This Resolute is my 2nd boat, the first was a 15ft Ranger. The majority of the hull is from scrap wood. Much of it is ~130 yr. old White Pine that I salvaged from the ceiling of the front porch on my 130 yr. old farm house. Some of it is "white wood" firring strip. All strips on the hull were scarfed. The deck was made from 8ft. cedar purchased from Home Depot. I like how the contrasting natural stripes in the bow turned out. The hull is covered with 6 oz glass outside and in with extra layers on the inside around the cockpit. The bottom of the bow and stearn have some extra 6 oz also. The deck is covered with 4 oz outside and inside. Around the cockpit and hatch I added a layer of carbon fiber fabric on the underside of the deck for support. I used US Composites epoxy. The coaming lip is made from poplar, as is the strip covering the deck to hull seam. The lip is covered with 4 oz. glass, wrapped from the inside of cockpit to the outer edge of the lip as well as from the deck to the underside outer edge of the lip.The seat is the Happy Bottom pad. The back was made from part of the cockpit cut out with pieces left over from the 4in thick bulkhead foam and cemented on with contact cement. For extra floatation, I made compartments in the bow and stern from 1/2 polystyrene, filled it with Great Stuff expanding foam insulation, and covered the works with a heavy duty garbage bag, then sealed with silicone. I used Helmsman varnish, 3 coats inside and 4 coats out.
This was a tough project for me. The finish is a bit rough, I had trouble controlling the runs in varnish and some in the epoxy. I glued in the foot braces a bit short. The are fine for me, but any one taller will have no adjustment. The coaming and lip were difficult. I lofted the forms myself, which was also difficult, and ended up with a few flat spots, so the craft show some primitive character . I have yet to paddle, maybe this weekend, I'm hoping it brings a big smile to my face.
My Resolute
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- Posts: 415
- Joined: Sat Jul 03, 2004 12:04 pm
- Location: Butte, MT
I took her out yesterday. :big grin
I've never paddled a kayak before so at first it seemed a little squirrely. After a few minutes I was comfortable. It seems like the wind wants to push the stern around some, but I figure it I put some weight in the rear hatch, that problem will diminish. It tracked pretty good though. I plan to use it for tripping/camping so I will have a load most of the time.
After I gained my confidence I took it into the open area of the reservoir, where the power boats were pulling tubes all around and creating a pretty thick chop. She handled the chop great, and now I have much more confidence using it to trip in wind than I do my canoe.
Thanks for the compliments.
I've never paddled a kayak before so at first it seemed a little squirrely. After a few minutes I was comfortable. It seems like the wind wants to push the stern around some, but I figure it I put some weight in the rear hatch, that problem will diminish. It tracked pretty good though. I plan to use it for tripping/camping so I will have a load most of the time.
After I gained my confidence I took it into the open area of the reservoir, where the power boats were pulling tubes all around and creating a pretty thick chop. She handled the chop great, and now I have much more confidence using it to trip in wind than I do my canoe.
Thanks for the compliments.