Rudder and Sanding

Rudder or no Rudder? Opinion on rudders & kayaks appears a little divided. For me, I decided the preference was if I was going to fit one, I wanted it to be at the build stage before the kayak was finally assembled. This appeared to be the way to get the neatest job. I also decided on buying a commercially designed fitting with some 'proper' engineering. Smart Track appeared to be the one for me so it was ordered and delivered from across the Pond. Even had the pleasure of paying duty before customs would release it (which was a cost addition which I had overlooked). The fitting looks well designed and strong and folds up out of the way when not required. I purchased from this link http://www.clcboats.com/shop/products/boat-gear/kayak-footbraces-rudders/smart-track-rudder-system.html Finally a day off work coincides with dry weather and the opportunity to take the kayak outside to sand down the epoxy. All sorts of health and safety warnings I regularly ignore, but I had no intention of mixing my lungs with fine epoxy dust in a confined space!

So 'the Kayak' has temporarily lost its sparkle and shine as the epoxy gloss is lost, to be later replaced with some tough 2-pack gloss varnish.

The deck is still separate from the hull until the inside of the hull and underneath of the deck get varnished. Roll on spring and some varnishing type temperatures. This build has now been going (I think) for nine months or so, (on and off), so time to get out on the water!

A Rainy Day gets the Cockpit Collar Completed

A rainy day finally sees the sixty piece Ash collar around the cockpit shaped and finished. There has been almost as much work in this as the whole of the rest of the deck (or this is how it feels). Worth it in the end though.

The mahogany 'keystones' nicely divide up the pieces of Ash in the top laminate. All in all, nine layers of 3mm build up the height off the deck.

Yes we really have finished this part of the build. Now back to fitting out the rest of the kayak and once some warmer weather arrives it will be on with the varnish and out on the water!

Not a bad weekend, kayak building today and yesterday the first paddle of the season for my wife and I, this time in two of the plastic members of the fleet. And very good to see the ice has gone from the water!

More Progress

It's always the final fitting out which takes the time, but the Resolute is coming together slowly.

We have lost count how many lamination's of Ash are going into shaping this cockpit surround.

This final layer gets the decorative treatment with some keystones of contrasting mahogany fitted in.

Time for a break from the workshop and back out onto the water for a January much needed winter sail! Will share the therapy of last weekend here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hhsg_9WHXs8

Cold Temperature Epoxy

The trouble with winter boat building is it gets cold at night, just as we are ready to glue!

My solution is some bent water pipe, a sheet of polythene and some tube heaters (not to mention every cramp in the workshop).

Here the cockpit surround, or at least the base of it (formed by 32 strips of ash) is finally shaped to the compound curves of the kayak deck. The hatch frame is also complete.

Hatch and Cockpit

The frame is shaped and sanded up using the hatch as the pattern. It will eventually get glued back under the kayak deck, to form a lip to take the hatch and gasket. There is still one more frame to make to strengthen the hatch itself.

The temperature outside has now fallen below freezing, so all gluing operations need local heat to keep the temperature up for the epoxy to set. Little polythene tents help with a couple of tube heaters below.

The hatch frame needs laminating and shaping to the compound curves of the deck. So once again the deck is used as the mould with polythene underneath to prevent the whole lot sticking to the deck.

So far there are 36 pieces of Ash in the cockpit surround. This has been laminated up in 3mm Ash.

The surrounds are now being shaped up one at a time with a roiling bevel required around the inside. Eventually they will be glued to the deck and more layers of Ash added to the top to form a lip for the spray deck skirt.

Cockpit and Hatch

The cockpit shape is carefully marked out over the deck in exactly the right position (I hope!)


A jigsaw has made light work of forming the two holes

The cockpit frame is being laminated in 3mm Ash. The first three layers here involve eighteen pieces and as many cramps as possible. We had cut this dead Ash tree down years ago from a neighbouring field. Kayaks were probably not in mind at the time but it's ideal for this job and bends well around the hull shape.

Internal Glass Sheathing

The two halves now fully sheathed in glass

The resin is added and once again the cedar shows through the glass.

The glass cloth gets laid out along the inside of the hull and deck.

Cleaning up the inside of the kayak ready for sheathing.

Separating the deck from the hull became something of a problem for several hours, as some epoxy had found its way down from the deck to glue the two halves together too soon!

Once separated, the glue from joining the strip planking together must be removed.