Hi all,
I'm new to the forum and have a question for you.
My 9 year old son has been watching me build my cedar strip canoe and has asked if we can build a kayak together when I am done. He has shown interest in helping me strip my canoe, but there have been too many things I am not ready for him to do (routing the strips / epoxy work / etc.).
I love the idea of a father / son build project, but I don't want it to be "dad builds the boat - boy sweeps the floor." I think that would be bad for both of us.
I am thinking about a wood duck kit. For those of you that have built from a kit, is this a reasonable project? Is there one that might work better for us?
Thanks,
John
Ann Arbor, MI
Hi John,
I just finished my first Wood Duck (getting ready to start a second) and it is a fairly easy build. There are several steps that are best done with two helping hands which might work out in the Father Son aspect.
My wife assisted me with a good portion and I was very thankful for the extra help.
On a side note... I'm not that far from you, I live in Brighton (Hamburg Twp) right on Ore Lake and Huron River
Sadly I do not have a child to share my project, so borrowed a couple (nephews). As a boy, my older brother (5 years older) introduced me to boat building and I wanted to do the same. The two newphews are 15 & 16 and are really loving it. I had chosen a 17' Skin on Frame design and started before discovering the CLC website. I have plans to build a WD12 and Chesy 18... and a trailer ;)
We are building from scratch, no problem, I have been teaching them how to do the various tasks, keeping my boat a couple steps ahead so they can see where they are going. Other than the logistics of getting them here, it has been going great. I think the kit will greatly help with age issue. The one issue that I have run into is an attention span thing. All the sanding gets a little boring for a young mind so I have tried to stagger things a little as well as a couple of excursions rentals to help keep the finish in sight.
Enjoy, it is a great thing you are doing for a young mind!
My 7 year old daughter and 10 year old son are assisting with my Skerry build. I like the "assist" model because if they lose interest for a day Dad can carry on and they can catch up later.
If this goes well I would like to try building Chesapeake Kayaks as a boy scout project where they alternate fund raising with working. I think building from plans and buying bulk may shave some of the costs - but I am speaking from a position of inexperience. I'd choose a sea kayak with the intent that the experience cumulate with an overnighter.
John