Looking to dive into the kayak building world. Or even using kevlar or carbon fiber construction? I was wondering where to get information on building my own, and wondering the best technique on construction. Do i use a vacuum bag or lay up on a simple form? i have all sorts of woodworking equipment which would aid in construction. I would rather stay away from a wood strip construction. Any help is appreciated. Thanks!
Making a woodstrip prototype is
usually the first step. See if you can find a copy of Wallbridge’s “Boatbuilder’s Manual.”
Check eBay
I’ve seen molds for sale on eBay. Probably the easiest way to develop your glass technique.
ditto
unless one was copying a production boat, making a female mold from the hull wouldn’t it make sense to just make a strip boat? I forgot where I got my copy of Walbridges book,I’ve since lost it.
Need a job ???
Come down to San Diego … really DOES start with wax on wax off. LOL
One Off Boats
– Last Updated: Jul-25-06 8:23 AM EST –
I have built two glass one off boats by building a stongback framework as if I were going to build a stripper then running from bow to stern small diameter pvc pipes where the chines, deck, crown of the deck and bottom rocker all meet each other. Wrapped and attatched shrink wrap plastic around this whole frame work and shrunk it with a hair dryer or heat gun then simply layed my glass over the plastic. I used epoxy and it doesn't stick to the plastic. Layed up the hull and popped that off then did the same for the deck and joined them back together with tape afterwards just a they do in commercial building techniques. In place of gel coat I simply used Marine paints and they are still holding up well years later. I did it simply to see if I could, for a hobby and the fact I do like to work with my hands. It won't give you a boat as accurate or precise as doing a plug, mold layup boat, but it does work and works reasonably well plus is a lot faster and cheaper then all of the other steps. From a distance you might think it is a commercial boat.
If someone wanted to do a softchine boat, I believe they could by doing the various sides of the hull in blue foamboard used for insulation and lay them around the strongback much like building a stitch and glue boat then shape all of the chine points to whatever roundness one wants. Wrap that in shrinkwrap and lay it up as mentioned above. I haven't explored the possibilty (but think it would work) of 1.building the strongback out of foam,2. building the boat out of foam around that, 3. shrink wrapping the whole show, 4. laying up the hull, 5. don't pull the hull off, 6. lay up the deck partially overlapping the hull, 7. cut hole where the cockpit is going in the deck and pull out all of the foam pieces through the cockpit opening. It would eleminate having to join the deck to the hull as a step.
http://community.webshots.com/album/172002130MSYwou
http://community.webshots.com/album/172013009rnQUrH
frame
any photos of the construction?
wax on wax off
Sounds like good shoulder rehab…
I’d make a really poor apprentice though. Quick learner, with attention to detail, but too many ideas…
Monocoque would be cool NM
ROTFLAMO
Patrick, your comment transported me back to the early '70s when I fancied myself a boatbuilder. We used borrowed/loaned molds, usually from Penn State Outing club to make our own WW K-1s and C-1s. In retrospect, what a royal PITA. But we never forgot to wax and apply release. I hope you never forgot that!
Jim
Unfortunately not
– Last Updated: Jul-25-06 2:56 PM EST –
One was an off and on project over a number of years with the frame living in the cellar, wrapped outdoors and in a shed as I don't have a garage. Basically I made an a 1'x1' box out of composition board. Started with two 4x8 sheets ripped into 1' x 8'strips then sheet rock screwed it into about a 16' long box for the strongback. Cut out the stations out of plywood and mounted them to the strongback with a stretched string above to keep them straight and aligned. I measeured down from the string to each station to achieve the rocker I wanted as I went down the string. Stem profiles at either end were cut out of very thin plywood. I then layed the pvc pipe down it like I was stripping it, but only stripping it on the chine points. Attatched the pvc with screws. As you can see I just started it out like I was going to build a stripper then deviated to the shrinkwrap and glass layup afterwards.
I might be wrong about building the whole boat out of foam, shrinkwrapping that, doing a monocoque build/layup, then yanking all the foam out through the cockpit and adding bulkheads later,but that might be the real ticket for doing a unique homebuilding technique. I know some have carved out of a solid block of foam a surf kayak and then layed up over that succesfully.
At heart I'm hoping someday to do that or have a conglomerate of home builders experiment/share with that technique then make it a big free internet shareware project for those who would be interested. Resin and glass are surely going up in price, but my old numbers had a boat with a few luxuries (seat, hatches?) coming in around or under $600 doing it my way.
Other idea I would like to see explored is if we could get a company such as Rubbermaid to produce a hatch because their bowls-lids system are very watertight, but very affordable. If something along the lines of their product could be made or retro-fitted to a boat that would also solve the problem of a low cost, effective, watertight hatch.
