Launched: Guillemot Kayak

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pawistik
Posts: 323
Joined: Sun Nov 28, 2004 11:20 pm
Location: Saskatoon, SK

Launched: Guillemot Kayak

Post by pawistik »

Hi All,
My first build, a 17' Guillemot Kayak is done. Completed in June, I finally updated my blog with (lots of) photos from the launching.

You can find the post at http://pawistik.blogspot.com/2007/08/launched.html.

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Fully outfitted, it weighs 42lbs on the bathroom scale.

Thanks to Glen & everyone else here on the forum for their help. Thanks to Ted for the books.

Cheers,
Bryan
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Kerry
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Joined: Mon Jul 10, 2006 4:13 pm
Location: Fort Sask, Alberta, Canada

Post by Kerry »

Looks great Bryan. How did you accomplish the lighter coloured section at the bow? Are they just strips of different wood? I only ask because I can't see any definition of strips in the picture. If strips, are they just butted at an angle to the edge of the cedar strips?

Again, very nice and congratulations. :applause

Man, that canoe you rented is a monster! Wonder why there's no portage yoke?? (just kidding)

Kerry
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Bryan Hansel
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Location: Grand Marais, MN
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Post by Bryan Hansel »

Nice! And it's light too.
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pawistik
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Location: Saskatoon, SK

Post by pawistik »

Kerry wrote:Looks great Bryan. How did you accomplish the lighter coloured section at the bow? Are they just strips of different wood? I only ask because I can't see any definition of strips in the picture. If strips, are they just butted at an angle to the edge of the cedar strips?

Again, very nice and congratulations. :applause

Man, that canoe you rented is a monster! Wonder why there's no portage yoke?? (just kidding)

Kerry
Thanks Kerry. The wood on the bow is alaskan yellow cedar while the rest is western red cedar. AYC is very nice to work with and has a unique smell quite unlike WRC.

Here are a couple of blog posts which describe how I stripped the bow:
http://pawistik.blogspot.com/2006/02/de ... leted.html
http://pawistik.blogspot.com/2006/01/bo ... ipped.html
In summary: I stripped the bow portion extending my strips past where I intended to cut them off. I then trimmed the strips back to the curved line. Thirdly, I stripped the rest of the deck as normal butting the red cedar strips against the yellow cedar cut line. Doing it this way was dead easy. In fact, I am sure it was easier to do it this way than to strip the deck in a more conventional matter because I only had to worry about long tapering joints at one end at a time.

That canoe might be big but it was no monster (on the water at least). It was very easy to paddle & maneuver, even with only myself and my friend doing 90% of the paddling. I was impressed.
Cheers,
Bryan
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Glen Smith
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Location: Baie-St-Paul, Quebec, Canada

Post by Glen Smith »

Bryan, the Guilly looks great! Have you tested the tracking in crosswinds and rear-quartering seas?
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Holmes
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Joined: Mon Jul 17, 2006 8:49 pm
Location: Wyoming

Post by Holmes »

Sweet lookin' boat. Congrats on your first build.

What ya gonna build next?!
~Holmes
A Wyoming paddler
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pawistik
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Location: Saskatoon, SK

Post by pawistik »

Glen Smith wrote:Bryan, the Guilly looks great! Have you tested the tracking in crosswinds and rear-quartering seas?
Thanks Glen,
Last weekend we were paddling the last leg of a trip we did with the kids when the wind came up. I was paddling a 17' fiberglass canoes with two young kids, the dog, and a lot of our stuff while my wife paddled the kayak with the balance of our stuff. The wind was a bit stiffer than I would have liked, but the lake was fairly small and we had only about 4 km (at most) to go. The wind was from our rear port side, so yes, a rear-quartering sea (the term sea doesn't seem appropriate somehow) with small chop. My wife complained quite a bit of the trouble keeping the kayak going straight. I on the other hand had no problems despite the trouble the two year old was giving me until she fell asleep on my lap. Did I mention it was pouring buckets of rain? I am hesitant to blame the kayak at this point for any troubles as a) we are not proficient kayakers, b) I am uncertain how well the boat was trimmed, and c) the seat may be too far aft or foreward {which really amounts to the same thing as b)}. Perhaps the problem could have been solved or avoided with proper loading, proper seat placement, or proper paddling technique. Since it was pouring rain and the take-out was within sight, we did not stop to assess any of those factors, plus I had a boatload of my own concerns.

