Hi! New Builder | Page 3 | SouthernPaddler.com

Hi! New Builder

What adhesive to use in a pirogue?


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    3

Kayak Jack

Well-Known Member
Aug 26, 2003
13,976
171
86
Okemos / East Lansing Michigan
Involve the kids in the builds. REPEAT: Involve the kids in the builds.

Whe you do that, you are not building a boat with a kid. Instead, you are building a kid with a boat. They will never forget it.
 

beekeeper

Well-Known Member
Mar 4, 2009
1,917
59
Well I must need to get better technique on glassing a boat. Put water in the bottom of the boat last evening and there was way too much water coming out the sides. Maybe I need to get some Flex Seal unless someone has a better idea.
Flex Seal may work, but a "better idea" IMHO might be to order a set of plans with good directions. A properly built "chine log" boat does not need fiberglass to prevent it from leaking. I like to build with chine logs and used plans form http://www.gatorboats.com/ to build my first boat. The cost of the plans was worth it. I have used what I learned from that first build on all my boats. Folks on here that build with epoxy and fiberglass can recommend some where for that type of plans.
 
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Flex Seal may work, but a "better idea" IMHO might be to order a set of plans with good directions. A properly built "chine log" boat does not need fiberglass to prevent it from leaking. I like to build with chine logs and used plans form http://www.gatorboats.com/ to build my first boat. The cost of the plans was worth it. I have used what I learned from that first build on all my boats. Folks on here that build with epoxy and fiberglass can recommend some where for that type of plans.

That is probably true but a lot also has a lot to do with my lack of ability or lack thereof which I'm working on developing of working with wood, saws, etc.. :)
 

oldbuffpilot

Well-Known Member
May 13, 2014
629
34
81
Central Kansas and Central Texas
I built some pretty ugly heavy boats, before I just sat down and studied this forum and JEM forum. JEM has some pretty complete step by step instructions and tutorial. Also I found that if I actually studied what different folks did to accomplish each building step, things started looking better.
 
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Kayak Jack

Well-Known Member
Aug 26, 2003
13,976
171
86
Okemos / East Lansing Michigan
My boats are built with 4 mm plywood. Thats just a bit thicker than 1/8". Only 26% thicker.

Years ago, I studied the buyers' guide in the Canoeing and Kayaking magazine. Canoes and kayaks varied in weight from 40lbs up to 65 - and even 80lbs! I was astounded at the wide variation. Studying further, I discovered that there were at least three ways to get a 40 pound boat.
(1) Steal one. That didn't seem feasible.
(2) Spend $3,000-5,000 to buy one. That didn't seem either feasible OR intelligent.
(3) Spend $600-800 and build one. Interesting!

Note: costs of store-bought boats have dropped, say, $1,000, while the cost of kits has risen by, say, a few hundred dollars. Market forces at work there.

When I built my first kit boat, the directions said it would take something like 106 hours. "Yeah, right!" So, I doubled that. Dividing the cost difference by the the doubled hours yielded a result of (as best I can recall) $16-17/ hour. Not the path to becoming a millionaire, but still decent wages for 20-25 years ago.

I've built 3 kayaks and a canoe. None weighed over 42 pounds. Most of the excess weight is from excess epoxy. All of these were and are used as a tool to get a job done. None has ever had a problem with structural integrity. The kayaks are of a full monocoque construction. All of their strength comes from the skin, like an egg, having no internal framing.

Some builders have built cheaper, and or lighter. Each builder builds to satisfy himself.
 
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So here's the maiden voyage of the Nihil Solliciti. My son and I were both able to paddle around in it. I was amazed the number of bass boaters who came up to me to tell me how cool it was that I built it. Made my week. The one adjustment I'm going to make is take out the seats completely or put them like an inch or two from the bottom. But hey, it floats!