Skip to main content

Pygmy Borealis deck seams sanded and ready for fiberglassing

I've started writing a "Rogue Supplementary" manual for Pygmy kayak builders. The idea is that it is filled with as many Pygmy kayak building tips as possible. So far it's up to 30 pages! More on this supplementary manual later.

--------------------

Tonight I sanded the excess epoxy off of the deck panels and lightly rounded over the seams. There are still a few blotches of epoxy here and there but they will completely disappear under the fiberglass.

Overall I think it looks great! The next step is to fiberglass the deck. We have guests coming into town so it may be a week or so before I can return to it. Stay tuned though!

Custom Pygmy Borealis kayak build

You can see a close-up of the seams below. It looks very clean and should make a really nice, clean line when the fiberglass is put down on top. The little blotches of epoxy will go completely invisible and leave just the beautiful wood and a clean seam line.

You can also start to see the benefit of taping the hull instead of stitching and gluing it. There aren't hundreds of tiny holes! 







Aloha!


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Rogue Manual

I've posted about this earlier, but thought it might be good to post it again for anyone who may be interested. I've started to write a manual of tips and tricks for Pygmy solo kayak builders. It covers the taping method, so that your boat doesn't have hundreds of holes all over it. I'm on version 2 now. Version 2 covers several other tips and tricks from myself and from others as collected over time. ATTENTION : Use the manual at your own risk! The only person responsible for any mistakes or problems with the building of your boat is you. Always use the official Pygmy manual that came with your kit. Only do those tips and tricks that make sense to you. If something in the manual doesn't sound right to you, then don't do it! Neither I, nor Pygmy Boats, nor anyone else except YOU is responsible for the safety of your boat and the quality of your build. It's in very rough draft form right now, but if you'd like to read it, please send a $10 donat...

Annapolis Wherry Hull Painted

If you haven't yet, please read my previous post regarding amine blush and primers.  After thoroughly washing the hull with water, and then priming, I was now ready for top coating.  I used Interlux Toplac Plus in Matterhorn White. What a great paint! OMG... this stuff seems to have magical properties! I've never used a paint that does not sag or run, even on vertical hull sides.  Of course, you have to roll on a light coat with a foam roller, but even with a thin coat like that, most paints would still have runs. This one doesn't! And you don't need to tip it either! Just roll it on and walk away.  It gets better too... you don't have to sand after each coat! As long as you roll on a second coat after 16 hours but before 3 days, you don't have to sand. Nice! I did three coats in three days with no sanding between coats. There's a slight bit of orange peel, but most of the surface issues are due to my poor surface prep instead of orange peel. To be honest, ...

Grain Surfboards Waterlog Surfboard Build! Part 1

I'm making a surfboard!  No, I don't actually surf. At least not yet. But we go to Hawaii a lot and a guy has to have a board, right? I didn't kayak either until I built my first Pygmy Coho over 25 years ago. Now I love kayaking. Hopefully the same thing will happen with the surfboard.  The board is a kit from Grain Surfboards . I chose the Waterlog in the 10' version.  I'm super tall and heavy and probably should have selected one of their larger boards, but this is the largest board they have that both Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines will let my check (They have a 10' 5" limit).  I didn't get any pics of the kit box, but it's just a long (10' plus) cardboard mashup box with sticks in it. The epoxy kit comes separately.  I also bought the "rocker table" that is CNC cut to precisely curve the board as you build it. I highly recommend buying a rocker table if you build one.        The kit comes with white cedar planks that you g...