Now I really start to be different.
Ever since I started this build I was looking for information on how to cover this beast using a locally sourced material.
My issue has been trying to get this fabric locally. no one seems to know much about it and my local canoe and kayak clubs have made my enquires feel unwelcome. Rowers and woodworkers want to know about the project. Kayakers in Australia don't seem to want to share information.
The plans spec material of 3.7oz- 9oz (125.45gsm-305.15gsm). Normally a polyester or a nylon to shrink fit to the frame. Almost like an aeroplane fabric. you then paint it to seal it and give it colour. I don't know how much this would increase the fabric weight.
If I was to use aircraft material, it would be light but in the words of greater builders than me, an aircraft only gets to touch the ground once. This may not be the best combination for you given you're a river rower and want to row in sub-tropical waters with sandy beaches and sharp shells. anything that is of a heavyweight. I started to look at 12oz (430gsm) fabrics.
material that might be suitable to use as coverings have been hard to find in Australia. My enquiries from overseas were great and I will be happy to recommend George Dyson but there were others that let me ask dumb questions. Lots of people on Duckworks and the duckworks facebook page. My biggest killer was/is the relative distance from the rest of the world Australia actually is in these (then) COVID times. Shipping fees were equal to the cost of the 8m of material I need.
My European contacts gave me a price of around $220au delivered for a 12oz fabric that will need to then be stitched, shrunk, doaped, coloured and painted all of which will either work or need to be looked at again. If I was to use a 2 part urethane coating, it gets expensive fast.
Without wanting to insult Dave Gentry, I then kinda went off-script to try and find alternative covering solutions.
I knew I was looking at a 400gsm+ solution but I wanted something that was easier. I looked at a pre-coloured fabric but that had issues regarding shrinkage. Some mates thought of fibreglass but I wanted to keep the spirit of fabric in the project.
One solution kinda popped up as PVC. I know that Dave Gentry the designer of the project has covered some boats in clear PVC and I honestly thought about it for about an hour then put aside the idea. Next time.
PVC fabric then caught my idea. A builder called Tom Yost has apparently used this method in the past to create folding kayaks. I am building a BIG kayak so I thought i"d give it a try.
I found a company here in Brisbane that would sell me PVC so I found out more.
My rationale is that trucks use this stuff for tarps and other users such as farmers use it for strong tarps. I was looking at a 440gsm PVC but also want this project to last so I got a 600gsm PVC. This is strong, locally made for our conditions, was made to be outside and can be repaired with some ease.
I bought the 600gsm PVC in red. I guess this has been a reaction to the recent floods, and I generally like red. I like the cherry in the colour samples and you can see it draped over the frame. I wanted red because even on the brown of the river, red stands out. In the ocean where I want to row, red will also be different. It can stand out and also match the black deck fittings I have. My white oars will be a contrast but that's a good thing.
now I just need to keep going with this build and have more fun with it.
D
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