: Just getting into the idea of building a kayak. However, I am on a budget and
: need a way to build one step at a time. I would like to build a strip
: kayak and need one that I can use for day trips and some weekend
: overnites. If someone can give me some ideas for a starter kit or plans or
: whater ever...Please help. i live in the Ozarks of Missouri and we have
: lots of rivers and lakes to see. Thanks...

Read several books.

If you are on a budget the cheapest way to get afloat is with a fabric skinned, wood framed kayak. George Putz's book is highly recommended as it includes plans and complete building information. Cost of one of these boats is $200 or a bit less.

Stitch and glue is a faster way to assemble a wood kayak than using strips. Chris Kulczycki's book "The Kayak Shop" has reduced size plans which, with a little eyestrain and effort, you can use to produce a decent kayak. High quality marine plywood is usually recommended for stitch and glue designs, but many have been built from lower cost plywoods available at local lumberyards. Nick has free designs online for a stitch and glue version of his Guillemot design, but it would help to read Chris's book to understand how to assemble the pieces. Two biggest cost factors are the grade and variety of plywood used, and whether the boat requires a complete covering with fiberglass cloth and resin, or not. Some designs only require glass and resin on the seams, some only sheathe the outside of the hull with glass cloth, and some use glass cloth inside and out on the hull and the deck.

Finally there are strip built boats. Nick has a book on building strippers, and there is also an older book by David Hazen on building strip built canoes and kayaks. Hazen's book includes fullsize patterns for two different kayaks, making it one of the most reasonable 'buys' going. However, Hazen's book focuses on using polyester resin while current trends are to use epoxy resin. A second source of information on using epoxy resin should be consulted. the manufacturers of these resins have various booklets, and their data should be used if there are contradictions with Hazen's text. The big cost factors here are the plywood needed for the building forms, a strongback to hold them in place, and the fiberglass and resin. If you make the wood strips yourself they are very cheap. If you buy them they cost much more. Strippers almost always have fiberglass on both the inside and outside. If you have a friend who also wants a boat, sharing the costs on the strongback and building forms will cut your share of costs considerably, and the work goes faster if two people are working together. Once the first boat is glassed it can be removed from the building forms and the second one started. Meanwhile, the first one can be fitted with hatches, and additional coats of resin and varnish can be added while the second boat is being started. By the time the first boat is finished the second could be ready to pop off the forms, so you can create a mini assembly line -- or wait until the second boat is off the forms and finish both of them simultaneously. Some designers would like an additional design fee if you build more than one boat from their plans, while others do not. Research this if you intend to re-use the forms.

You can get any of these books from Amazon. Search by the author name.

Read the archives of this board and you'll get a lot of useful information.

Hope this helps.

Paul G. Jacobson