: Bill,

: As I said, I haven't weighed it yet (still) but the chines are all WRC with
: standard 1/2" cheapo ply for the crosspieces. I used scraps from my
: NorthBay deck (4 mm with 4 oz glass) for the stern pieces, and WRC for the
: bifid bow.

: I suspect it's lighter than I realize, but it still feels heavier than I
: expected. My guess is it comes in around 30 pounds or so. Like I said
: though, my S&G is only about 40.

30 lbs for a 17.5' Baidarka with 6 chines, and a more complex bow and stern,
is quite light. Mine weighs 32 lbs and was build to the design specs. My
wood frame Sea Rider (Greenland) is about 24 lbs due to single chines and
simpler stems.

If you want lighter still, build a Sonnet 16. Mine tops out at 19lbs and if I
used wood vs aluminum stringers it would be even lighter.

The Sonnet also has the added advantage of fitting in a bag for travel to any
paddling destination on the planet. Below is a link to the lovely Sonnet built
by Thomas Ziegler of Germany. He can attest to it's performance.

Tom