In this current build, I have departed from the usual strip building I have done in the past. The hull is stitch and glue. My biggest difficulty in starting out was finding a local source for the 4mm marine plywood called for in the plans. I eventually settled for 3mm and am compensating by using 6oz glass instead of the 4oz in the plans. I also laminated a 1" wide strip to the shear line to create a better land for the deck strips.
The major plus for the stitch and glue is that from plans to a fiberglassed hull took 8 - 10 hours.
I am doing a lot of experimenting on this project as you can see from the staining post. I intend to paint the hull instead of going with a clear coat. Since (unfortunately) my kayaks spend less time in the water than out, I am planning to use automotive paint on the hull. I am finding that this gives me a much wider choice of colors than sticking with marine paints. For the final coat on both hull and deck, I intend to use Epifanes clear varnish. Since my wife and kids bought me an Earlex HVLP sprayer for Father's Day last year, this will also be my first foray into sprayed finish coats.
My current plan is to have this kayak ready to go in the water by May 5 when my soldier daughter gets home on leave. The plan is to spend a day on Lake Tahoe