A student sent me of this video of his tests bending kiln dried European Beech and kiln dried Hickory, both soaked in water for a little over a week. These are the two kiln dried woods that I have found bend the best, and while not technically rot resistant I’m not sure that really matters for a skin on frame canoe.
Either of these would work fine for building a skin on frame kayak although I am partial to hickory for its strength. For my canoes it’s a bit trickier because the design is balanced in tension between the outward thrust of the ribs in the inward pressure of the gunwales, which is what allows you to take everything out and nest them together.
I advise most people just to spend the money and get good bending Oak but sometimes that’s just not possible. We’ve had a few people build canoes with kiln dried wood and some have turned out better than others. I’m really looking forward to seeing how this particular pair shapes up.
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