Rubbermaid… and other home-brew ideas
QUOTE:
Other idea I would like to see explored is if we could get a company such as Rubbermaid to produce a hatch because their bowls-lids system are very watertight, but very affordable. If something along the lines of their product could be made or retro-fitted to a boat that would also solve the problem of a low cost, effective, watertight hatch.
well, if you’re building your own, you could always purchase a Rubbermaid bowl of a size and shape you like, and cut it like 2-3" from the top rim… in a sense, you’re cutting the bottom out of the bowl… then incorporate that into your glasswork.
regarding the initial post… what you COULD do, is shape (carve) the whole thing out of foam, then do your layup. If it’s a closed cockpit and a one-off boat (you won’t be building another exactly like it), you can glass over it COMPLETELY, then use acetone or gasoline to melt the foam away (I believe this process is called “lost foam mold” or something like that)
If you want to build more than one (like small production) then the best way to go about it would be to use the foam carving as a plug to make a female mold… lay up a few layers of glass for the hull only. when the hull is cured, remove it then flip your foam plug over… then lay up a few layers for the deck. You now have fiberglass female molds which you can lay in your glass/kevlar/carbon (don’t forget to first coat the mold with a release agent… wax, saran wrap, etc) Once those pieces cure, remove from mold and join together using either FG tape, or the method I prefer is to lay in the mold only 2 layers and lat cure, then (with assistance, as the two halves will be a bit flimsy at only 2-plies) attach the 2 halves together, and do a complete layup over the seams.
I’m actually in the process now of constructing something resembling a SOT yak… Polystyrene core which I’m shaping like you’d make a surfboard, meaning the foam will become part of the boat… complete with formed seats, drink holders, and depending on available deck space, may put a couple small hatches and/or a built-in cooler of sorts.
I’m designing with stability in mind, yet with the hull design, should have a decent cruising speed for the overall size… 14’ long, 30" overall beam, yet WL should be around 20-22"… sort of a tri-hull (or tri-maran?) design… similar to the Bic kayaks, yet refined for a little more speed.
Sorry for the threadjack 
I’ll post some pics in a couple weeks as I get a little further along in shaping.
Rubbermaid products
"well, if you’re building your own, you could always purchase a Rubbermaid bowl of a size and shape you like, and cut it like 2-3" from the top rim… in a sense, you’re cutting the bottom out of the bowl… then incorporate that into your glasswork."
The two problems I’ve yet to solve is a solid and fail safe way of bonding a Rubbermaid product to fiberglass as most resin’s won’t bond to that material. The other is that I think that the whole bowl would have to be mounted to the boat first, then the bottom of the bowl cut out after it has been mounted and secured. Otherwise one runs the risk it could deform in the installation phase making the lid’s secure attatchment to the rim suspect.
Loose Weave
When you lay up you boat, a looser weave cloth or a bi-axis cloth might more easily follow all of the contours you are carving. That has been my experience and also what I’ve been told by some glass fabricators. Good luck and your technique should work fine.
rubbermaid hatch
"The two problems I’ve yet to solve is a solid and fail safe way of bonding a Rubbermaid product to fiberglass as most resin’s won’t bond to that material. The other is that I think that the whole bowl would have to be mounted to the boat first, then the bottom of the bowl cut out after it has been mounted and secured. Otherwise one runs the risk it could deform in the installation phase making the lid’s secure attatchment to the rim suspect."
it might be worth to try a small (like 12" square) test panel using a small (4" or so) rubbermaid bowl…
What I was thinking was to cut the bottom out, then cut slots up every 1/2" to 1" (the narrower the bowl, the smaller the strips)… make cuts from the bottom, up to about 1" below the rim… fan out the strips (created by cutting the slots) to create a sort of flange, and alternate over/under… one strip above, one below, etc. the strips being sandwiched between layers of glass.
it’s not so much a structural issue (unless you decide to sit on your new hatch cover), you’re basically holding it in place.
As for the distortion issue you mentioned, I think it would be OK if you left the lid ON the bottomless bowl during installation.
the above would best be done if building a boat from the beginning…
if you wanted to install the bowl/hatch in an existing boat, I would do the same cutting to the bowl (bottom off, cut slots to create flange)… but for mounting it to the boat, I would sandwich it onto the deck using two stainless steel or brass flange rings (cut from sheetmetal) of appropriate inner/outer diameters… bolt through the deck with bolts/nuts/washers and seal with appropriate sealant (silicone, butyl, or other)… kind of like a port-hole. This method would have the advantage of being able to replace the “bowl” if it whould get damaged.
maybe when I start layup in a few weeks, I’ll make a couple of those test panels I mentioned with any leftover resin/cloth I may have.
building a fiberglass kayak
I have build several fiberglass kayaks as well as strip built ones, several R/c model boats and molds from 36" to 101" for mentoring programs.
Building a fiberglass kayak is much easier than some would have you believe. I have used a strip built kayak for a plug and made a hull mold for a fiberglass hull and put a strip deck onto it, as well as all fiberglass kayaks. Used a plastic kayak for a plug (See hull design protection act) I can send you a copy, and I have built plugs using pink foam and wood strips, all have worked well.
If any of this interests you please email me and I would be happy to send you photos and write ups on how I did it. No guarantee that it is the best way but it has always worked well for me.
Building fiberglass kayaks
I would add that if anyone is curious they can look at my Facebook page Dale Wenninger Photos