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A cool tool can be any book, gadget, software, video, map, hardware, material, or website that is tried and true. All reviews on this site are written by readers who have actually used the tool and others like it. Items can be either old or new as long as they are wonderful. We post things we like and ignore the rest. Suggestions for tools much better than what is recommended here are always wanted.
Using the Kayaks You Can Build book, I built my first Coho, a stich-and-glue plywood sea kayak. Before deciding on the Pygmy kit, I also considered ones offered by Mill Creek, Red Wing, Cheasapeake Light Craft, Dancing Waters, and One Ocean Design. In the end, I settled on Pygmy based on the feedback I got from other builders who touted just how very, very accurate the computer controlled router cut parts are. From the start, I realized I’ve seen a lot of Cohos out there over the years, which seemed to imply the design would be pretty well nailed down and refined by now. I was right.
The eight panels in the hull of the Coho make it a multi-chine boat, sort of half way between a strip construction and a four-panel hull. The way the deck fits elegantly onto the hull was also a big factor in my decision. I really like the fact that it is such a simple, but effective attachment. Some designs mandate you place screws or nails through the deck to the shear — to me that just seemed wrong. I also liked the more modern vertical stern, though the bow still very much keeps with a classic Greenland kayak shape. The hull is not too wide, but very stable and the deck’s extra two panels create a shape that reduces the knocking of your knuckles when you’re paddling. Also, the thinner panels of the hull really allow them to twist and create intriguing transitions that are simply not possible with a four-panel hull.
I was at Eagle Lake, CA and someone had a Pygmy Arctic Tern. The boat paddled like a dream — reminded me of the first time I rode a high quality road racing bicycle. I was finally sold. Not long after, I bought my Coho kit from Pygmy.
I took a pretty leisurely approach and probably spent about 300 hours, until it was done. After that, there is always something to consider adding — a carrying cart, some kind of a sail rig, etc. So I guess it is never really all finished! There really are only two problems with the Coho: 1) though they are very durable, you have so much time in them, you still really want to take care of them, 2) just about every trip I go on I get about six people a day stopping and asking me questions. It can actually delay your leaving the beach! — Mark Forwalter
The Advanced Expedition inflatable kayak has allowed me to get out on the water more often than I ever would with one of its hardshell cousins.
Because the boat fits in the trunk of my car and can be carried solo in a duffle bag, I find myself using it when the hassle of loading a more traditional kayak onto a roof rack and muscling it around would dissuade me. Using a double action pump it can be set up and ready to go in under 10 minutes, and the break down is even faster. It just deflates and folds back into its bag.
While it doesn’t track as well as a hard bottomed boat, it more than makes up for this with its incredible stability. Buoyed by two high-pressure inflatable tubes that form the 13.5 foot frame, the boat withstands moderate waves and can carry up to 400 pounds. Standard spray skirts fit and keep the inside snug and dry.
I have used it to surf waves, paddle with sea lions, and as a kayak escort for swim races. In all cases I have been able to keep up with fellow kayakers.
I highly recommend this for kayakers who want a full size boat but don’t have a garage or the space to keep one! — Ben Hanna
I have built several simple fiberglass canoes and repaired my sailboats, but using this book I was able to build my first “real,” high-performance boat, a Pygmy Coho, a stitch and glue plywood construction sea kayak. I read a lot of books on kayak construction, stitch and glue type in particular. I also used the Coho building manual from Pygmy some. But I absolutely would not have been as successful with my boat had I not read this book before building and referenced it during building. The detail, sharing of practical experience, the tons of photos, clarity in explanation and the examples of the exact same boat — the Coho — made this the only choice. The book lays out everything in terms of what you can expect to accomplish on Day 1, Day 2 and so forth. Even if you don’t follow it step by step, the book provides the fundamentals to make good alternative building decisions.
I was able to do all of the following alternatives: Rigged up my own plumbing for a built in bilge pump. Added 4-oz glass to the deck for strength. Added the bulkheads to also gain rear deck strength. Doubled the coaming lip for strength and aesthetics. Added in hardwood keys at the coaming spacer joints for strength. Fiberglassed the entire coaming (probably really not necessary). Made my own jigs with hot glue and pop sickle sticks as prealignment tools for bulkheads, seat braces, deck joint, etc.
