I was thinking about hardwood flooring for an extra long sea expedition kayak. A bit heavy but captures more air to keep it afloat and cary more supplies.
I just watched the summary video and was completely captivated the entire way through. I like all the custom tools you have made. Thank you for documenting this process for us. Tremendous work! I'm in the middle of making a video for a different channel of mine, making a palm mallet for carving out of curly maple with a lead core and inlaid with stone and abalone so I can do the carving details on a fly tying travel cabinet that I am making. I'm looking forward to watching this series, it's gonna take a while to get through but without a doubt there is useful tidbits of info to gain.
I just went to this lumber yard today and it was fantastic. Kyle helped me pick out my lumber and load me up - this is my first canoe. They are going to be open during this “lock down”, but will only be doing deliveries. I highly recommend this place based on my trip there today. I picked up enough lumber to keep me busy for quite a while. Thank you for this video, it was extremely helpful!!
Perfect timing! I just ripped the strips for my own microBootlegger Sport build. Looking forward to having your new videos for reference while I build.
Terrific video! I am excited to see the vlog style build. Definitely will be a comprehensive guide when paired with the petrel play series (and your book). I plan to buy lumber from Liberty Cedar when it’s time. Thanks for all the great info.
Wish I had a lumber selection like that around me. The hard here I had to pick through 200 boards that hadn't been touched in a decade and were only about 1/2 clear each along their lengths
I LOVE YOUR WORKMANSHIP AND DESIGN NICK. I AM RESTORING A 16'X26 CEDAR 3/16" INCH STRIP BUILD 20 SOME YEARS OLD WITH 4OZ GLASS. THE LIGHTNESS OF THIS BOAT SCARES ME AND IN PATCHING AND NEW GUNNELS I AM WONDERING IF YOU HAVE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR GRADE OF GLASS, KEVLAR, OR STRUCTURE TO REINFORCE IT. THANK YOU KINDLEY AND MUCH APPRECIATE YOUR INSPIRATION.
I appreciate your timely feedback. I have two friends that love to canoe and kayak am interested in your plans. I grew up on the bayous with home made Pirogues. They were always tippy. Not as young as then. Though I might build one of each for these youngsters. Will get with you about mid October and order plans. Do you have plans for a fairly stable canoe.
One question. Im building a Petral Play. I picked up some Western Red Cedar in 1x6 and 1x8. The vertical grain shows on the wide sides. However one side of the board is a bit rough. Should I plane this side before cutting into blanks & strips? Thanks for the great videos. Scott
Think about the cuts. Can you arrange it so the rough face is cut off? If you cut the boards into blanks, and then cut the blanks into strips, the rough side may be able to be placed such that it is cut off at the end.
Hi Nick, I am a retired longtime woodworking hobbyist looking for a new challenge. I think I have found it! Fascinated with your instructional video series and the immense amount of talent and patience you possess. Have been watching them for hours. (the advantage of being retired) My son and his wife love to kayak and have been doing so for years...so, I think you know where I am going with this... Question...I have a woodmizer sawmill and cut lots of 1/4 sawn white oak sourced locally. It is very stable and the resultant medulary rays can sometimes be stunning . I know they do use a good deal of white oak in boat building. Is this a suitable material for strip building? Have you ever tried using it?
I'm a bit envious of the cold weather in North America - western Sydney hit 47.3 degrees celcius (116.6 F) a couple of days ago. Far too hot to work on my kayak build sadly... All the best for 2018 Nick.
In the boats that you build weather be Kayak or Canoe. What would be the average board foot of lumber a investor in one of your boat plans would be looking at purchasing. What about the availability of cedar and cost for people in areas that cedar is not readily available. I realize this is the customer choice but do you have suggestions for them? I checked with several lumber yards, they can get cedar the price per board foot runs $7.00. Is this in the range that you pay? We are gulf coast and our common lumber is red and white oak or Cyprus which are all reasonably heavy wood. I have to say you really take a great amount of care in the choices and procedures in building of the boats in your videos. You are also informative I Your building techniques that is great. Thank you and keep doing what you are doing!!!
