Re: building wooden kayak costs?

Sue Goddard <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]:

> My son wants a touring/flatwater kayak and can't afford to buy one.  I
> have a woodworking shop and offered to help him build one over the
> winter, but his budget is only around $300.  Chesapeake Light Craft's
> kits are +/- $600 for stitch 'n glue.  I was hoping a strip boat would
> be cheaper, but I bought two books with instructions, and they claim
> costs of $500 - $1000. 

My strip boat ended up costing me $750 to build and I milled all my own 
strips. If I had bought pre-milled strips it would have been much closer to 
$1000, if not more.  

CLC also sells plans for most of their models.  You can search around for 
marine grade mahogany but I doubt that you'll be able to build one for under 
$300.  You could cut corners and use a lesser quality plywood but it's 
generally not recommended.  In any case, there's not a look of woodworking 
in building a stitch-n-glue boat if you build from a kit.  It's more like 
putting together a large model.
 
> 
> Does anyone have thoughts on minimum costs to build a kayak, and whether
> a strip boat or a stitch 'n glue would be cheaper? 

If you just want a boat to paddle you can cut corners by buying inexpensive 
wood (assuming that it's available in your area).  I talked with someone 
awhile back that used a cheap wood, but he painted the whole boat.  He 
claimed he was able to build it for under $300.  I spent almost $200 on 
fiberglass cloth, epoxy resin, varnish, and various outfitting pieces.

Your best bet might be to look at building a skin-on-frame boat.  There are 
lots of free plans available (check issues of Sea Kayaker mag.) or there are 
several books (Chris Cunninghams is a good one) on the subject.  The 
woodworking shop will come in handy for building the frame. 

What's he go to do for a paddle, PDF, and sprayskirt.  $300 for just those 
items is not really exhorbiant.