Re: [Paddlewise] if not AL, how about wood?

Gordon Snapp" <grsnapp_at_charter.net> wrote [comparing the CLC style deck to
the Pygmy style deck]:

>> I looked at Pygmies.  I think they are also excellent boats.  I opted for
the Chesapeake for a couple of reasons.  1) Their kayaks come with
bulkheads.  Pygmies don't.  The standard method is to use a sea sock.  They
sell bulkheads as extras, which cost extra money.  Also Pygmies have
pointed, angular decks.  Chesapeakes have a nice arched deck.  I don't know
why, but the curved deck appeals to me more.  >>

I've paddled CLC boats a little and admired them a lot.  Very sexy-looking.

I've built a couple Pygmies, and paddled them extensively.  The
multi-paneled decks on Pygmies are stronger, I think, because of the chines.
Both CLC and Pygmy avoid glass on the underside of their decks.  I think
that is a weak point.  A guy who lives near me somehow crunched a hole
through the rear deck of his CLC boat.  Wish I knew what he had done, as
even without glass on either surface, the plywood is pretty strong.  All the
Pygmies are glassed on top, and the ones I own seem pretty strong.  I've
done a lot of self-rescue over the rear deck of my single, and the deck is
scratched, but shows no sign of failure.  Certainly stronger and more rigid
than my FG Eddyline boats over the rear deck.

I agree the added cost of bulkheads for a Pygmy is annoying.  On one boat, I
put 'em in (a double), and am happy with how they turned out.  On my small
single (Osprey Std), I did not put in bulkheads, because I wanted a lighter
boat.  I never use a sea sock in it -- just flotation fore and aft.  I own a
sea sock, but did not like the confining effect.  I don't think a sea sock
is mandatory with Pygmy boats, although they advocate their use.  If I
surfed my Osprey Std, I would use it, though.

--
Dave Kruger
Astoria, OR

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