Charles, I usually figure on about 2 board feet for each foot of length of a kayak. A canoe may need a bit more. I have a more precise calculator at: www.guillemot-kayaks.com/guillemot/blog/nick/strip_planked_boat_material_and_weight_calculator There is also a spread sheet attachment to that page that goes into even more detailed calculations, but 2bdft/ft works pretty well. $7/bdft of cedar is in the ballpark.
I'm familiar with building huge house decks and all kinds of house repairs and upgrades. I have always wanted to build a kayak or canoe. I'm wondering what would be a great way to build a solid but cheap in wood to gain the experience so I can build up my skills and confidents in a ceder build? By the way, love your videos.
I loved the Petrel Play video series and I can see where it was a lot of work to condense the video and add audio. I think Vlog style videos will work. I have a crazy idea that I want to try to produce a very artistic and light Kayak. I have played around with a lot of veneer and vacuum molding (furniture work and marquetry). I have found that some wood veneers, softened and steamed can conform to some tight curved surfaces using an existing part as the mold and vacuum forming the veneer over it. I am thinking of trying a lay up of glass with this veneer to build a thinner shell. Have you heard of anyone else trying something like this? Your thoughts?
Struer makes kayaks something like that. Beautiful boat. Making the jigs and fixtures to form the veneer in a reliable, predictable way would be the biggest part of the project.
I live in India. American Cedar is quite expensive here, but I can get my hands on some dimensionally stable, teak strips ready to go. Will that work or does it need to be cedar? I think we get me ranti as well.
Hi Nick! I have watched many of your WONDERFUL how-to videos which has given me the urge to start my first strip built kayak. The only source I have found for cedar is Home center lumber. Some of it is kiln or air dried but very poor quality. The better grades #2 or better always seem to be "Green" which adds tremendous weight. I will continue to look for a source in the Chicago area.
I've built several boats from wood purchased at Home Depot. Good quality wood can be found, although you may need some patience. I've found western red cedar but you may need to pick through the stacks. Clear pine is often available and again, picking through the stacks may yield some nice stuff. If you are finding "green" wood in that it has not been dried yet, you may be able to let it dry and get some really nice stuff. Softwoods such as cedar and pine will dry pretty quickly if cut in to strips and stacked so air can flow through. Patience and persistence may be required, but the price may be worth it.
@@NickSchade Thank you for your quick response. I am going to Lowes and Home Depot to move stacks of wood around. I hope I find some good stuff! There is something therapeutic about making sawdust! BTW, I got your book "The Strip-Built Sea Kayak" and it was truly inspiring!
Three questions, is cedar best choice for weight considerations? Could one use sapele or douglas fir or is kayak just too heavy? Finally, for a 17’ kayak, can one get say a 10’ piece then glueing butts together to make longer strips?
Cedar is a very good choice of balance between strength and weight, but any wood can be used. I know of people using everything from paulownia to ebony. Doug fir or sapelle would work, but would be heavier unless you use thinner strips. You can use shorter strips. You can either scarf them together or use butt-joints.
dry fiberglass and epoxy stripes has sharpy niddle edge... ready to cut skin on clothes. You (and I) use the fiberglass stripes to glue deck and bottom.. These are not comfortable to sand and to reach.
@@NickSchade I don't get it ..i don't understand what are you thinking about. I cut 2inches wide stipes by 45 degrees.. what gives me niddles on the edge after epoxy gets hard. I put the fiberglass stripe on edge between bottom and deck after cutting hatches. I seal front and rear of cockpit baggage spaces
Add a strip or two of Aspen for accent ! It stays white better than Cedar that fades in time ! Great videos Nick ! Oh the best planks are always at the bottom of the pile !! Great explanation, on how to sort planks ! Will you bead and cove the 3/16" strips ? Thanks !!
I've got some leftover Alaskan yellow cedar for accents. It has good contrast with the red cedar. It will be 3/16, but square edges strips. I get better fits with beveling than C&B.
Hi Nick, Melinda and Jeff here in So Oregon with fair access to good lumber. We have a question... do you ever scarf your strips to make the best use of available lumber/shorter boards. ? Great videos, beautiful boats, excellent designs and workmanship, thanks.