Above all else, the book explains how to build a very flat, level, elevated worktable with internal/external stations to hold the boat in position. That aspect alone is reason enough to go with this book. I am currently building a skin-on-frame, Greenland style kayak for my wife, but I would re-read this book before building any other stitch and glue boat. I also recommend the Greenland kayak website, Qajaq USA and Guillemont Kayak’s boat-building forum, where there is a wealth of information for the construction and use of stitch and glue, strip building and traditional skin-on-frame (SOF) kayaks. — Mark Fowalter
In order to achieve professional results, each stage of your work should be completed with the least number of steps as well as prepare you for the next stage. For example, if you apply the filler casually with a stick, before the next step can happen the excess will have to be sanded off. Professionals eliminate the cleanup step by placing just enough filler in the right place to do the job. When the masking tape is peeled off, the step is complete and ready for the next one. Keeping the filler under control saves time and minimizes exposure to the bad stuff. That's a pretty fair payoff, but there's also a bonus that comes with thinking lazy. That bonus is professional results. You cannot build a professional-quality boat when you are doing damage control between each step... We are all good at something; by combining an understanding of what needs to be done with what is already familiar, we find that practical solutions present themselves.
The less epoxy you put on, the less you have to sand off. If the epoxy is kept under control when wet, expect about one day of sanding, preferably outside. Tidy glue application brings the additional benefits of less unhealthy dust produced and more efficient -- and less costly -- use of the epoxy.
How to Begin So, how to begin? One option, of course, is the freeform approach, in which the kayak is built right on the floor or, as one manufacturer suggests, on somethingflat like three cardboard boxes. Although this lets you get right to work, there are a number of drawbacks. One is the possibility of introduction funky eccentricitiesand variables to a process that requires precise control. The other is the questionable practicality of spending hours bent over, toiling on the floor. Thisis a pretty good sized “some assembly required” project, and at some point in the process either your knees or your back will start protesting. Another way to go is to build a worktable that will raise your assembly surface to a more civilized altitude. With some forethought the worktable also becomes a modification of the traditional boatbuilder’s strongback. A big advantage to the worktable is that you are, in effect, working from the same baseline that the designer used to draw the boat. With the addition of a centerline and station liners, the table becomes an accurate reference and a jig for many of the building steps... Being able to reach in and clamp along the edge of the worktable is convenient, and a step towards making tidy joints that require very littlecleanup. This not only saves time but also reduces your exposure to the epoxy.
Building the box beam and fitting and leveling the top of the worktable took the best part of one day and consumed two sheets of plywood. If building this beam sounds like too much work, there are other possibilities for getting a stable base under the top. Consider a straight ladder set up on a sawhorses, laminated floor joints or anything else that will support the length of the table to accommodate your height and the kayak you are building. Making the long straight cuts necessary for building a straight table could be a challenge for the casual builder. The easiest solution, and one that also simplifiestransportation, is to have the plywood sheet ripped into desired widths when you purchase the board. Some big-box home improvement stores offer this service at little or no extra cost, using extremely accurate dedicated panel saws. If you decide to do it yourself and are using a table saw, keep in mind that the panel must be supported at both the in-feed and out-feed ends for safety reasons and to ensure that the cuts are straight. If you are using a portable circular saw, consider clamping a straightedge to the board to guide the saw. The simple-to-build box beam consists of two 8-foot open-ended boxes held together with a 4-foot sectionthat fits in the open ends of the boxes to tie them together. The important point to keep in mind is that once joined, the top side of the box must be straight.
Cradle forms are the secret to controlling the shape of a plywood kayak. They can make the difference between a twisted hull with a hogged bottom and the beautiful kayak in your mind. Besides, now that you have a worktable, you might as well add several cradle forms and enjoy the peaceful rhythm of building when the pieces fall into place and stay where you put them. With cradles attached to the predictable base formed by the worktable, the hull will come together at a controlled distance above the baseline and will be centered over the table centerline; our horizontal reference will be the level, anytime we need it. As flimsy plank is added to the flimsy plank, the crade forms will hold all the pieceswhere they should be. The pieces will come together without being stressed or having to be bullied into position. Cover the path of the cut with masking tape to provide something to mark on and to protect the desk and the edge of the cut. Drill a hole inside the line big enough for the jigsaw blade (5-84). Take your time making the cut. Trust the line and follow it; it is easier to make the first cut to the line than to try to clean it up later. As the cut progresses, bridge the joint with tape to keep the cutout from falling into the hull (5-85). Peel off the tape when you have finished making the cut and clean up the shape with a rasp or a hard sanding block if needed. This opening will be the pattern for trimming the parts to come, so getting a smooth shape now will save correcting the same problem on the spacer and rim later.
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