kayak- skin on frame (SOF) supplies

[yjnb]

I am currently building a SOF kayak, loosely based on a Morris recovery kayak. I will try to attach some photos of the current build and of some completed boats.

I have had a look on this forum and on other relevant sites and have been unable to locate an Australian source for Polyester fabric in the 10- 14oz range. I would like to use polyester as I found it easy to work with and heat shrinking it with an iron was a piece of cake.

Last time I ordered the fabric from George Dyson in the USA and whilst I was very happy with George's customer service, and his product, I had to wait a couple of months as he shipped it surface mail. I have spoken to George and the fabric is some sort of industrial filter fabric. I was thinking of calling Filter-Tex-Media in Brisbane http://www.filtertex.com.au/filter_bags.html and seeing if they can help. Has anyone had any experience with them, or can they recommend any other source?

Basically I would like to get the boat on the water ASAP, however I am not interested in nylon.

Any input appreciated :)

James

[Boatmik]

Yes - let your fingers do the walking.

When sailmakers need a non roll length of some fabric they use people like these ...

http://www.iclsa.com.au/

This one is in South Australia, but I imagine there are others as well in other states. This bunch do supply to all of Australia and overseas.

Michael Storer

[yjnb]

Thanks for the reply boatmik. I guess no one else has any info.

I emailed both companies mentioned above and failed to get any replies. I then called Filter-Tex-Media in Brisbane as they are reasonably close and spoke with Emily.

I requested some samples and I have applied Feast Watson Spar Marine (4 coats). This product adhered well to both samples and the result is a strong flexible finish.

The sample WM7 ($30/m) has a fuzzy finish and ends up looking a bit rough. The LM3 ($37.25/m) is much smoother and results in a more appealing finish. see images attached.

The outcome is that the fabric is available locally, but is quite pricey compared to ordering from George Dyson. (see below). I guess it really depends on how much of a rush I am in, particularly as the shipping from the USA is only slightly more than the shipping from Brisbane (approx 200km)

regards, James

13PE79: 13-ounce Polyester, Oxford weave, 79-inch width. This was the
first polyester fabric we distribut ed, and it has developed a small but
loyal following over the years, led by custom kayak-builder Bill Low.
This material has been almost fully pre-shrunk, so the weave is
exceptionally tightómaking it somewhat stiff and difficult to use.
Because of the dense structure, it takes very little coating to
saturate, but there is very little porosity to encourage the coat?ing to
mechanically adhere. Due to UPS length re?strictions, it is much more
economical to ship small quantities of fabric folded than rolled, but if
you re?ceive this material folded, unfold it and roll it up smoothly as
quickly as possible, since like permanent press polyester trousers, it
tends to hold a crease. $6.00 1

16PE82: 16-ounce Polyester, 2x2 basket weave, 82-inch width. We acquired
a large run of this material two years ago, and it has been receiving
good re?views so far. Weave is a bit loose, but it will still hold a
seam and of the t hree polyester fabrics available it is the easiest to
use. Shrinkage is moderate and easily controlled. The price is
excellent, especially given the width, enough for two narrow kayaks side
by side, or you can stagger wider boats. $5.00

[yjnb]

I finally finished the boat. In the end went for clear table cloth vinyl at $4.50/m. Should get a season out of it. the skin was stapled using stainless staples from the local upholsterer $3.75 per row or $145.00 per box- only needed 2 rows. test run this weekend:)

James

[bitingmidge]

I rather like the thought of a glass boat!

I can hardly wait to see pics of it in the water!

Cheers,

P
:2tsup:

[yjnb]

Here is the boat on the water as requested. We went camping at campsite 3 on the upper noosa river. Drove to Harry's Hut and then paddled 90 minutes to the campsite.

The boat rolls well, unfortunately my daughter thought the boat was for her use alone and was quite upset when I got in and had a go. Maybe I'll have to build another:U

James

[PW Jarman]

I'm building my first Greenland Skin on Frame Kayak. I note that yjnb on his opening message on the 23rd Feb is looking for fabric other than Nylon. Have you had trouble using Nylon? I hadn't heard of polyester being used instead, what advantages does it give? Do you shrink it by running an iron over it once it is attached to the boat?

[yjnb]

pwj

nylon tends to go loose with temperature changes. Ployester stays tight. I emailed Chris Cunningham and he suggested the poly and I have been very happy. further reading at qajaqusa.org eg http://www.qajaqusa.org/cgi-bin/GreenlandTechniqueForum_config.pl?rev=67787


good luck with the 'yak

James

[Kudzu]

In this issue of the Qaja newsletter there is a very interesting article on SOF materials. After reading this I decided on Nylon for my SOF project, but sounds like both are tough!!

http://www.qajaqusa.org/newsletter/Masik_Summer2003_07034.pdf

[The Mariner]

Hi Everyone,

It's a bit late to be adding anything to this thread, but I thought I would incase any future SOF kayak builders visit.

I found ICL www.iclsa.com.au (http://www.iclsa.com.au) to be nery helpful when I contacted them , so maybe you just caught them on a bad day.

I have come across a product from Wax Converters Textiles www.wct.com.au (http://www.wct.com.au) that looks like it has potential. It's a 350gsm (10 oz) polyester fabric available in 200cm width called 'Mermaid Outdoor'. It's available around Australia from distributors in a range of colours incl. white :U for around $33/m.

I dunno how it'll take polyurethane though, so I'll be testing that next.

I tried sourcing suitable ballistic nylon (recommended by many U.S. builders) but have drawn a complete blank... unless I want the black, grey or red stuff that motorcycle gear is made from.:no:

Regards,

Phil.

[yjnb]

Welcome to the site, and thanks for the info.

Ballistic nylon is available for the US through Seattle Fabrics (http://www.seattlefabrics.com/). I have found them very good to deal with, they even contacted Chris Cunningham for me to answer some questions I had.

Don't forget to post pictures of your 'yak and results of your test fabrics

Regards,

James

[The Mariner]

Thanks for your welcome James... and your sourcing tip :)

I have been doing more digging & found that Bradmill Outdoor Fabrics (http://www.bradmilloutdoor.com.au) offer Cordura fabric that's "is constructed from air texturised nylon, which provides the fabric with a high resistance to abrasion and wear whilst having the appearance of a lightweight spun fabric". It's around the right gsm weight but I dunno the available colours or the widths yet.

[yjnb]

I would also be interested in pricing info.

I tried to find the fabric you are referring to, do you have a link direct to that page?

Regards

James

[The Mariner]

Hi James,

The cordura is hidden away in the Canvas section but the direct link is here. (http://www.bradmilloutdoor.com.au/cordura.htm)

Distributors are listed here (http://www.bradmilloutdoor.com.au/agents.htm) and they should be able to point you to a reseller.

Hope this helps !

[damian]

Please post your results if you have any sucess. I am looking for sources of dacron in australia of appropriate weight and shrinking properties.

I hope to build a GA boat next year, assuming my life calms down for 5 minutes...