Melinda Manthey I don’t typically scarf short strips. Instead I just butt-join them on the forms. The only time I regularly scarf is for the first strip, to establish a fair, smooth curve for all the subsequent strips to follow.
I haven’t read any books yet on building kayaks but is the grain orientation of your strips for strength or aesthetics? Could you elaborate on why you cut the strips in certain ways? Thanks for any input!
Hi Joe, Thanks for the question. I am currently milling the strips, and during that process, I'll try to answer your question in the next episode. It will probably next week or so, because I am teaching a class starting this weekend, and won't be back to this build until the end of next week.
It would be worth the drive from Nashville to Rhode Island just to have a rack of CVG cedar like that. Jesus. Every board is a scavenger hunt, a compromise, or in most cases... both.
Just scored a power saw. I might build a boat yet. But have some other builds that are more important for a few months. Also I've always found Western Cedar, the little I've been around, to have a stench I don't care for. I know I wouldn't smell it as a boat, but I don't think I'd ever be happy (get used) to the smell working with it. Question: what's the next closest suitable wood that I might find here in the the Mid-South? thanks.
I think get your point. That the wood is for pretty, and to form the core of the (fully) laminated structure-such that "boatbuilding rules" for species need not apply-provided the wood is sound and flexible enough for the bends and fitting it all together. Yellow Poplar is the most abundant local forestry product. I can get some milled and add Cherry or Walnut for contrasts. Often there are gorgeous mineral streaks of every color deep in the Poplar-purples and greens, sometimes red, but I don't know how stable those colors might be. Thanks, eventually I should be able to mill my own timber-or hire it done (the better option). The combinations could be wild.
it is much more easy to get good quality plywood for SnG kayak... than 2 good quality cedar boards. I, probably will not be able to find such wood here in Russia/Siberia. That sound strange.. but the quality of wood here is bad! Nobody cares...for house buiding it is OK. For kayak or boat you have to check for 100-200 boards to find something acceptable
@@NickSchade No. Nobody needs good quality wood. Housebuilders take everything. Nobody cares about quality. It is raw/wet, it is various sizes, knots, sapwood and etc.
Our houses here are usually built with really poor quality lumber, but for things you see, like siding and trim you can buy good quality wood. The cedar I buy is used where it is visible on expensive houses. We have enough rich people around who can afford fancy woodwork that I can find good quality wood.
@@NickSchade I think...I heard about that.. we are not allowed to cut cedar woods. It's almost impossible to buy. It's it much easier to buy wood form Europe (2-3 times expensive), than wood from Altai. And may be it will be European wood from Altai :) we are raw-material colony :( I saw small stuff made of cedar (barrel, tubs, bucket or pail for sauna) but i haven't see any cedar boards for sale. I talk about regular hardware store or lumbermill.
Top notch boat designer, boat builder and now also UA-camr -- thank you for your excellent work!
I was thinking about hardwood flooring for an extra long sea expedition kayak. A bit heavy but captures more air to keep it afloat and cary more supplies.
I just watched the summary video and was completely captivated the entire way through. I like all the custom tools you have made. Thank you for documenting this process for us. Tremendous work! I'm in the middle of making a video for a different channel of mine, making a palm mallet for carving out of curly maple with a lead core and inlaid with stone and abalone so I can do the carving details on a fly tying travel cabinet that I am making. I'm looking forward to watching this series, it's gonna take a while to get through but without a doubt there is useful tidbits of info to gain.
Your video quality rivals all on UA-cam. Thank you for providing such quality content. You sir are a true master.
I just went to this lumber yard today and it was fantastic. Kyle helped me pick out my lumber and load me up - this is my first canoe. They are going to be open during this “lock down”, but will only be doing deliveries. I highly recommend this place based on my trip there today. I picked up enough lumber to keep me busy for quite a while.
Thank you for this video, it was extremely helpful!!
I need to get some wood also. I'm not sure when I will get the chance.
Perfect timing! I just ripped the strips for my own microBootlegger Sport build. Looking forward to having your new videos for reference while I build.
