> As a new comer to this bb I have been interested in methods used in ceder
> construction of your craft. Today I see reference to George Roberts site.
> looking at his info I am left thinking the boats you build are usless in
> that the first rock hit will knock a hole in the glass layup? Is there a
> durability problem or is it a false claim Claims of engineering ! good or
> bad no test reports on his boats?

Home built kayak strength and safety pops up on the bulletin board regularly. Sadly no one has ever posted any truly scientific studies on the strength of typical home built kayaks and how it relates to their safety. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t use a little common sense along with the tons of anecdotal information on this board and elsewhere.

First of all let’s look at the safety issue. Look over this bulletin board, and the magazines like "See Kayaker" and "Canoe and Kayak". I have never read an article or posting were someone had a serious safety issue occur because of a home built kayak. If it were a serious problem I would think that there would be some concrete examples being posted.

This is not to say that problems don’t exist, or that kayaks can’t be built better than they typically are. You will find the occasional comment by builders that a deck has cracked. You will even find stories of broken hulls. But these same things also happen to well built commercial kayaks. Jonathan Hanson, in his book ‘Complete Sea Kayak Touring’ sites an example of a commercial kayak cracking during a seal landing attempt.

I am a big advocate of building for strength. Many people think that saving weight is the most important aspect of building a kayak. I am not sure this is the case. Derek Hutchenson in his book ‘Expedition Kayaking’ claims that most commercial American made kayaks are too light. He argues for a kayak to weigh 60 to 70 pounds. I am not sure I buy his all of argument. But I have direct experience (sailing on San Francisco Bay) that the mass of a boat aids in its ability to punch through an on coming sea. If I built an ultra light kayak, I would ballast it when ever I took it on heavy seas.

Whatever your point of view on weight, don’t cut corners to save weight. If you think there is even a remote chance that your boat will be used in an expedition type environment, (and there almost always is) build it to handle those conditions. If you want your boat to be both strong and light, do some of the research Mr. Roberts advocates. The bottom line is that I believe you can build a safe, seaworthy, kayak, using the techniques describe in books like Nick’s. It does however require you to use some common sense.