Cape Charles v. Chesapeake 17 and stuff on the old forum

Builder's Forum
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I’m 65, always loved boats. Recently took up paddling and I want a light wooden kayak. The Chesapeake 17 looks perfect. I’m looking for a completed one on the used market. I also came across a Cape Charles that looks good. I’ve read a lot about the two boats.
Chris Kulczycki says the 17 is a much better design but as a paddling newbie would i even see the difference?

Apparently, the Cape Charles can be really light if properly built and that is pretty important to me.

Also, it looks like there are some good discussions on the old forum “https://clcboats.com/forum/archives” but i can’t figure out how to access it.

Thanks

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How old is the Cape Charles? If it is older, you’ll want to double check on its condition. And is it an 18 footer? As you say you are a new (and older) paddler (don’t worry, I’m “older,”’ too), unless you really put a modicum of effort into your strokes you don’t benefit quite as much (speed wise) from the added length of a 17 or 18 footer as compared to something 14 feet long, or longer. Shorter than 14 and you do start to notice a difference. I have a Chess 17 (with rudder, which adds a little weight and takes a little more care in handling when off the water). It is my favorite kayak, but with that said, I also have a Shearwater Sport (14.5 feet long). It lists on the CLC website as 42 pounds. The Chess 17 lists as 45 pounds. Being 2.5 feet shorter (and a few pounds lighter), the SS feels MUCH lighter than the Chess as far as being easy to handle when moving it on and off the cartop/trailer/garage, etc.. They both are very roomy as kayaks go, but with the elongated cockpit the SS feels even more comfortable/roomier and is an easier in/out. You’ll enjoy the paddling experience in any one of these wooden boats so much more than a “plastic” poly boat. You’ll never go back, or go wrong in getting one. I don’t have experience with any higher end fiberglass or carbon kayaks, so can’t speak about those. I’m sure they are nice, and some are lighter, but few people will stop by to talk about them. With a wooden boat the cliche is true that you should add 20 minutes to your launching/recovering in any public place, as someone will want to come talk about how nice your boat looks. Anyway, The SS might be a consideration, as length also plays a role in how hard it is to move a kayak around.

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Jeff Richards made some really good comments.

i would echo that length also makes a big difference in moving stuff around. my favorite boat in my inventory has become my 14 foot petrel play - mostly becuase it is simply easy to move around. both light and not so long. i also have longer kayaks and have built the Chesapeake 17 LT and the Shearwater.

on weight, in the Okoume Plywood boats, you are probably going to be in the 4O LB range. but builder skill can make a big difference in weight so at the best end (high quality builder) you can acheive the weights that CLC publishes. but as the builder skill goes down it’s easy to add a lot of weight. so unlike a production boat, the website may give you a sense of the best possible outcome, you really need to inspect the boat carefully and bring a scale if you want to know what it weighs.

if you are buying a used CLC kayak, i would only do something you can see/inspect. but i noticed that there are a lot of boats on facebook marketplace as well as ebay that don’t show up in CLC homebuilt boat bazaar and occassionally in craiglist congregated in water-front areas.

you could also potentially put a ‘boat wanted’ advert on the CLC site….as sometimes someone is not selling but if they have what somebody is looking for, it can make somebody interested in doing a trade.

i would als encourage trying out anything and depending where you live, CLC maintains an owners list with locations and people who are willing to let you try out their boat.

if you are close to annapolis, i would come down and visit CLC.

but i can’t overemphasize the variation in construction quality and weight homebuilders have. and used boats, if not well cared for or built well from the beginning often develop discolorations and rot…so a thorough inspection of what you are buying and a look inside the hatches with a flashlight will quickly help you understand if you have a well built/cared for boat or something you want to avoid.

on a final note, a well cared for, well built CLC boat represents incredible value, in my view, of what you could get in terms of weight and peformance vs a manufactured boat. they often sell for less than the current kit price just because there is not a liquid market for homebuilt boats and when folks want room and cash to build their next boat, they often just want to get the boat to a nice new home and enthusiastic owner…..not get a return for their labor.

h

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The seller built two in 1993. He put them both up for sale and has one left.

I bought a beat up 16’ Dagger for a kayak gathering and my daughters 40th birthday. I really enjoyed how little effort it took to keep up with the other two generations on their plastic rec boats.

I don’t need the speed but longer boats look so much better.

I would consider any properly built boat that comes my way at a good price. This Cape Charles checks a lot of boxes - and it’s on the cover of a 1993 edition of Wooden Boat Magazine (not this actual boat)

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There’s a joke in there somewhere but it’s too early in the morning to make it work.

Laszlo