Regarding the weight - yeah, I'm pretty happy with that. Even assuming the scale is out by a few pounds I must have done not too bad with the epoxy.

Cheers,
Bryan
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pawistik
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Post by pawistik »

Holmes wrote:Sweet lookin' boat. Congrats on your first build.

What ya gonna build next?!
Hmmmm, what next. Good question.
I think a small kid's kayak might be first - the Yost Sea Flea perhaps. (Here is a recently completed example.
Then maybe another kayak, for me this time. I think it would be a stitch & glue in order to get something on the water a little quicker. Something like the Point Bennett 18 maybe. A folding skin-on-frame kayak like one of those designed by Tom Yost has a certain amount of appeal too.

Or maybe my next build should be a fast tandem tripping canoe. Like the Geen Valley Winisk (I already have the forms for a Kipawa, but I think something larger would fit the family better) or the Bear Mountain Freedom 17-9. Or, maybe I'll go big with the 18'6" E. M. White Guide from Gilpatrick's book or Green Valley's Quetico.

Or maybe I'll go smaller with a solo canoe. The stitch & glue Osprey II from Green Valley appeals to me because of the quicker build of a S&G boat, but I think it's too small for me (plus I can't seem to find it on their web site any more?). The 16-2 Freedom Solo seems pretty much perfect though for me in that category. Or maybe I'll build a small tandem, something I can paddle solo but can have my girls along while they are still small, or which they could tandem paddle when they are older.

So many options that I don't know where to begin. Before I build anything else I want to improve the wiring in the garage/shop & the heating as well. Maybe I should go clean up the garage first.

Cheers,
Bryan

p.s. Don't be surprised if the above turns up largely verbatim on my blog.
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Holmes
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Location: Wyoming

Post by Holmes »

Spoken like a true builder!

I'm caught up in the solo canoe thing right now and just starting on my Solo 15.... I've had the plans and materials for almost a year now but I have a hard time staying out of my Night Heron!

From all I've heard, that Point Bennet is a sweet ride. I'd like to try one of those in a hybrid build. Paint the hull white and use dark wood on the deck.

I never played with boats as a kid.... now I'm in my fifties and can't stay away from 'em!
~Holmes
A Wyoming paddler
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pawistik
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Location: Saskatoon, SK

Post by pawistik »

Holmes wrote:From all I've heard, that Point Bennet is a sweet ride. I'd like to try one of those in a hybrid build. Paint the hull white and use dark wood on the deck.
I don't know, Duane's bright red painted version looks downright sexy. More and more I'm thinking a combination of paint and bright finish can look great so I think you are right, painted hull and a bright-finished strip deck - best of both worlds.

Cheers,
Bryan
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Doug
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Joined: Mon Nov 15, 2004 7:59 am
Location: London, Ontario, Canada

Post by Doug »

Wow, again another piece of art posted here.
I like your celtic knot on the deck, how did you manage that?

(My next kayak is going to be a "one ocean design or Guillemot")

Doug
"Some people hear the song in the quiet mist of a cold morning..... But for other people the song is loudest in the evening when they are sitting in front of a tent, basking in the camp fire's warmth. This is when I hear it loudest ...." BM
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pawistik
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Location: Saskatoon, SK

Post by pawistik »

Doug wrote:I like your celtic knot on the deck, how did you manage that?
Hi Doug, thanks. I wrote a post on my blog about the carved celtic insert. Find it at http://pawistik.blogspot.com/2007/08/ca ... -deck.html
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Cheers,
Bryan
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mtpocket
Posts: 562
Joined: Wed Sep 08, 2004 2:48 pm
Location: Indiana

Post by mtpocket »

You've done a wonderful job. Your kayak is absolutely beautiful. It's hard to believe it's your first build. With talent like yours, many more boats are in order. Keep up the good work and enjoy.

I second your statement: Thanks Glen for the help and thanks Ted for the books.
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