Chimera: Building a wood-strip high-performance kayak
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- čas přidán 8. 07. 2024
- A couple years ago, I had an idea to combine design elements from sea kayaks, whitewater kayaks, and surfskis to create a high-performance kayak with a closed cockpit that would be stable over long distances, relatively fast, and handle well surfing downwind. This style of kayak design is not mainstream at all or really manufactured, so my best bet would be to design and build it myself!
Coming from ~25 years of paddling whitewater, I have some idea of kayak design and what works and what doesn't. However, I had absolutely ZERO kayak building experience.... So I did what any reasonable person would do- binge-watched Nick Schade's CZcams channel (link below, his designs and builds are damn gorgeous!) and decided that making this kayak out of wood strips was not out of my skill set.
I also decided to film the process, and finally- over 18 months since actually finishing the boat- I've put together a build video. To be honest, I would have had the build video done sooner but the kayak turned out to be too much fun to paddle... :-)
Hope you enjoy! And stay tuned to my channel- I've taken the design of this kayak and made improvements... version 2 is in the works!
And of course a short highlight video of the first year or so of paddling this kayak:
• Paddling the Chimera: ...
Other links:
Guillemot Kayaks (Nick Schade's channel for beautiful kayak builds):
/ @nickschade
Clearwood Paddleboards (Paulownia wood distributor- also builds gorgeous wooden SUPs!):
clearwoodpaddleboards.com/
Fiberglass Supply (local-ish company for all things glass and epoxy):
fiberglasssupply.com/
#woodenkayak #woodworking #kayakbuilding #surfski #kayak #stripbuiltkayak
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Hi all-
To answer a few common questions:
(1) "Why paint over the beautiful wood?"
There's a pretty simple reason. I had a color scheme/ pattern in mind when I designed the boat, and wanted to stick to it! This was also my first attempt at a wood-strip kayak build, and tbh there were a couple little spots in the woodwork that didn't make the video that I just wasn't proud of- likely not noticeable by most, but definitely for me :-p
But don't worry- version 2 that I'm building now is certainly not going to be painted... got something even better in the works :-)
(2) Dimensions?
Length: 20 ft/ 6.1 m; Width 18.5 in/ 47 cm; Weight ~42 lbs/ 19 kg
(3) Are the plans available?
Not for this particular boat at the moment. I'm close to finishing up building a second version, spent a lot of time revising the design, smoothing out some of the lines, and refining the materials and workflow for the build. If I'm happy with the second version, the yes! I'll be making the plans for both V1 and V2 available.
(Spoiler alert- of course I'm filming the build process! And- V2 is looking like it'll come out at about 2/3 the weight of V1...)
You did an awesome job on the woodwork for a first time. It looks much easier when Nick is doing it compared to doing it yourself. How do you find it compares to surf skis for stability and speed? I have a Think Zen and and am contemplating either buying a Think 6 or building a Guillemot Kayaks Mystery
20 ft boat for just one rower. Why so long boat? Is there is some pluses for so long boat?
@@bobododoo3925 longer boats are faster- to a point. Everything is a compromise though. Length = Faster but less nimble, narrow width = faster but less stable (which actually means slower if you are upside down).
Great job! You inspired me to build my own kayak. I'm curious to see how V2 turned out. Thanks!
it was SOOO beautiful.. before the paint :) ... i love wood finish boats!
That reversed bow is gorgeous, makes it super classic yet modern.
Sounds like retro :)
BEAUTIFUL design!
Amazing. Engrossing. Beautiful.
Thank you!
Incredible work.
Congratulations
Amazing boat build. Thanks for documenting and sharing
I've been inspired to make my own! That was fantastic!
Great work!
Ein wunderbares Kayak. Danke für das tolle Video 👍
Beautiful boat, outstanding craftsmanship, thanks for sharing.
I started watching the video without first reading the intro and after a few minutes I began to guess that you were under the influence of Nick Schade. The guy is a marvel at kayak building. And you learned well.
What an absolutely beautiful piece of craftsmanship and creativity!
Absolutely brilliant. Looks fast.
what a beautiful boat. thanks for sharing
Nice shape and very good job done!
Killer boat mate! Loved the video.
A humbling video tbh... What an awesome vessel.
The build was amazing but the design is just excellent . Form follows function , those are the guide lines we must adhere to . How each artist reaches that is the magic . Just beautiful 👍
Beautifull work!
The kayak is very nice, you did a great job. especially the name was very special. I live in Turkey. The legend of Chimera lived on the southwest coast of this place.
very good! impressive!
Nice build. I made a cedar strip surf ski a few years back, watching your build makes me want to do another. Mine came in about 36 pounds, I think with pawlonia, and some lighter glass, i could probably build one under 30 pounds.
really nice. Good job.
Nicely done. That looked like an insane amount of effort, but I imagine it was a labor of love.
the best spent 30 minutes of my life, great job, good vibes here in Brazil for you
Solid! I want one!
Amazing work, watched from beginning to end! May it serve you well :)
Great work
I like it. Very nice!
