New project! I’ve always done my router work outside due to the huge amounts of microfine cedar dust it produces. Its a bit rough in the winter time! Here I’m working late to finish a double LPB kayak prep before some nasty weather arrives. I’m bouncing back-and-forth between a lot of projects right now...
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Video: Re-steaming a kayak to flatten the hull
Most people make it through our online skin boat classes without having any issues, but part of what you’re paying for when you purchase my courses is customer support if something goes wrong. You can text or call me anytime day or night, I will ship you free replacement parts even if you broke...
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West Greenland kayak buid: Our skinning system
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...
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There are some truly incredible craftsman in the world and I am not one of them.
There are some truly incredible craftsman in the world and I am not one of them. My work is focused more on helping people build simple, efficient core skill sets that they can build on however they want to. I got this email this morning from Jukka who built this lovely Greenland paddle after...
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Video: The East Greenland kayak: a tight fit
I’m finally getting around to making a description video about the East Greenland hunting kayak replica that we build. This is one of my favorite kayaks although definitely the least versatile in our lineup just because of how tightly it fits. Because this sleek low-volume kayak has such a powerful pull on the imagination,...
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Time lapse: Filming ribbing a larger F1
Ribbing a larger size version of the same boat that I ribbed a few days ago so I can splice together the best teaching from both videos. It’s always a little weird that bending the ribs only takes about 25 minutes, but editing the video takes about two days!...
Video: Bending a replacement rib into an F1 frame
For this latest rib bending video I took a different approach, I started off rusty, having not bent a kayak in about six months, and used some old, dried out rib stock. The idea here was to mimic the student experience where I would end up making some mistakes and then make a second...
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Timelapse: How the sausage is made.
How the sausage is made. Re-shooting the steam bending video for my F1 Kayak design. The existing videos are fine, I’m just kind of obsessed with making this particular part of the building course as perfect as possible....
Video: Laminating curved deck beams
On my website there is a FREE 15 hour Skin on Frame Kayak Prep Course that shows all of the hyper-efficient prep task systems I developed to be able to teach 6 people to build 6 kayaks in 6 days, for 15 years straight. I put this out for free as a way to...
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On YouTube: Comparing oak species for steam bending
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...
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Reshooting the canoe building course
As of today Liz and I are officially halfway through re-shooting the entire Skin on Frame Canoe Building Course! This is a huge accomplishment not just because of the work involved but also just the personal challenge of teaching in the context of some pretty savage medical issues with brain function. On average of...
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Video: West Greenland Kayak Build, Day 4: Tying on keel and stringers
The ribs are still slightly pliable for the first few hours after steaming, so I always try to tie the keel, the stems, and hopefully the stringers on the same day. Doing this helps to smooth out the overall shape and lets me know if I need to replace any ribs while the steam...
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Video: Reshooting the rib bending videos for the kayak building course
Reshooting the rib bending videos for the kayak building course today. I think I was actually better at teaching this five years ago when I was on the tail end of 15 years of building these year-round with students. A dedicated video studio is really nice for good sound and clear camera angles though,...
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Launching the Canoe Oar and Outrigger Course
We are excited to announce the Canoe Oar and Outrigger Building Class, available on our website for $25. Like all of our classes, this obsessively detailed 4 hour video course and 8 page plan set covers tool selection, materials, workspace setup, and step by step building instruction that helps you skip the learning curve...
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Video: Oar building, part 5
Finally finishing up the oars and shooting the oar and canoe outrigger building class. This was a really challenging build due to health issues that forced me to stop working for four days after carving a single oar blade, but also just because I added some major improvements to my system halfway through and...
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