building a 3rd boat, the building process was great fun ...a challenge and very satisfying.

While building, I found this forum and the CLC tech support invaluable.

Good luck and enjoy the journey.

Rod

Demo ride is great advice. I'll see what I have around my area.

One more newbie question. About how long can I expect the build to take?

I'm also a pilot, and some people take years to build an airplane. My attention span isn't that long.

The time it takes is "it depends"

For a first time builder doing a S&G boat, you could say around the 120 ~ 150 hour mark (including painting and in the water).

For me, my 2nd build was 150 hours over 8 1/2 months from a box of wood to the water.

What Bob said.  Click on Site Map at the top of this page, then scroll down near the bottom of the second column and click on Shop Cam to get a list of CLC kits built during week-long classes.  You can get an idea of how much boat building can be accomplished in a focused work week.  Life happens, so most builders spend much more elapsed time and much more thinking/worrying time on their builds, especially first timers.  Consistently putting in a little time every available build day gets the boat in the water quickly.  It's all up to you.  Good luck.

I am a retired pilot and I would not trust an airplane that I would build but the kayak build was ideal.  It took me 8 months(120 hours) for the first kayak and 3 months(80 hours) fo the second one.  The first build was interrupted by a broken wrist, cold weather, then too hot to varnish.  The first build took 120 hours but there were lots of days that I could only do about an hour or two of work and then let the epoxy/varnish/paint dry.  It was a fun project, highly recommended for pilots and retired pilots!!

best of luck!

Rod

I've built shearwaters and shearwater sport. The sport is a little easier to build because it's smaller, the deck to hull tape joint is the biggest reason. My first build took about 100 hr. After the first boat, 80 to 90 hours but you can't finish in 2 weeks due to cure and drying times. The sport took 3 weeks. All boats were stich & glue. rik you can try mine if you are near mid michigan.

If you are an experienced paddler, build the kayak you want to HAVE, not necessarily the "easiest to build". I think they all have some detail in the construction process that will be frustrating, but you'll get it done. Demo is a good idea if you can. I considered a Night Heron Hybrid for my next build, but after trying one, I thought that my SW17 was actually faster & handier.

Gladwin Jack. I'm in Royal Oak. I assume you are in Gladwin? Thanx for the offer, but I'm thinking the weather may have taken care of the ride.

Was this your first build? Would you do it again?

again, thanx for the offer.

i'm also trying to decide which boat to build. I think I settled on the shearwater sport. Gladwin Jack, is there any way i could check out your boat, and try it out for size. my size 12 feet don't fit well in a lot of boats. I live in bay city, and paddle the Saginaw Bay, and a lot of river touriing.

Dan

The shearwater is a great boat and fun to paddle. For all those undecided and concerned about foot room why not build a hybrid and increase the radius / shape of the building form (and the top of the bulkhead to match)forward of the cockpit. This will increase the foot room as much as you need. If going more than about a 1/2" increase you may want to bring the next forward form up a 1/4" or so as well. I did this with no problem. SEEYA Jack

Chops, You are welcome to try my sport but I'm back down state for the winter. I'll be back near Gladwin around Christmas,  bring a sledgehammer and we can break some ice, or I can put some foam on the garage floor. I'm listed in the builders club (clc).

Gladwin Jack, Thanks. I will get ahold of you closer to christmas

rik

I am in Canton, MI and would be happy to show you the minimal garage workshop that I used to build 2 hybrid wood ducks.  My "shop" has been shut down for the winter so I can park my car in it.  I  would be happy to show you the tools that I found helpful and discuss what did not work so good.

Email me at [email protected] if interested in seeing the shop and tools and discussing in person the building process.

Rod