And great paddle technique.
Beautiful kajak!
Greetings from Germany
what a great boat... and you have got really fast moving hands ;-)... nice vid
Super boulot! Un surfski ponté
Very cool!
well done!!!!!
Brilliant video and what an amazing kayak. So much effort, to build. A very complicated process. Along with some other comments I think a clear coat would have looked beautiful but you should be very proud of her and thank you for sharing.
Thanks for sharing
Such a cool video. inspiring. Thanks bro.
I just loved the baptising bit.
.
Fantastic job filming this! Well fantastic job building too... it's not out of your skillset if you decide it's not out of your skillset. Amazing build.
Beautiful build. I paddle most types of kayaks in South Africa.
It's so amazing skill. Great
Unreal! I remember you building this in real time, and seeing it all come together in one chunk brings home how much work you actually did on it.
A beautiful vessel. :)
Awesome!
Wow, that was amazing and inspiring! You did an amazing job for a first time build, congratulations!!
Thank you!
Nice design
Nice kayak
AMAZINGNES!!!
Slick as...
Dam, this is a good video!
Great looking kayak with an interesting design. It reminds me a little of Björn Thomassons Panthera or Sea Racer which are similar kayak designs of a surfski inspired hull with a closed cockpit.
brilliant
Beautiful boat and excellent video!
Fantastic job, and what a beautiful kayak it turned out.
1:42 Nice Jig !!
Thank you!!!!!!!
Awesome 👌
Beautiful build, great design and execution.
Excellent design and the video is pure ZEN to watch :-)
I was terrified to see you left the forms inside, until I realized it was two separate shells :-D
nice.
Gorgeous boat and amazing workmanship. Be proud of yourself. It's amazing.
just watch the whole video, it is great. hard to believe this is your first build, everything looked spot on perfect. it would be great to see a video showing how you designed it.
Been thinking about doing a design video- I'm working on a second version of this design at the moment, we'll see how a few small tweaks change the performance.
@@kayakphd i have a kayak i designed and built. i can e-mail it to you, or send it on facebook. i think i sent you a friend add ?
Hermoso!!!!!
Fajny film, podziwiam Twoją determinację i cierpliwość. Dziękuję i pozdrawiam.
This is awesome! I built a stitch and glue dinghy about 4 years ago. Your strip plank boat has a lot of extra steps that require more patience and thought. You nailed it! I like the colour scheme. I think you made the right choice by covering up the wood. I see in the comments that you are working on a Version 2. I am really hoping that you document that one in a similar fashion to this one. I also see that it turned out heavier than you were hoping. My dinghy also turned out heavier, but by around 5-6kgs. Like you, I know the areas I overbuilt and how to reduce the weight in future projects. You should consider rearranging your workshop to maximise your space. It looks like it is a storage shed. It might be worth moving a lot of that stuff to a different area to give yourself another bench or two. I really think it could speed up your workflow. Loved everything, well done!
I wish I could have a bigger workshop! Limited to half of a 400 sq-ft garage at the moment until we buy a house with a bigger garage... I'm making version 2 just about 2 ft/ 60 cm shorter (and using thinner strips and different fabrics), aiming for sub 15 kg total. Right now the deck and hull together are just under 10.5 kg. Hoping to be done by the end of January, and yes, videos to follow!
Cheers :-)
@@kayakphd So cool. Thanks for the update!
That is a cool wife. She doesn’t take the whole roll of wax paper, just what she needs. I bet she would let you put a ring gear in the oven, and a bearing in the freezer if you needed to.
Oh, I’ve had to replace a few kitchen items…. 😂
Also had to promise that one of the next kayak builds will be hers!
Top!
Hermoso trabajo amigo, me gustarìa hacer uno.
Saludos desde Veracruz (Mexico).
Nice! I bet its fast in the water
Such a beautiful boat. It would be amazing to have access to the plans :)
sweet
Sweet boat! I don't have the patience for projects that are this intense! Can't wait to see the next boat finished!
Nice. Tip: When sanding, guide coats show where your at and how your progressing. Graphite powder is good, or scribble over it with a pencil, and then sand back areas until it is removed. Apply a few times through out the process. Reduces unnecessary sanding. Marking pens leach through the glass after time. Just a thought.
Great work! Beautiful lines on that hull. Would have liked to see more of the rudder install. Also just gotta say it, I would have looked into having it professionally gel coated for all that hard work you did painting it seems a bit wrong. All the best, happy paddling!
I had a color scheme in mind when I initially designed the boat, it was one thing I didn't really want to change. The next version which I'm building now will have the wood visible, and probably a clear-coat finish
Gel coat would most probably add extra weight. They also tend to look faded after a while. The poly finish on Think kayaks looks way better than the gel finish on Epic's, Fenns etc
WAHOOO
As a fellow strip kayak builder I found the quality of your video, your original design and your workmanship to be joys to watch.
As an Australian I found your alcohol consumption during the build disgusting!
Who the hell drinks only one wine or one scotch or inconceivably only one beer while working in the shed?
