The first quick-and-easy composite construction method for canoes and kayaks This book is certain to appeal to any paddler with a DIY bent. Master craftsman Sam Rizzetta presents three attractive innovations: a new building method that makes Kevlar and carbon-fiber boats cheap and feasible for home builders; an ergonomically designed canoe that makes paddling easier and more comfortable; and a foam-flotation installation method that makes canoes and kayaks safe and unsinkable. Sam Rizzetta is a boat designer and builder, a master luthier (a builder of stringed, fretted musical instruments), a music historian, a composites fabricator, and author. A canoeist since the age of three, he has designed and built numerous canoes and averages 1,000 miles of paddling annually. His innovative Fabric Form method of boatbuilding is an offshoot of his work in the fabrication of custom composite aeronautical components. Sam Rizzetta is a boat designer and builder,a master luthier (a builder of stringed, fretted musical instruments), a music historian, a composites fabricator, and author.A canoeist since the age of three, he has designed and builtnumerous canoes and averages 1,000 miles of paddling annually.His innovative Fabric Form method of boatbuilding is anoffshoot of his work in the fabrication of custom compositeaeronautical components. Canoe and Kayak Building the Light and Easy Way How to Build Tough, Super-Safe Boats in Kevlar, Carbon, or Fiberglass By Sam Rizzetta The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Copyright © 2009 Sam Rizzetta All right reserved. ISBN: 978-0-07-159735-7 Contents Chapter One Introduction Lightweight, strong, durable, safe, efficient to paddle, easy to build, and good looking—these are attributes most of us desire in a modern canoe or kayak. Materials like carbon fiber, Kevlar, and fiberglass, reinforced with epoxy resin, have made these design goals achievable, and building such a boat yourself can not only cost less than purchasing a manufactured boat but also be more rewarding and fun. This book describes two convenient methods for building a lightweight composite canoe or kayak. In the first method, which I call the fabric form method, a skeleton form is built from plywood and wood strips and covered with a taut fabric as a base for laminating the hull. In the second method, which is a simple modification of the first, an existing canoe or kayak is used as the form over which the fabric is stretched, further reducing labor and building time. As you move through the chapters of this book, you will find the building process described step by step, along with the background needed to build a safe and successful small boat of composite materials. Building a boat, however, is a synthesis of numerous interconnected techniques and processes, so be sure to read and understand the entire book before planning a project and starting to build. Chapters 2 and 3 describe the construction method and the tools and materials required. In Chapters 4 and 5 , you will begin cutting wood and setting up your building form Chapter 6 addresses how to assemble the fabric-covered form on which the composite hull will be laminated. This is the heart of the construction process, and it involves very basic, straightforward woodworking. Chapter 7 describes how to save time and cost by using an old canoe as a form to support the fabric. The process of covering the form and turning layers of cloth and ep°oxy into a hull is covered in Chapters 8 and 9 . The idea of a fabric-covered form can be adapted to building in smaller scales, so you will also find a description of how to make a composite scale model canoe in Chapter 10 . Building a model will allow you to become familiar with the process before risking a lot of labor and expensive materials on a full-size boat, and I especially recommend it if you are new to boat-building and working with epoxy Chapters 11 through 14 detail the steps of converting a bare hull into a finished canoe or kayak. Readers experienced in building boats and working with epoxy may be able to safely skim or skip some sections or chapters. Chapter 15 , perhaps the most important, addresses flotation and safety. Here you will learn how to incorporate a lightweight flotation system into your canoe or kayak during construction or add flotation to a finished boat, including a factory-made one. This system allows a solo pad-dler to get back into a capsized canoe or kayak without assistance after an upset in deep water. Both the flotation and the reentry procedures are described in detail. This innovation provides so much more safety and assurance that I no longer venture far from shore without it. All my personal canoes and most of my kayaks are outfitted with this system. The flotation is inside the hull only and can be incorporated as a structural part of the boat, thereby saving weight and increasing strength. Please read Chapter 15 before p