I finished building my Retrieval kayak Saturday morning, with the installation of the deck lines. I took it for a short spin on the lake today. Here's a picture resting on shore.
Hi Greg, I missed your comment, until now. The total weight of the craft is just shy of 26 pounds. It's a little heavy for a skin on frame of that size. The next one I build will be lighter. The boat would be good for portaging, except I made the cockpit too small to easily get in and out of the kayak. Another thing I will remedy on a second build.
The kayak is 10'10" long, 23" at it's widest point and 8.5" from depth to shear. The weight is just shy of 26 pounds. The frame is mostly made of clear pine from Menards. The stringers, gunwales, and most of the deck beams are pine. The masik and the three curved deck beams are made of western red cedar from Home Depot. Ribs are 3/4" wide and 1/4" thick, ripped from a kiln dried red oak 2"x4", purchased at Menards. The combing for the cockpit is also made from kiln dried red oak. The skin is 8 oz ballistic nylon coated with a two part urethane giving it a flexible tough coating.
About Me
Around the Summer of 2001 I slipped into a kayak for the first time. It was a plastic recreational kayak that I paddled down the Middle Loup river in Nebraska. I had so much fun I decided to purchase one for myself. During my research I came across Skin on Frame construction (SOF). I was instantly hooked and knew I had to build one for myself. Six years later I finally got around to getting the job done.
2 comments:
Very nice looking kayak! How much does it weigh? It looks like the type of boat one would like to have when portaging small lake systems.
Greg
Hi Greg,
I missed your comment, until now. The total weight of the craft is just shy of 26 pounds. It's a little heavy for a skin on frame of that size. The next one I build will be lighter. The boat would be good for portaging, except I made the cockpit too small to easily get in and out of the kayak. Another thing I will remedy on a second build.
Post a Comment