I made the same choice.... I'm 6'2" and 220 and I decided to go with the Guillemot expedition. I liked the 21" width. Check out the DWL of the boats and sinkage to determine what weight the boat can handle. Really think about what you will be using the boat for. Day trips are a bear with a really high volume boat and week long trips with a day boat are not recomended. I chose the expedition because I wanted a long narrow high capacity touring boat. I had absolutely no boatbuilding experience when I started. Of course, now I'm addicted. I think that the process is very doable with someone who has a little bit of determination. No one step is that difficult. Look around at all the plans on the internet. I eventually came down to the Guillemot Expedition or the One Ocean Cape Anne Expedition. Both are great designs that fit my parameters pretty closely. Building is a lot of fun and when you're done you have a high performance beautiful boat.

: OK OK.....you've all convinced me....strip it is. I will make an attempt to
: mill my own wood. From what I have investigated, it seems I will be
: spending up to $100 on a decent set of plans, correct?? and lastly is
: there a book that someone could reccomend for milling the wood (cove
: dimensions, blade and bit reccomendations...etc.)......and what kind of
: wood, is Home Cheapo cedar OK?

: Again, your advice is greatly appreciated.....I was planning on dropping $600
: on a S&G kit, not it seems I've been convinced to rev up the saw and build
: one from scratch....I can tell this will be challenging.