TexasKayakFisherman.com

Not sure if this is the correct board for this but admin please move this if need be.

Does anyone know where I can get balsa wood and the dimensions below or close to them, at a decent price here in the US? Thinking about building some outriggers with balsa and coating it like a surfboard so it's a lot easier to stand and fish. Thanks in advance.

L X W X H
8' X 5" X 4"


TightLines

PM Real Big Reel. He built a yak a while ago out of balsa and it's in the builders forum if you want to take a look. He bought the biggest pieces he could, but I don't think they were that big.

These guys have lumber from all over the world.

Acadian Hardwoods & Cypress

645 Canary St,

Vidor, TX 77662

(409) 769-8665

http://www.acadianhardwoods.net/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

This is where I got mine:
http://www.specializedbalsa.com/products/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Here is another one.
http://www.nationalbalsa.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

There is a couple of others, Google it.

RBR - do you have any new projects going? I enjoyed all your previous builds.

Get you some good Luanne from Home Depot. It's basically 5mm cabinet ply. Most of the boat builders use it to build their boats, as did I. It's slightly heavier than balso but tons stronger. Plus, when you cover it with fiberglass and epoxy, it's even stronger. It should be fine for out riggers. Oh, and it's a lot cheaper than balsa.

Contact Matt over at jemwatercraft.com and for a slight fee he'll email you a set of plans to fit your spec's.

I am currently designing a new kayak. I know pretty much what form it will have but I haven't decided on materials yet. I am trying to decide whether to go strip built, plywood or sheet styrofoam. This one will have all the best features of the previous builds. \
I am down to 2 kayaks and I will part with at least one more during the next build.
I built a kayak out of Luanne some time back. I only finished the corners with glass, but it had a thick layer of epoxy all over. It was still rather heavy and it fell apart after about 1 year of heavy use. If I were going to use plywood again I wouldn't use Luanne.

RealBigReel wrote:I am currently designing a new kayak. I know pretty much what form it will have but I haven't decided on materials yet. I am trying to decide whether to go strip built, plywood or sheet styrofoam. This one will have all the best features of the previous builds. \
I am down to 2 kayaks and I will part with at least one more during the next build.
I built a kayak out of Luanne some time back. I only finished the corners with glass, but it had a thick layer of epoxy all over. It was still rather heavy and it fell apart after about 1 year of heavy use. If I were going to use plywood again I wouldn't use Luanne.

I've had mine for about 3 years of heavy use and it's still just as strong and waterproof as it was the day I finished her. If yours only lasted a year there was something wrong with the build. Just sayin'

My findings were similar to rbr , if I just taped the edges and coat the wood with resin they had a short life. If the luan was covered inside and out with cloth they held up well.
Using strips is stronger lighter and much more durable than ply.
Ron

Laminate the outrigger (called an ama) from high density eps foam and plywood (sort of like a surfboard). The lugs where you will attach the iako (connection poles between outrigger and boat) should be integral to the wood stringer. Then glass the whole thing. If you use epoxy resin instead of polyester resin you will not have to worry about the melting the foam. Finally, paint it with something like Interlux to protect the epoxy from UV.

3 to 4 mm thich Baltic birch plywood is really good for small boat building. You can use it for either strip plank or panels. You can even strip plank with high density foam (3 lb/cu.ft). Either way, glass the whole thing. That is where your strength comes from. Fiberglass cloth comes in a range of weights, e.g. 4 to 10 ounce per square yard. The weight of the resin should be about equal to the weight of the cloth. Several thin layers of cloth/resin is stronger than one thick layer. You can get even more strength with less weight using carbon fiber or Kevlar, but it is too expensive for most.