Hello, I'm a somewhat newcomer here... it says I posted 2 things before...

I decided sometime last summer that I wanted a wooden kayak. I'm sure you all understand my reasons, so I won't go into that. After visiting the Newfound Rendezvous and demoing boats I decided I liked the Merganser best. I was surprised because I'd been leaning towards a Guillemot.... and definitely a stripper vs. S&G. But I also want something that suits me on the water, and the Merganser is it.

I want to show you better what I've been doing this weekend, but I guess so far none of the pictures are anything the seasoned kayak builder hasn't seen before. I'll post them when I get home. For now, I can share the little ones I took with my cellphone. They're tiny though!

I made up for the (relative) simplicity of building a S&G by deciding to do a "3/4 hybrid." I liked the facetted deck on the Merganser better than the curved one on the hybrid, so I decided to strip the four center deck panels and leave the rest as plywood.

Then, someone suggested that I use veneer glued to the panels instead of actual cedar strips and I decided to try that. That's my plan for right now... the veneer is certainly easier to cut up, I can do the rest in my living room. I am a little worried about the veneer curling under the fiberglass and leaving gaps that would weaken the panels or cause cracking.... hopefully I can deal with that if it happens.

So far this weekend we sanded and stitched, filleted and glassed the fillets (with cut strips of normal glass cloth, not tape). We're about out of time since the owner of the house has to be able to put his car in the garage tomorrow night. I think we may get time to fiberglass the inside of the cockpit tonight/tomorrow.

I'm not sure when I'll get a change to work again. It's sad because I had so much fun this weekend! I don't want to go home and leave her behind!