G'Day, Can anyone direct me to a web site or book that describes a design for building a light weight foldable. I have two friends who would love to build a pair of boats to a simple low cost design for paddling down quiet rivers and estuaries. They use public transport or walk so light weight and simple is the key. All the best, PeterO *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Peter wrote: Can anyone direct me to a web site or book that describes a design for building a light weight foldable. I have two friends who would love to build a pair of boats to a simple low cost design for paddling down quiet rivers and estuaries. They use public transport or walk so light weight and simple is the key. Peter, First off, there is very little information available regarding folding kayak construction. Some of the "Klepper like" designs of Percy Blandford can be built as folders. I believe Clark Craft sells plans for these boats. These classic wooden designs date back several decades, but may be of interest to your friends. I don't have the email address of the site. In addition, a new book by Cunningham, gives some info on converting a "traditionally constructed" Greenland kayak to a folder. No matter how simple a folding design , it will never be as simple or inexpensive to build as a non-folder. The fact that they fold requires complexity in the frame and skin not associated with their rigid skin on frame cousins. This fact greatly limits homebuilders. Having said that, The homemade folders that I've made use aluminum stringers, HDPE plastic cross sections, and a PVC skin and are about as simple as it gets for this type of boat. Building costs are in the $400.00US range. That's fairly expensive in homebuilt terms, but compare that to the $3500.00+US for a comparable commercially built folder. To save some money, the cross sections could be made from plywood, with only small pieces of HDPE at the "snap-on" point between stringer and cross section. The first LINK below is to several older design with offset tables. FAP-16 has the most construction info, with TDY-16 and FAP-15 displaying additional detail. The second LINK is to a double with detail on PVC skins. The third LINK is to a newer Greenland design, one of several, that have even more simplified building methods than the earlier designs plus higher performance. http://www.rtpnet.org/robroy/baidarka/slideshow/node-i22.html - Various folders http://home.arcor.de/hmaroske/node-i53.html - Combi Single/Double http://yostwerks.com/SeaRiderCollage.jpg - Sea Rider Greenland These boats all weigh under 35 pounds ( Singles) and assemble in under 30 minutes. The newer Greenland designs are all high performance kayaks with beams under 20" ( 50cm) All take under 100 hours to build. I've got considerably more building info and construction pics than in the LINKS above. All of which is free to the builder. Otherwise, I wouldn't be posting on this forum. If interested, have your friends contact me directly. Sorry, I didn't intend to get so long winded. Best Regards, Tom *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
G'Day Tom, Rob, Bill, Tony and Chris, Thanks for all the feedback on homemade folding kayaks! For sheer elegance and craftsmanship it would be hard to go past Tom's page. His designs are probably a bit ambitious for my friends at the moment, but maybe later on! However, all the posts gave me a feel for key words and I found two boats which look ideal. One was the historical design by Jeth Rathburn - it doesn't really look like a kayak but seems well suited for its purpose; paddling quiet water in a cheap simple, portable boat. And at $20 material cost!! The second was designed by Jim Heter and is called a PakYak. It looks more like a kayak and has a truly elegant folding frame albeit a somewhat wrinkly skin, material costs about $200 and weighs 20to 30lbs with paddles. So thanks again, All the best, PeterO *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
"PeterO" <rebyl_kayak_at_iprimus.com.au> wrote: >For sheer elegance and craftsmanship it would be hard to go past Tom's page. His designs are probably a bit ambitious for my friends at the moment, but maybe later on! Peter, I was able to build a folding version of the "Illorsuit" kayak (predecessor to the Anas Acuta) simply from following the information Tom posted on his website. His _construction_ design is very easy to build--I don't think out of the realm of a beginner. His Sea Rover and Sea Rider may be a bit ambitious of paddling designs for the beginner, but designs like the FAP-16 may appeal to them. With scrounged materials (free aluminum tubing and free plastic from the recycling center), I was able to build my kayak for about $100. Shawn New Yahoo! Photos - easier uploading and sharing. http://photos.yahoo.com/ *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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