Can you even buy one beer? I think not. Cheers mate!
Not documented during the build: the extra beer recycling bin in the garage! General rule is >1 beer per hour of build time
@@kayakphd Very solid shed rule.
Hola, muy buen trabajo!, de este diseño, donde puedo comprar los planos, muchas gracias y un saludo.
So much patience and skills, very impressed ! Why did you paint ? The wood/carbon aspect was very nice !
finish level/materials used not designed to be a bright finish.
Great build, great vid, thanks for sharing! Gorgeous boat, and I’m okay with the paint job, LOL.
Why did you decide to use Paulownia instead of something local like Western red cedar? Were the strips 1/4” thick?
Thanks for the education. I want to build a small catamaran to learn to sail
Nice! If you haven't already, check out CLC boats (Chesapeake Light Craft)- they have a small catamaran kit you can build
@@kayakphd thanks. Will check out that vid now
Great Video and beautiful boat! Can you tell me a bit about the design process? What software did you use? Do you have experience designing hulls / boats? Did you use the software to create the forms? Thanks!
Amazing build! So much attention to detail. How did you consolidate the inside carbon lip on the coaming? I've been wondering how to do that, I'm planning on starting a build soon.
I cut ~2" wide bias strips from the cloth I had, and pre-wetted the cloth and inner lip with epoxy before carefully pressing the carbon into place. There was a little bit of fraying that left a ragged edge on the deck- but that got covered up with the paint!
Hi another question. Did you think about putting scallops in the top like surf skis have so you can start the stroke closer to the hull?
Very nice video. I’m wondering how you got the last few strips that you put on the bottom of the hull trimmed to fit perfectly?
Very, very carefully :-) Not shown was the scrap strip bucket with all the strips that I accidentally planed too much off of.....
Beutifull boat. How much it weighs. You draw it a scratch?
Love the build I have no idea why it is so long and what is the advantage of that. 🏴
length equals speed up to a certain point. The surf ski's shown at the end of video are all around 620cm in length. To keep up you need a fast kayak as well as good paddling technique which I think he has nailed
OMG
Great looking boat. What is to weigh?
👏👏👍👍
Great job brother, Artist. thanks for sharing. for me, to make my own kayak is one thing I miss is I dont know yet how use the Adobe Illustrator . is simple???
curious do you live in WA state? im from Bothell and there are so MANY places to go in a kayak like this over here!! Im jelly!
Nice work! width, lenght, weight, hull speed?
Love the shape of it! How does it perform? 😀
Pretty great, actually!
czcams.com/video/JxuPha_J2do/video.html
I am interested in plans as well. I have built several SOF, & Stitch kayaks, but not a strip. I have been looking for something exactly like this to play around with, a Ski that you sit in. Your design looks like it fits the bill, can't wait to see generation 2. I personally think you did a fantastic job. A natural wood version would look nice, but the white stands out as well. What is the rough length, width for the next one?
I took a bit of length and width off for version 2, it's coming out ~5.6 m length and 45 cm width. Shorter = the build process fits better in my garage! Also saves weight, and should actually increase the speed with less wetted surface area
bit late to the party, but my word, what a beauty. The paulowina looks like its nice to work with for boat building, how does it compare to cedar for example?
I've never worked with cedar, but the paulownia is wonderful to work with- planes and sands So easily!
Beautiful, I'd left the nice wood pattern shine through, but it's your boat, so you're entitled to paint it, if you like it that way ... how much does it weigh in ?
Looks great. Can i ask why didn't you use some really light weight, quality marine ply, 3 or 4 mm?Would be lighter than Paulownia
I'd have to rip some pretty thin strips of marine ply to fit the shape of the boat in some places, plus I was able to purchase the paulownia pre-milled. I'm working with 3/16" paulownia for the current build, might even go 1/8" for a really light sprint K1 build in the future
i have made myself 3 wooden kajaks.A wooden core 5 mm is ok. if you want extra stifnes you can put carbon or carbon-kevlar instead of fiberglass at the external surface
have a look at www.thomassondesign.com/en/catalog/my-kayaks. I am not familiar with this type of kajak that you design. But some desings , from that site, that i have test is super nice.
I did a 3mm plywood kayak and laminated in and outside. It‘s a hell of stiff and the next one I only will laminate outside - inside I‘ll just „paint“ with epoxy for waterproofness. Also I experimented with thinning the epoxy to have a easier saturation of the glass fiber. So I laminate with the roller and save kilos of weight just by economising the amount of epoxy. Good results and far enough stiffness, even with 3mm plywood. All the builders of wooden kayaks build imho to heavy boats with to thick plywood and to heavy glass fiber. Do we really need rocketproof kayaks to survive the heaviest possible storms?
@@ggagg0 i do not know about plywood but if you want to save weigth you can put a super thin layer or epoxy ,leave it harden and then put the glass-epoxy. that way the wood does not saturate too much with epoxy. The kayaks with wood weigths normaly around 20kg . The last that i made was 20,5kg and was a 5,5m long with a wooden core 4-5mm