North Wind 17x28, Wood Strip

Wood strip boat building involves assembling thin strips of wood around a set of stations/forms. It is different than stitch and glue building in that the stations primarily dictate the shape of the hull rather then the precut shape of the wood.

This is a performance touring canoe designed to handle a variety of paddling environments and long distance trips. It is a wood strip version of the Stitch and Glue North Wind. The North Wind series of boats is inspired by the legendary Kruger Sea Wind. With it's length and rounded cross section, this design will provide high-efficiency paddling in many different water conditions.

Decked canoes have a long history dating back to the late 1800s and Henry Rushton's decked sailing canoes.

Before modern decked canoes, paddlers who wanted to take longer touring trips had the choice between a canoe or a kayak.

A canoe could easily haul plenty of gear and access to the gear was quick. A canoe can be easily portaged over land when needed. But the open nature of the canoe limited its sea worthiness and paddling becomes very difficult in rough and windy conditions.

 

A kayak with spray skirt offers a high level of sea worthiness but is limited with the amount of gear that can be taken and access to the was time consuming at best. Special skill and precautions are required to safely paddle a kayak with a spray skirt. Portaging a kayak is much more difficult than portaging canoe.

Show above are the wood-strip and stitch-and-glue North Wind, side by side. The modern decked canoe falls somewhere in between a canoe and kayak. The deck helps protect against wind and rough waters while the open cockpit allows for easily packing more gear than a typical kayak can hold . A decked canoe can also be portaged like a traditional canoe.

Show above is the wood strip North Wind next to our wood strip Freedom kayak.

Specifications

*Weight of hull: Hull weight will depend on chosen build options, quality of materials used and skill of the builder.

 

Always wear your Personal Floatation Device!

Bill of Materials

Hull surface area:	73 sq ft [6.9 sq m]
Cockpit Perimeter	189" [4.8 m]
Epoxy Resin (With 15% waste factor)	2.0 gallons (8 L)
Fiberglass Tape: 6-ounce, 2" [200 g/m, 51 mm]	19 yards (18 m)
Fiberglass Cloth: 6-ounce, 38" [200 g/m, 1 meter]	25 yards (23 m)
Wood Strips: 1/4" x 3/4" x 16'4 [6mm x 19mm x 4.7m]	Beveled edge: 101. B&C: 121

Click here for downloadable BOM.

The above is basic material list for the main hull. Other materials will be required to create a strongback or backbone to assemble the stations on. In addition, materials will be needed for any custom options you choose.

Cost:

Cost to build range from about $400-500 for a basic hull if you mill your own strips. Premilled strips can be purchased for home delivery from places like Noah's Marine. Additional expenses of $100-200 may be needed for creating a strong back or back bone.

Labor:

The hull will required about 90-120 hours to complete. These times are rough estimates and will vary according to the skill of the builder. Please note these are "hands on" hours and do not include the time waiting for glue or epoxy to cure.

More:
Visit our Customer Service Forum to ask questions or see what others are saying about this design.

Plans Packing List:

• A set of FULL SCALE (1:1) set of patterns as shown below. The patterns for the stations are provided individually so you can cut out and glue to the plywood selected for the stations using spray adhesive. The patterns provide waterline and deck reference points, ideal backbone locations, and vertical centerlines.

• Any specific notes for this design.
• Bill Of Materials.
• When possible, patterns are shipped rolled up in a tube and are not folded. There are only a few remote international locations we cannot ship the tube to. In this case the plans will be folded.