Hi Gary, I'm not a kayak expert so I am hesitant to post suggestions, but I can share my experiences of the last 3 years. I'm involved with a small group of 14 - 18 year old young men. We wanted expedition kayaks to store our gear and use on extended outings. We went with the CLC 17' Cape Charles (plans) in 1997 and have been building ever since. Currently we started hull #10. We have yet to complete any of the boats, but we are pushing hard to complete all boats by the end of June. I think we'll make it. You are (and probably everyone else who reads this) probably thinking: Three years!? ...It's a huge task, especially if you allow the boys to do everything possible, including fixing their mistakes. I have no regrets and the project has been hugely rewarding. We ask the boys to bring $5 dollars to each work session and it now looks as if the boats will total $300+ each. In addition we will be making paddles. We have made few compromises. We have used 4mm 1088 Okuome for hulls and decks. We are glassing the cockpit area with 4 oz. glass and the hull exterior with 6 oz. glass. We are installing Yakima footbraces. These will be lifetime boats. Several people have donated money to help the boys afford their kayaks. Keith Marks of Wooden Boat Shop (1997) gave us an excellent price on the wood. I miss doing business with him. I had to persuade Cris Kulczycki at CLC to let me pay $10 per additional boat. I think he sent more than 10 decals anyway. Also each boy earns credit with the attainment of Eagle Scout and 'A' semester grades.

I believe it teaches the young men that with small steps they can do or build anything. Also I believe this project has taught the boys that mistakes happen but are fixable. The older boys have helped the younger boys avoid their mistakes. These are valuble lessons in today's instant everything world. Our attention has been diverted many times to Scout advancements, Eagle Projects, service projects, camps and adventures etc. I hope you get the idea. I believe with unwavering laser focus and a lot of spare time the project could be completed in 6 to 8 months.

We built 2 sawhorses per boat, made a 24' table mounted and leveled on saw horses, and a boat rack that can hold 12 boats (a few boys live in apartments and will need storage). We also mounted and leveled our pattern table top on sawhorses. We built a scarfing jig and mounted it at the end of the 24' table. We lofted and shaped patterns (templates) for the hull panels out of 1/2" MDF. I believe our methods are safe and fairly fast-build but our focus has been on more important things and kayak building has been a reward activity. My backyard grass is long dead, and possibly I have one of very few desert located kayak boatyards. A lot of the construction setup is legacy as we intend this to be an on-going background project for new boys.

Safety needs to be constantly stressed. Eye protection, repiratory protection, latex gloves, etc. have to be supplied and used constantly. System Three sent enough epoxy booklets so that each boy has their own. We've conducted numerous training sessions on epoxy mixing. Power tools (router, jig-saw, drill, sander) are used under direct adult supervision only. We sand on fully cured epoxy only. It is my hope the boys do not learn unsafe work practices from me. I have told the boys to use as many gloves and paper towels as necessary. All containers and lids are clearly labeled. All epoxy mixes are done using the buddy system (two sets of eyes).

I have written a book length post. Just glad to see others doing what I believe to be a great project. By the way, this is my first post. I have been a parasitic KBB addict for three years. Thanks everyone, and especially you Nick.

Cliff - aka "Sudden Swiftness"