Materials | Cape Falcon Kayak

Refreshing my Greenland Paddles

January 2022September 2022Leave a comment

I really like the aging process of a plain red cedar Greenland paddle. It starts out beautiful and accumulates scars from various adventures, getting sanded and oiled every few years, ultimately ending up on the front deck as a spare whenever I get around to making a new one. I like having my old...

Video: Just a few nice steam bending clips

January 2022July 2023Leave a comment

Just a few nice steam bending clips from the kayak I’m working on right now. As usual excellent quality bending oak from Zena Forest Products makes me look like I almost know what I’m doing....

New adjustable footbraces for our modern kayaks

January 2022September 2022Leave a comment

Spent the last couple weeks buying and trying every single brand of commercially available footbrace to replace our dwindling supply of the now discontinued Harmony Slidelocks. I’ve been pretty salty about this whole thing because for all of their disadvantages the slide locks were light, easy to install, and had a unique geometry that...

Testing the “Superlon” nylon from Skinboats.org

December 2021September 2022Leave a comment

I’m taking one for the team here today and trying the new ‘Superlon’ nylon from skinboats.org. This is basically my job, figuring out what works and what doesn’t so my students can avoid the learning curve. There are a lot of really bad skinboat fabrics out there that the sellers will promise you works...

In today’s episode of Brian gets an email and immediately has a panic attack…

December 2021September 2022Leave a comment

In today’s episode of Brian gets an email and immediately has a panic attack, I found out that the foot braces we’ve been using for 15 years are being discontinued with no backstock to buy which has me scrambling to find an alternate solution. I’ve actually wanted to replace this brand for quite a...

Today’s tool tip: Makita circular saw blades

November 2021September 2022Leave a comment

Today’s tool tip: for the past 5 years I’ve been using these Diablo circular saw blades to slice up my bending oak to get the best possible yield on my kayak and canoe ribs. I’m currently using a lower-powered ‘craft’ table saw because my normal saw won’t fit in my current workspace. Cutting with...

An attempt at ageing plastic toggles

November 2021September 2022Leave a comment

Over the years I’ve found the toggle and leather deck line systems seen on many traditional kayaks to be far superior to shock cord. Objects on deck are held more securely (especially in surf) and any line on the boat can be used to lift, tow, or rescue. Like a lot of people I...

West Greenland kayak buid: Installing the leather deck lines

October 2021September 2022Leave a comment

Skin on frame kayak building is surprisingly easy with one big exception: threading the deck lines. I start with thick English bridle leather straps, stretching and rounding them by pulling them through successively smaller holes until the smallest hole takes my full body weight to pull the line through. Next I burn holes in...

West Greenland kayak buid: Coating the kayak

October 2021July 2023Leave a comment

The coating I use is the 2 part polyurethane sold by skinboats.org. This catalyzed 100% solids product is super tough, relatively non-toxic, relatively inexpensive, and lightning fast compared to any other way you can finish a kayak. The downsides are that it’s not UV resistant and it’s also not recoatable. Just like any finish,...

West Greenland kayak buid: Our skinning system

October 2021September 2022Leave a comment

I think I’m going to start offering just the skinning portion of my kayak building course separately so people aren’t building one of my kayaks can still take advantage of our skinning and coating techniques. It’s not exactly rocket science, but there’s a zillion little things that can go wrong and ruin the finished...

Video: West Greenland kayak build: Lashing on the keel and stringers

September 2021September 2022Leave a comment

After bending in the ribs I clamp the keel and stringers on as soon as possible to smooth out the shape while the ribs are still pliable. Next I attach the stringers with a continuous lashing of flat artificial sinew (waxed polyester). Continuous lashings and individual lashings were common on historic kayaks and any...

Acid dye color test results

September 2021July 2023Leave a comment

The results are finally in from the color test we’ve been working on since the beginning of the year. We made two color palettes, one with acid dye and the other one with rare earth pigment, and exposed them to summer sunlight for 100 days to quantify the effects of UV exposure on each...

Video: Slicing up some gorgeous bending oak

July 2021September 2022Leave a comment

Slicing up some gorgeous bending oak from Zena Forest Products to send overseas with my kayak building kits. I don’t sell bending oak domestically anymore because people can order it a lot cheaper from J. W. Swan & Sons (or pick some up in person from Zena), but I’m happy to put it in...

Video: Making beads for the deck rigging on a Greenland kayak

July 2021September 2022Leave a comment

The easy way to make beads for the deck lines on a Greenland Kayak. A drill with a slightly tapered dowel and an angle grinder with a 36 grit sanding wheel. I’m using high density polyethylene here but this also works well with ivory, it just smells a lot worse. I generally don’t make...

On YouTube: Comparing oak species for steam bending

July 2021September 2022Leave a comment

Check out the longer version of this video that we just put up on the Cape Falcon Kayak YouTube channel where I compare the steam bending properties of 2 different White Oak species. We bend each of them at 3 different steaming time intervals, bending each to shapes that you would see in my...