: I saw a "Laughing Loon Georgian Bay model" on the water recently
: and it is a very cool kayak for sure. I am familiar with the strip-built
: process(never built one though). Since I am a composites professional, I
: was wondering if anyone has any thoughts on exchanging the wooden strips
: for foam strips? There all all sorts of marine grade foams that may lend
: themselves to this technique. Using foam and graphite could yield a
: lightweight yak. I was concidering the use of Rohacell foam, or perhaps
: PVC and epoxy, or vinyl ester marine grade (hytex) resin. No particular
: design identified as of yet.Input welcomed!

: BTW-There are a few on-the-water shots of the Loon posted on site/pages
: linked below, which were taken during a recent kayak fishing derby in
: Redondo Beach, California at King Harbor-FYI . Thanks.

When I build this kayak the finished weight is about 35 pounds, that's with all 6 oz. E glass. I'm sure you could get lighter if you really wanted to by going to 4oz. S-glass. With your experience with compsites you may do better than me.

As for foam instead of wood, well if you like the look of plastic better than wood, then certainly you can use foam. Then you'll want to paint or color your boat and it will look like most of the other plastic boats out there. I'm not familiar with what it would be like to cut and edge glue foam strips similar to the dimensions and style used for strippers.

If you plan to race it may be worth your choice of foam core to get as light-weight a boat as possible. Otherwise I can't imagine a few pounds below 35 is worth trading in the absolute beauty of wood. Of course my bias is that I'm a woodworker who uses plastic to preserve and protect my wooden boats.

All the best,

Rob Macks
Laughing Loon CC&K
www.LaughingLoon.com