3mm marine ply in Melbourne / Vic??

Hi,

I've just received my first set of kayak plans from Chesapeake Light Craft :D :2tsup: :D

However, a call to Marine Timbers in Seaford confirmed they don't have any oakume (not sure of spelling) plywood in 3mm, and can't say if or when they'll have it, or anything else in 3mm.

So, does anyone know of other marine plywood suppliers in Melbourne...or country Victoria (I don't mind a drive) - prefer east side if possible.

Otherwise I'll need to look at 4mm but would like to keep the weight and specs the same as the plans.

Thanks,
Darren

PS I'm assuming that getting 4x8 sheets delivered from interstate or somewhere would be prohibitively expensive.

Darren,

Okume is Gaboon here.

I don't know of any 3mm stuff and if Marine Timbers don't have it, there's a fair bet that no one else will be trying either!

Alternative sources are Sharpe Plywoods (Bris Based) or Mister Ply & Wood, but I wouldn't be hopeful.

Don't be tempted to use Pacific Maple or other heavier ply in 3mm unless you check out it's actual weight. 4mm Gaboon may still be your lightest option even with a 30% (because of the increase in thickness) weight penalty.

Cheers,

P
:D

Hi,

Thanks, good to know what to ask for.

I've also re-read the bill of materials, and it is 4mm ply I need :- :- :doh: :D

Think I'll read them a couple more times before I start :B

But still open to any suppliers who are closer than 1 hour from north-east Melbourne.

Regards,
Darren

I've found that it doesn't matter how far away they are, it still costs less to get stuff delivered than it does to drive there and pick it up, specially an 8 x 4 sheet which involves borrowing and returning a trailer.

I also tend to buy enough for the next job too, which is why, when Mik finishes his Rowboat plans soon, I will just pull the ply out of the rack, having bought it when we did the PDR's.

It makes it seem sooo much cheaper when you buy the materials years earlier!

Cheers,

P

Hi All

I got Gaboon delivered from boatcraft pacific in Queensland to Victoria and the delivery costs were only about $15 more than to get from Melbourne (marine timbers) I got them from BCP because I wanted 2500mm long sheets rather than 2440mm to keep it down to one join in my catamaran. It was a popular size years ago for this reason, but is hard to find now, thus my far away search.

I don't know where in Melbourne or whether they have plywoods, but I've heard of others getting some materials, epoxy, foam, etc.. from McDonald Marine, but again I don't know much about them, might worth a try.

Regards

Matt

I got a heap of 9mm meranti marine ply to replace the deck on my 30 ft Van De Stadt from somewhere around moorabin- damned if I can remember the name. I also got a sheet of something around 5mm but it was of a different timber and wheighed more than the 9mm.
Good thing about owning an old Transit van- no problems about fitting that sort of stuff in.:2tsup:

Construction Plywoods in Airport West

I got 3mm and 4mm ply from ACL Wood Products, seem to be called the Plystore as well. 17 Zilla Court Dandenong Sth , off Greens Rd. a while ago for my Kayak. Their ph no. is 03 9792 4030.

Hi,

Thanks for the replies. I'll probably end up going with Boatcraft - cheaper than Melbourne suppliers, they had 3mm and 4mm, and delivery is still cheaper than paying extra and driving to Seaford.

Pagie, I gave Plystore a call and they don't sell direct, but gave me some local suppliers who cna order it in. However they have a hardwood marine ply, not gaboon as per the others. Do you recall what you got, and if it was heavy, looked OK, etc?

Thanks,
Darren

I got some 3 or 4 types off ply. Some Karie?sp + some others. I will have to see if I can find any of it. My shed full at the moment with a lot of unfinished work. Will get out there tomorrow. Maybe.

Plyco had a stand at the WWWS. They are in Fairfield and may be worth checking out. Don't know how prices compare

Hi,

Thanks Krazee...I missed the Plyco stand (only managed to get a couple of hours at the show) but called them today.

Great prices, and 10 minutes form home. They have Aust Standard Hoop Pine ply as well as Britsh Standard Gaboon from 3mm updards, so will have exactly what I need.

Saved me 2 hours in the car or freight from Qld so I'm a happy camper :2tsup:

Will get there in the next few weeks, and let y'all know waht the quality, etc is like.

Regards,
Darren

Quote:

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Originally Posted by bitingmidge

Don't be tempted to use Pacific Maple or other heavier ply in 3mm unless you check out it's actual weight. 4mm Gaboon may still be your lightest option even with a 30% (because of the increase in thickness) weight penalty.

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Hi Folks,

I'm about to embark on a Chesapeake 16 bulid. I went and spoke to Boatcraft and the guy there recommended the Pacific Maple over the Gaboon due to the poor quality of the imported Gaboon here. If I do go with the Gaboon, and hand-pick the sheets, are there any tips for spotting bad/problem sheets? :?

Thanks,
Duncan

Duncan,

There's Pacific Maple, and Pacific Maple.

Check out the weight first, the last time I saw Boatcrafts' stuff it wasn't too bad, but it's not as light as Gaboon.

Try Sharpe Plywood or MrPly & Wood too.

Cheers,

P

Thanks Midge, I will do that. I'll post some pics as i get going with my progress.

Cheers,
Duncan

Hi Duncan,

I bought 4mm gaboon from Plyco in Melbourne and have just scarfed and cut out the hull panels for a Chesapeake 17. It's light, and I was happy with the quality - no voids encountered, nice enough grain which I was able to match pretty well between sheets. A lot lighter to pick up a shet than other types of ply I looked at.

You'll want to consider the weight of the finished boat - I don't think the weight difference would make a huge difference in performance, but it may do, and also lifting anything over 20kgs off a car roof may not be fun (try lifting a plastic sea kayak over your head!).

Hope this helps,

Darren

Midge is spot on.

Pacific Maple is a Generic name for a whole bunch of timbers related to Meranti - a whole bunch of different tropical hardwoods can be used.

As Meranti addicts will know the density is very variable within one species.

At the moment a lot of the Pac Maple is Keruing species which is twice the weight of Gaboon.

So VERY variable in weight.

MIK

I use a a bit of pac maple ply from time to time building cases & the thickness can vary quite a bit.
Ive had 9mm that varied from 9.2 down to 7.8 between sheets.....thtas a pain when you are trying to fit it up to extrusion.

It would also have signoficant weight and strength implications.

I will say I havn't seen too much pac maple that " Is singing Major Tom" though it generaly seems to be reasonably flat and straight.

cheers