How'd the build go Mike?
Awesome work, and we so appreciate the entire series, thank you for the time put into editing it!
you are a true artist !!!!!!!!!
Awesome video. Thanks for posting.
What a great lumber supply !
Just buying a Robobevel and found my way here... the whole series is really good but this is one of the most helpful (to me)...
Terrific video! I am excited to see the vlog style build. Definitely will be a comprehensive guide when paired with the petrel play series (and your book). I plan to buy lumber from Liberty Cedar when it’s time. Thanks for all the great info.
Excellent knowledge of wood. Thank you. :-)
Wish I had a lumber selection like that around me. The hard here I had to pick through 200 boards that hadn't been touched in a decade and were only about 1/2 clear each along their lengths
I LOVE YOUR WORKMANSHIP AND DESIGN NICK. I AM RESTORING A 16'X26 CEDAR 3/16" INCH STRIP BUILD 20 SOME YEARS OLD WITH 4OZ GLASS. THE LIGHTNESS OF THIS BOAT SCARES ME AND IN PATCHING AND NEW GUNNELS I AM WONDERING IF YOU HAVE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR GRADE OF GLASS, KEVLAR, OR STRUCTURE TO REINFORCE IT. THANK YOU KINDLEY AND MUCH APPRECIATE YOUR INSPIRATION.
I appreciate your timely feedback. I have two friends that love to canoe and kayak am interested in your plans. I grew up on the bayous with home made Pirogues. They were always tippy. Not as young as then. Though I might build one of each for these youngsters. Will get with you about mid October and order plans. Do you have plans for a fairly stable canoe.
my Mystic River Tandem canoe design is stable.
Could you do a video about drawing the forms from the offset table
One question. Im building a Petral Play. I picked up some Western Red Cedar in 1x6 and 1x8. The vertical grain shows on the wide sides. However one side of the board is a bit rough. Should I plane this side before cutting into blanks & strips? Thanks for the great videos. Scott
Think about the cuts. Can you arrange it so the rough face is cut off? If you cut the boards into blanks, and then cut the blanks into strips, the rough side may be able to be placed such that it is cut off at the end.
Thanks Nick
Good luck finding good quality boat building lumber in East Texas
Hi Nick, I am a retired longtime woodworking hobbyist looking for a new challenge. I think I have found it! Fascinated with your instructional video series and the immense amount of talent and patience you possess. Have been watching them for hours. (the advantage of being retired) My son and his wife love to kayak and have been doing so for years...so, I think you know where I am going with this... Question...I have a woodmizer sawmill and cut lots of 1/4 sawn white oak sourced locally. It is very stable and the resultant medulary rays can sometimes be stunning . I know they do use a good deal of white oak in boat building. Is this a suitable material for strip building? Have you ever tried using it?
I live in Canada in the PNW and i've got friends with a wood lot that's mostly cedar.. This might be a more affordable passtime than I had thought...
I'm a bit envious of the cold weather in North America - western Sydney hit 47.3 degrees celcius (116.6 F) a couple of days ago. Far too hot to work on my kayak build sadly... All the best for 2018 Nick.
it got down to -18°C (0°F) here last weekend. I don't mind the cold, plus the heat in my shop works well.
In the boats that you build weather be Kayak or Canoe. What would be the average board foot of lumber a investor in one of your boat plans would be looking at purchasing. What about the availability of cedar and cost for people in areas that cedar is not readily available. I realize this is the customer choice but do you have suggestions for them? I checked with several lumber yards, they can get cedar the price per board foot runs $7.00. Is this in the range that you pay? We are gulf coast and our common lumber is red and white oak or Cyprus which are all reasonably heavy wood. I have to say you really take a great amount of care in the choices and procedures in building of the boats in your videos. You are also informative I Your building techniques that is great. Thank you and keep doing what you are doing!!!
Charles, I usually figure on about 2 board feet for each foot of length of a kayak. A canoe may need a bit more.
I have a more precise calculator at: www.guillemot-kayaks.com/guillemot/blog/nick/strip_planked_boat_material_and_weight_calculator There is also a spread sheet attachment to that page that goes into even more detailed calculations, but 2bdft/ft works pretty well.
