Timber selection for strip canoe in Tassie
Hi all,
I am building a strip canoe on a budget as I am a student. I need help with selecting a timber which meets my requirements.
First off I have decided to use epoxy instead of polyester or vinylester so that eats into my funds a fair bit.
I would like the canoe to be as light as possible but the Timbers that would achieve this are too expensive i.e. Cedar, Balsa and Paulownia (Paulownia isn't that expensive but Bass Strait is a costly stretch of water).
So I am left with medium density softwoods.
Celery will cost $280 (a bit heavy)
Baltic pine will cost $70
Radiata, $75
and finally Macrocarpa which is what I am leaning towards could cost between $50-90.
From my calculations the difference in weight is 5 kg on the total weight of the canoe from lightest to heaviest.
I am aiming for a 15ft solo that will be between 14-18kg.
I will be using single layer of 4oz glass. Strip thickness will be 5 or 4 mm. The canoe is about 5 square meters.
Most likely painted on the exterior and varnished interior. Small dimension gunwales and thwarts
So my question is what other alternative do I have down here in Tassie ?
Can any of these timbers be dried lower than 12%mc easily ?
Which would be easier to work with ?
Will the small knots in Macrocarpa be a problem?
Which would stain better ?
Which would have better resale value ?
I suppose any timber that was around the 400kg/m^3 and easily worked with is what I am after that doesn't cost too much.
thanks