big weekend = big post...
completed the seats, it's a vinyl cover over a foam and polystyrene base located by dowels so I can take the cushioning off if I need to. The frames were cut to size and then hung by nylon string from the gunwhales (until I work out how/where to fix them)
Finally out of the shed (seats yet to be fitted)
detail of the deck
need a bit of a hand to get it on the car
and it only just fits (as long as it's the right way up)
those first tentative moments 30 minutes later
a little back heavy
better balance with the extra weight
even has cup holders
over the bow...
we went to a local park for this paddle and it was packed (Mothers day here) I got a fair amount of attention and a fair few cameras were pointed at me from complete strangers.
It was a great paddle, took all 5 of us at one point and for a simple canoe was easy to paddle had a fair turning circle and was really stable. It caught the side wind as expected but it wasn't too bad.
We paddled up the small creek that feeds it which was about 2 feet wider than the boat was long and me and my 9 year old son turned it around without too much drama, as this was his first time paddling I was really impressed.
I need to find a better way of fitting the seats but hanging them to the gunwhales was very successful just need to do it prettier
The only issue I had was a clouding of the epoxy which I hope goes away, has anyone else seen this?
will it go away or is this a serious flaw in the build. it's not varnished yet I'm going to wait for the weather to get better before I do that (although that's several months away yet
)
I'm so looking forward to the next trip out in two weeks (and starting the next project...
)
Tor
)