$7/bdft of cedar is in the ballpark.
I'm familiar with building huge house decks and all kinds of house repairs and upgrades. I have always wanted to build a kayak or canoe. I'm wondering what would be a great way to build a solid but cheap in wood to gain the experience so I can build up my skills and confidents in a ceder build? By the way, love your videos.
4:55 - Man... That Subaru flies!
What type of wood you pick ?
your licence plate is great!
I loved the Petrel Play video series and I can see where it was a lot of work to condense the video and add audio. I think Vlog style videos will work. I have a crazy idea that I want to try to produce a very artistic and light Kayak. I have played around with a lot of veneer and vacuum molding (furniture work and marquetry). I have found that some wood veneers, softened and steamed can conform to some tight curved surfaces using an existing part as the mold and vacuum forming the veneer over it. I am thinking of trying a lay up of glass with this veneer to build a thinner shell. Have you heard of anyone else trying something like this? Your thoughts?
Struer makes kayaks something like that. Beautiful boat. Making the jigs and fixtures to form the veneer in a reliable, predictable way would be the biggest part of the project.
very interesting, wood selection can be very tough sometimes.
I live in India. American Cedar is quite expensive here, but I can get my hands on some dimensionally stable, teak strips ready to go. Will that work or does it need to be cedar? I think we get me ranti as well.
I think the vlog style videos will be great. It will probably be a better way to get a more in-depth view of the build.
Otavio Coelho (
Hi Nick!
I have watched many of your WONDERFUL how-to videos which has given me the urge to start my first strip built kayak. The only source I have found for cedar is Home center lumber. Some of it is kiln or air dried but very poor quality. The better grades #2 or better always seem to be "Green" which adds tremendous weight. I will continue to look for a source in the Chicago area.
I've built several boats from wood purchased at Home Depot. Good quality wood can be found, although you may need some patience. I've found western red cedar but you may need to pick through the stacks. Clear pine is often available and again, picking through the stacks may yield some nice stuff.
If you are finding "green" wood in that it has not been dried yet, you may be able to let it dry and get some really nice stuff. Softwoods such as cedar and pine will dry pretty quickly if cut in to strips and stacked so air can flow through.
Patience and persistence may be required, but the price may be worth it.
@@NickSchade Thank you for your quick response. I am going to Lowes and Home Depot to move stacks of wood around. I hope I find some good stuff!
There is something therapeutic about making sawdust!
BTW, I got your book "The Strip-Built Sea Kayak" and it was truly inspiring!
Three questions, is cedar best choice for weight considerations? Could one use sapele or douglas fir or is kayak just too heavy? Finally, for a 17’ kayak, can one get say a 10’ piece then glueing butts together to make longer strips?
Cedar is a very good choice of balance between strength and weight, but any wood can be used. I know of people using everything from paulownia to ebony. Doug fir or sapelle would work, but would be heavier unless you use thinner strips.
You can use shorter strips. You can either scarf them together or use butt-joints.
Nick, how to sand kayak inside from inside? How to send or scrap fiberglass tape with epoxy? what tools, power tools do you use?
Hi Sergey, those are some big questions. Fortunately, they are all answered in upcoming videos in this series. Keep on watching the videos.
dry fiberglass and epoxy stripes has sharpy niddle edge... ready to cut skin on clothes. You (and I) use the fiberglass stripes to glue deck and bottom..
These are not comfortable to sand and to reach.
Sergey Kopylov I don’t sand the inside seam. I cut strips of regular fiberglass fabric for the outside seam which is easier to sand smooth
@@NickSchade I don't get it ..i don't understand what are you thinking about.
I cut 2inches wide stipes by 45 degrees.. what gives me niddles on the edge after epoxy gets hard. I put the fiberglass stripe on edge between bottom and deck after cutting hatches. I seal front and rear of cockpit baggage spaces
Rhode Island.....my beautiful Guild Dreadnaught was made there.
Add a strip or two of Aspen for accent ! It stays white better than Cedar that fades in time ! Great videos Nick !
