6 oz glass or 4 oz glass?

[Patricks Dad]

Getting close to cutting glass for the inside of the freedom Solo I'm building. I used 6 oz glass on the outside (I had considered 4 inside and out but worried that it wouldn't be strong enough. I'm looking to minimze weight. What are your thoughts on using 4 oz glass on the inside (vs 6 oz)? I'm leaning toward 6 oz but could be swayed otherwise if I were convinced it would be strong enough... I hope to do week long trips in this thing.

Would appreciate any advice you may have.

Thanks

[Snowman]

Patrick's Dad,

I looked long and hard at different configurations and decided that until I got more experience, I would go with what has been shown to be tried and true - especially since my canoe/kayak use sees a varied environment.

Given your limited expression of your intended use, I know what I would recommend (6 oz), but I would likely defer to others with more experience (I have not actually used anything but 6 oz). In your intended use, do you see a high probablity of rock contact at higher levels of impact?

You likely know this already, but if weight is of concern, I would also scrutinize the trim very closely (both material choice and dimensions). There can be a lot of weight in gunnels, thwarts, seats, and decks (especially gunnels...).

Let us know which way you go with this and how it works out for you.



Snowman

[CatFaber]

I glassed my Osprey (15 foot solo) with 4 ounce inside and out (double layer on the outside football.) I went to Quetico for a week in it and it worked fine. I'm not much of a rock basher, but I did slither lengthwise over a hidden rock on the way out. Only superficial damage--no delamination of the glass.

On the other hand there is a school of thought that says the glass on the inside provides most of the impact resistance and should be at least as heavy as the glass on the outside, and at least as many layers.

[Bryan Hansel]

Depends on how you treat your canoe. I'd personally go with two layers of 3.2 oz. tight weave, which isn't a listed choice. From personal experience, on my Freedom 17, I used 6 oz. glass on the inside. All the damage I've done to it is on the outside of the hull and I've taken some big hits. I've never seen that damage transfer to the glass on the inside of the hull. If you want to save weight go with the 4 oz.

[Patricks Dad]

The hull was ready to come off the molds this afternoon. Before doing so, we rolled out a layer of glass to cut it to length for the inside. I finally decided on 6 oz glass. I checked my weight budget and had previously assumed 6 oz so I stuck with it.

Thanks for your inputs!