Boat Building Forum

Find advice on all aspects of building your own kayak, canoe or any lightweight boats

Re: Skin-on-Frame: skinning
By:kirk briggs
Date: 6/2/2009, 9:17 pm
In Response To: Re: Skin-on-Frame: skinning (Aaron H)

: I like to get the deck very tight (using polyester) but nylon may not require
: such tension if it is to be shrunk after sewing. Some stitching methods
: are less likely to leave difficult to fill holes, FWIW.

: You can deal with the holes, which seem to be more prevalent in lighter
: weight and/or less densely woven material, as they may by unavoidable with
: the particular fabric being used. "Caulking" the holes/seam or
: just putting drops of your coating in each hole after each coat of skin
: coating will likely suffice. The last time I skinned a kayak I used clear
: sealant (made by Loctite, IIRC, but Lexel is also good) over the seam and
: any stitch holes that did not get filled by the skin coating. You can
: achieve some interesting effects by using contrasting colored sealant,
: too.

: I have not used nylon, so I can't say how much it may shrink. Best bet, IMO
: of course, it to get things as tight as you can while sewing and not rely
: on fabric shrink to make things right. Remember, nylon relaxes when it
: absorbs moisture, so if it is not tight when dry, it will only get worse
: when cold and wet (although it usually shrinks back when dry again).
I am building a yost sea rider,fist skin-on-frame. Is nylon the best covering,how strong is it compared to other materials? What would be the best weight nylon keeping it light but strong enough not to puncture or get damaged? Where can I buy some? even e-bay maybe?

Messages In This Thread

Skin-on-Frame: skinning
sage69 -- 6/2/2009, 11:51 am
Re: Skin-on-Frame: skinning
Aaron H -- 6/2/2009, 2:43 pm
Re: Skin-on-Frame: skinning
kirk briggs -- 6/2/2009, 9:17 pm
Re: Skin-on-Frame: skinning
Dave Gentry -- 6/3/2009, 3:43 pm
Re: Skin-on-Frame: skinning
Bill Hamm -- 6/3/2009, 12:59 am