Rick Sylvia wrote: >Which is a better boat....fiberglass or wood? Wood. Without a doubt in my mind, is the absolute, #1, definitive best boatbuilding material. And I can say that without a hint of bias! ;) My opinions in no way represent the last word in boat material selection. Re: Durability Wood kayaks are generally sheathed with fiberglass. A well-built wood kayak will be as durable as a well-built fiberglass kayak. There are more and less durable construction methods in each material, so it's not really an issue. Re: Performance/Maneuverability Any boat design that can be created from a mold (fiberglass) can be replicated in wood. It's a wash. Boat design isn't really much of a function of material selection. Re: Maintenance Wood kayaks need just slightly more maintenance than fiberglass. Usually, this means an easy annual or biannual re-varnishing. Now builders are using automotive polyurethane clearcoats that have significantly more UV and scratch resistance than varnishes, and this re-coating might be necessary only every 8 or 10 years. Re: Aesthetics Here is where my bias shines through. I believe that a well-built wooden kayak is more beautiful than any fiberglass kayak. Re: Cost Building your own kayak is the cheapest way (short of having one gifted to you!) to obtain a kayak. Having someone build a kayak for you is the most expensive way to obtain a kayak. Check out the Kayak Building BBS at: http://www.kayakforum.com/cgi-bin/Building/index.cgi for any questions you have about kayak construction. Shawn *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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