Question for StephenKelly

g'Day Stephen,
have been wondering how your timber ski has held with no outside glass [except the chines]. Hope to start building timber ski soon and want to keep the weight down as much as possible. Plans call for a 4mm hull with3mm sides. I intend to drop a salvaged Red7 cockpit into a modified CLC Pax 20 hull.
Cheers, Craig

Craig

I have 2 timber ski's - one SLSA Spec style and an ocean racing style - and both are in very good condition. The oldest one is about 4 years old now and apart from a few scrapes is as good as when it went together.

Both skis have 1-2 coats of epoxy on the inside and 2 coats on the outside. Outside then has 2-3 coats of polyeurethane clear finish. The skis are stored under my deck and are therefore protected from the elements.

I have read a boating article where the author said one coat of epoxy would be enough for craft not kept on the water and stored under cover. I would prefer the 2 coats as the epoxy stiffens the craft and adds protection - for a little extra weight. The epoxy is extremely hard - timber will normally strip before epoxy.

If you were to use the craft on rocky/pebble beaches I would fully glass the bottom otherwise should be fine.

I have nearly finished my third ski - SLSA spec style. This time I hope to sell it to someone - or my wife will leave! I am running out of room!

Good luck with the build. The Pax hull is a good looking shape. I hope to see a picture of it.

Regards

Stephen

Craig

I have 2 timber ski's - one SLSA Spec style and an ocean racing style - and both are in very good condition. The oldest one is about 4 years old now and apart from a few scrapes is as good as when it went together.

Both skis have 1-2 coats of epoxy on the inside and 2 coats on the outside. Outside then has 2-3 coats of polyeurethane clear finish. The skis are stored under my deck and are therefore protected from the elements.

I have read a boating article where the author said one coat of epoxy would be enough for craft not kept on the water and stored under cover. I would prefer the 2 coats as the epoxy stiffens the craft and adds protection - for a little extra weight. The epoxy is extremely hard - timber will normally strip before epoxy.

If you were to use the craft on rocky/pebble beaches I would fully glass the bottom otherwise should be fine.

I have nearly finished my third ski - SLSA spec style. This time I hope to sell it to someone - or my wife will leave! I am running out of room!

Good luck with the build. The Pax hull is a good looking shape. I hope to see a picture of it.

Regards

Stephen

Stephen, finally stopped thinkingaboutitand. Ripped and scarfed the panels today. Would liketohave itfinishedby22Oct for King oftheCoast.
Will keep youposted.
Cheers, Craig

Craig

Good to hear you have made a start. If you get it on the water by 22 October you will be doing well. I will have to try and get to the King of the Coast - I have not paddled in a race since Byron last year!

Hope to see you there.

Stephen

Stephen,
Made some progress last week and have stitched the hull. I dropped the cockpit in and have a few issues to sort out. My main concern is that the boat is very wide at the catch compared to my skis. How wide is your ski around the the catch area?? Mine is currently around 460mm. tHis is narrower than the pax20 but still much wider trhan what I have become used to. one option might be to incorporate some cutouts a'la v12.
cheers, Craig

Craig

The spec skis I have are approx 410mm at the catch. The ocean racer type is approx 350mm at the catch.

A cut out is probably the only option as the hull shape is fixed. This will require a bit of timber work but maybe worth it in the long run.

Each ski I have made I have learnt a lot more - keeps you thinking! Good luck.

Stephen

Making some progress
m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=%2F&gl=AU#/watch?v=aTUO1ZZ3lY8

Craig you contacted me via Geartrade regarding some photos of the build process. I could not contact you as there was no email. If you can leave a message through Geartrade with an email address I can send some photos.
your ski is making good progress. Stephen

Email sent
Cheers