Oh the best planks are always at the bottom of the pile !!
Great explanation, on how to sort planks ! Will you bead and cove the 3/16" strips ? Thanks !!
I've got some leftover Alaskan yellow cedar for accents. It has good contrast with the red cedar.
It will be 3/16, but square edges strips. I get better fits with beveling than C&B.
I remember the Cool beveling tool you make. Yes, it should work better than trying to B&C 3/16" strips.
.I think at the lumber yard you could have shown why you choose some boards and rejected others.
Hi Nick, Melinda and Jeff here in So Oregon with fair access to good lumber. We have a question... do you ever scarf your strips to make the best use of available lumber/shorter boards. ?
Great videos, beautiful boats, excellent designs and workmanship, thanks.
Melinda Manthey I don’t typically scarf short strips. Instead I just butt-join them on the forms. The only time I regularly scarf is for the first strip, to establish a fair, smooth curve for all the subsequent strips to follow.
@@NickSchade Thanks.
I haven’t read any books yet on building kayaks but is the grain orientation of your strips for strength or aesthetics? Could you elaborate on why you cut the strips in certain ways? Thanks for any input!
Hi Joe,
Thanks for the question. I am currently milling the strips, and during that process, I'll try to answer your question in the next episode. It will probably next week or so, because I am teaching a class starting this weekend, and won't be back to this build until the end of next week.
It would be worth the drive from Nashville to Rhode Island just to have a rack of CVG cedar like that. Jesus. Every board is a scavenger hunt, a compromise, or in most cases... both.
Just scored a power saw. I might build a boat yet. But have some other builds that are more important for a few months. Also I've always found Western Cedar, the little I've been around, to have a stench I don't care for. I know I wouldn't smell it as a boat, but I don't think I'd ever be happy (get used) to the smell working with it. Question: what's the next closest suitable wood that I might find here in the the Mid-South? thanks.
Honestly, you can use any wood from paulownia to ebony. But a good source you may find relatively locally, could be cypress.
I think get your point. That the wood is for pretty, and to form the core of the (fully) laminated structure-such that "boatbuilding rules" for species need not apply-provided the wood is sound and flexible enough for the bends and fitting it all together. Yellow Poplar is the most abundant local forestry product. I can get some milled and add Cherry or Walnut for contrasts. Often there are gorgeous mineral streaks of every color deep in the Poplar-purples and greens, sometimes red, but I don't know how stable those colors might be. Thanks, eventually I should be able to mill my own timber-or hire it done (the better option). The combinations could be wild.
Like the deer at 30 seconds.
good eye.
This is great news! Cool shirt -- is that available as a sticker?
Unfortunately, I don't have stickers.
No way I'd run over my camera!
Can I be your helper 😃😃😃 just for experience
03:35 THERE'S A RAT ON YOUR HEAD! Oh . . .
it is much more easy to get good quality plywood for SnG kayak... than 2 good quality cedar boards. I, probably will not be able to find such wood here in Russia/Siberia. That sound strange.. but the quality of wood here is bad! Nobody cares...for house buiding it is OK. For kayak or boat you have to check for 100-200 boards to find something acceptable
That is interesting. With so much forest in Siberia, I would have thought you could find nice lumber to work with.
@@NickSchade No. Nobody needs good quality wood. Housebuilders take everything. Nobody cares about quality. It is raw/wet, it is various sizes, knots, sapwood and etc.
Our houses here are usually built with really poor quality lumber, but for things you see, like siding and trim you can buy good quality wood. The cedar I buy is used where it is visible on expensive houses. We have enough rich people around who can afford fancy woodwork that I can find good quality wood.
@@NickSchade I think...I heard about that.. we are not allowed to cut cedar woods. It's almost impossible to buy. It's it much easier to buy wood form Europe (2-3 times expensive), than wood from Altai. And may be it will be European wood from Altai :) we are raw-material colony :(
I saw small stuff made of cedar (barrel, tubs, bucket
or pail for sauna) but i haven't see any cedar boards for sale. I talk about regular hardware store or lumbermill.