Foam or plywood for kayak composite?

A possible alternative is listed below..

....I'm thinking of going this way..Lighter than plywood and maybe lighter
than foam..What do you think? Rich

http://gaboats.com/boats/
 >> Stay informed about: Foam or plywood for kayak composite? 

On Sat, 15 Sep 2007 03:39:12 +0100, John Ramsay <jramsay DeleteThis @netscape.ca>
wrote:

>
>
>koosvander@gmail.com wrote:
>
>>I'm interested in making a kayak out of higher-density closed-cell
>>foam and epoxy/fiberglass.
>>
>>Why do I see so many plywood kayaks, and so few plans for foam core
>>kayaks?
>>
>>The reason I'm considering foam is because the primary purpose of this
>>project is for me to gain the skills I need to prepare for a much
>>larger foam/fiberglass project.
>>
>>Most home made kayaks appear to be made of plywood, with the fancy
>>wood-grain showing through the epoxy and varnish. Since I do not want
>>to add more (annual) maintenance to my already long list of chores, I
>>think I'll just paint over the epoxy. The job of varnishing every year
>>is not appealing, and the kayak will likely take some damage/chafing
>>strapped to the deck/bow of my sailboat.
>>
>>Is a foam-core kayak a bad idea? Why so few of them?
>>
>>-Koos.

I think that a foam core kayak would be an excellent way to develope
your skills. Plywood adds a lot of strength so you'll need a heavier
layer of fiberglass to compensate. you could use plans for a wooden
kayak or take lines off one that you like. I think that you won't find
any foam kayak specific plans is you've chosen a fairly expensive
construction method and there's no real advantage that I can think of
for building that method. You might also ask this question at
rec.boats.building
 >> Stay informed about: Foam or plywood for kayak composite? 

On Sat, 15 Sep 2007 21:15:39 -0500, "rich" <rich99sue.TakeThisOut@sbcglobal.net>
wrote:

>A possible alternative is listed below..
>
>...I'm thinking of going this way..Lighter than plywood and maybe lighter
>than foam..What do you think? Rich
>
>http://gaboats.com/boats/
>
>
It will be lighter for sure. I'm just finishing a similar project a
kayak built with those methods using lines from a set of cedar strip
plans that I found in the book kayakcraft.
 >> Stay informed about: Foam or plywood for kayak composite? 

On Sep 14, 12:37 pm, koosvan... RemoveThis @gmail.com wrote:
> I'm interested in making a kayak out of higher-density closed-cell
> foam and epoxy/fiberglass.
>
> Why do I see so many plywood kayaks, and so few plans for foam core
> kayaks?
>
> The reason I'm considering foam is because the primary purpose of this
> project is for me to gain the skills I need to prepare for a much
> larger foam/fiberglass project.
>
> Most home made kayaks appear to be made of plywood, with the fancy
> wood-grain showing through the epoxy and varnish. Since I do not want
> to add more (annual) maintenance to my already long list of chores, I
> think I'll just paint over the epoxy. The job of varnishing every year
> is not appealing, and the kayak will likely take some damage/chafing
> strapped to the deck/bow of my sailboat.
>
> Is a foam-core kayak a bad idea? Why so few of them?
>
> -Koos.


I think once people try a skin boat they don't go back.
One reason, they are amazingly tough and a lot lighter.
A really interesting old world style of building kayaks

http://www.capefalconkayak.com/driftwoodkayak.html

Definitely worth a look and if you can demo a skin boat, do it.
 >> Stay informed about: Foam or plywood for kayak composite? 

On Sep 16, 8:25 pm, Willi_H2O <Willi....DeleteThis@gmail.com> wrote:
> On Sep 14, 12:37 pm, koosvan....DeleteThis@gmail.com wrote:
>
> > I'm interested in making a kayak out of higher-density closed-cell
> > foam and epoxy/fiberglass.
> >
> > Why do I see so many plywood kayaks, and so few plans for foam
> > core kayaks?
> >
> > The reason I'm considering foam is because the primary purpose of
> > this project is for me to gain the skills I need to prepare for a much
> > larger foam/fiberglass project.
> >
> > Most home made kayaks appear to be made of plywood, with the fancy
> > wood-grain showing through the epoxy and varnish. Since I do not want
> > to add more (annual) maintenance to my already long list of chores, I
> > think I'll just paint over the epoxy. The job of varnishing every year
> > is not appealing, and the kayak will likely take some damage/chafing
> > strapped to the deck/bow of my sailboat.
> >
> > Is a foam-core kayak a bad idea? Why so few of them?
>
> I think once people try a skin boat they don't go back.
> One reason, they are amazingly tough and a lot lighter.
> A really interesting old world style of building kayaks
>
> http://www.capefalconkayak.com/driftwoodkayak.html
>
> Definitely worth a look and if you can demo a skin boat, do it.


I am also interested in very lightweight construction techniques. I
think the foam approach is generally discarded due to expense and
unfamiliarity. The cheap foam approach, which I've mentioned here once
before, isn't going to be good for anyone doing rough stuff, ocean
kayaking, surf landings etc... but it is an option for an inland
lake... http://qurl.net/2me

The Airolite guy seems to use very light construction and kevlar yarn
to add strength... but he tends toward small boats... http://gaboats.com/boats/

SOF looks good, but unless you want a traditional hull how do you make
a frame that will provide a custom hull shape? Also I know nothing
about the fabrics ability to remain taut over time and I dislike the
lack of bulkheads.

The cedar strip approach will give you anything you want -- but it
takes quite a bit of time and tedious effort.

Occume plywood s&g is popular but sometimes a bit heavy. I wonder
about the difficulty of developing the curved patterns and the
limitation on hull contours.
 >> Stay informed about: Foam or plywood for kayak composite? 

Willi_H2O wrote:

> I think once people try a skin boat they don't go back.

As someone who's built three of them, I disagree. While traditional skin
boats are fun and easy to build, they're nowhere near as practical as
hard-shell boats (with bulkheads, hatches, etc.), nor are the building
methods as versatile. While I enjoy paddling my skinboats, when it come
to paddling rough water, surfing, playing in rock gardens, etc., I use a
hard-shell boat. The same is true in winter, when I want the added
ssafety that a more ruggedly constructed boat offers.
 >> Stay informed about: Foam or plywood for kayak composite?