The Workshop: Construction

In building our Cape Charles 18 kayaks, we used 4mm okuome for the hull and 3mm okuome for the deck, in order to decrease its overall weight. The boat is built by lacing together pieces of plywood with 18 guage copper wire. Once the pieces are laced together epoxy and fiberglass are applied to the seams. Bulkheads are placed in the boat just behind the seat and at the end of your required foot-room.

After coating the hull with fiberglass cloth, the deck is applied according to fit. The cockpit and hatches are cut out and eventually it is time to finish the kayak. The Cape Charles is a very well designed boat, which deserves a great deal of care in the finishing process. It is one of the most tedious yet rewarding steps of the project.

Norman Mildren applies an expert hand to the tricky job of painting the hull.

In building these boats we have found a couple of tricks with the deck rigging that we have found to be very convenient. Instead of drilling through the side of the boat for the carrying handles we decided to drill into the decks and screw on straps. We also like to leave loops of strap overhanging the rub rail in order to facilitate tying the boat onto your car or trailer.

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