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Our kayak kit builders were chosen to represent different types of people most likely to delve into this type of project.Bert is a pad- dling enthusiast with a garage full of boats, who was a little shy about the idea at first. He complained that he wouldn’t have time, although hinting he had always wanted to try building his own boat.We sent Bert to surf the Net where he found the Chesapeake Light Craft Pax 18 and he was sold on the project.The Pax 18 was a specialized boat design he couldn’t buy off the shelf, so the proj- ect took on double the value; the experience of building his own boat and ending up with a boat that intrigued him to keep his inter- est in paddling tweaked. Bert was the least keen to begin the proj- ect but once underway,we couldn’t hold him back.Being single and close to retirement might have had something to do with it, but he was always ahead of deadline and always thinking of ways to free-


lance from the instructions and customize his Pax 18 by adding dec- orative wood inlays and Native artwork. Dave is a classic case and there are thousands just like him.Dave has been dreaming of building his own boat for 30 years but start- ing from scratch has always been too intimidating. Dave has few tools and is the type of guy who gets his Honda Accord’s signal light changed at the dealer.The idea of his Pygmy Osprey Standard in pre- cut pieces and all the necessary supplies arriving in a few boxes made the whole process of building his own boat seem possible. Dave’s a bit of a putterer and not a speedy builder but his enthusi- asm was unbelievable.I think everyone within a country mile knew about the project. Although we launched his Opsrey, Dave is not quite finished but he promises to keep us posted. Dale and Tina fit the bill as our keen recreationalists.Neither one has really paddled a kayak, so the launch of their Roy Folland


Tina & Dale


Roy Folland Wooden Kayaks SeaWolf


The final assembly process of our Roy Folland Wooden Kayak Sea Wolf went pretty much as the manual said it would, despite my neophyte pessimism. I kept think- ing, how is the epoxy going to hold these pieces together? The deck had to be bent to follow the curve of the deck beams and held in place with packing tape until the epoxy dried. Building the kayak was my first experience with epoxy and I have new respect and amazement at its strength and holding power. Next time I break a coffee cup handle it’s goodbye Crazy Glue, hello epoxy. After seeing Grant Pacey's fin- ished Sea Wolf I wanted mine to be just as perfect. After fibreglassing the hull, subsequent layers of epoxy are added to fill in the weave of the fibreglass. Maybe I was applying the epoxy too thickly but I had runs and drips that had to be filed and sanded out. I spent more time


applying epoxy and then trying to smooth it out than any other part of the building process. The perfec- tionist inside wasn’t happy with the smoothness of the hull but with launch deadlines looming, the Sea Wolf had to be painted. I’m going to refinish it and install the hatches in the fall after a summer of pad- dling—the weather is just too nice. Tina says if I'm not sure how something will turn out, I won't start working on it. Boy, she really knows me. Being unfamiliar with kit build- ing I was a little intimidated. But as each section came together it built my confidence to proceed to the next step. I now know a lot of little tricks to make building a second kit way easier.


The arrival of summer allowed me to move the kayak out of my dark, cramped garage and into the driveway. It was so nice to have room to move around the kayak and have plenty of ventilation. The one drawback to working outdoors in the spring is that a freshly epox- ied kayak is one giant piece of fly- paper.


I was excited about getting the kayak in the water. Even though the finish wasn’t up to my standards, the Sea Wolf looked pretty darn good. Working outside got me lots of compliments from the neigh- bours. Everyone at work has mock- ingly been asking me if it will float. I was more worried about the hull touching the sand at the beach. Even though I'm going to refinish it, I still didn't want to give it a single scratch.


So into the kayak I climbed and pushed myself off. It was only my second time in a kayak and the first one I tried was more like a row- boat. I was very unstable; I felt that if I leaned even slightly to one side or the other, I would be swimming. With Tina waving from shore I managed to do two or three laps of the bay.


Now it was Tina's turn to try it out. Also new to kayaking, I warned her that she should really be careful. Tina took off, happily paddling around the bay, looking like she was born in the Sea Wolf. Okay, so maybe I need a lesson or two but I have my own theory about


the differences in weight distribu- tion between men and women which I’m not about to go into to avoid sleeping with the kayak in the garage.


After a weekend at the cottage


Tina loves the Sea Wolf. Although I’m learning to relax, enjoy its speed, and realize the stability of the Sea Wolf I'm still a little bit iffy about getting any distance from shore. Our neighbours at the cot- tage are probably wondering why I'm paddling back and forth with an unsure look on my face while Tina is yelling “Wiener Boy” from shore.


The purpose of this experiment was to see if the average outdoor enthusiast could build a kayak from a kit. The answer is yes. I basically haven't built anything since high school woodworking class. Roy Folland’s instructions were easy to follow and everything fit together. So I’d say, with a little spare time any guy can build his wife a beau- tiful kayak!


Dale & Tina ADVENTUREkayakmag.com 23


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