Hi!
I'm from Sweden and found this really interesting forum just now.
I'm doing a lot of adventure racing and paddling is one of the main parts in competitions.
So, i would really like to make my own kayak, but this one will be like a surfski, something like this;



I have a few questions I hope someone can help me with:
First, I would like to build a boat as light as possible, in carbon fiber / kevlar. How thick should have the hull and deck.
Then I do not know if it is possible to make use of rasin infusion technology or whether to try to vacuum bag. I am puzzled, however, if you have time to wet-laying the entire hull and then on the vacuum bag before the rasin time to solidify.
If one would use rasin infusion, how often you need to outsource distribution tubing to cover the entire hull?
Then I also wonder how best to put together the hull and deck. I saw the movie on kayak repair and which used some form of kevlar tape. Is it the best thing to use or is there something else?
Hm, these issues are perhaps slightly messy but I am so grateful for all the help I can get.
Thanks in advance,
Staffan, Sweden

Hm, sorry for the bad english in my last post. I wrote it in the middle of the night and my English is not quite what it should be.

Hi, staffan. you'r english is more than understandable! no problem

Thank's Matthieu!
Good video, I seen it in the past, before I found this forum.
Yes, it feels like a pretty big project, but it would be such a great feeling to make your own kayak.
It is difficult to say how much material to use and what products to get as good a result as possible.
Read that one can not make use of polyester in the mold if you want to use epoxy when to make your kayak.

Thanks for your reply.

/ Staffan

From my experience kayaks need to float, so maybe some ares with foam core would help with the shape and buoyancy also. is this your first carbon project Stefan?

Hi Alex!

hey dont worry about the english no worries here
i think kayaks are made as top and bottoms and are then joined to form one piece hull. i saw a couple shows and a video
where it was done with sea kayaks. you will need to either make a mold of one or make a plug and mold off of that.and i think
boats have some very particular issues concerning the centerline and how and where the weight is carried. otherwise you may end up with
a fancy log like structure that flips over in the water when you dont need it to do that .
i think best bet is buy a used one and cast a mold from that.even if it is one that is really damaged, you only would need to build/repair it enough
to make your molds.
 the video i saw , a scene stuck in my mind-- the top and bottom were set together,and the builder had a pole with a roller on it and held a strip of fiberglass
in a long V shape so he could use the pole to join the top and bottom on the inside of the kayak.he stuck the strip down at the bow point and rolled it back to where the seat is,and then did the same again with the other half of the V . i then assumed he finished the outside of the hull in a similar manner.
  best of luck to you and post up more pics as you go along .

oh yeah you can vacuum bag it or hand lay the cloth and resins.  i suggest vac method

scott

CarbonFiberCreations

Typical layup for a kayak like this would be 200g carbon, foam core, 200g carbon with added reinforcement where needed for example the nose and the cockpit area.  I believe that the deck and hull are joined using some sort of lap joint and bonded together, finishing off the seam with gelcoat and a seam tape of glass or kevlar flat braid.