Once again there has been a lot of progress in the shop. It's an ever difficult juggling act of boat work, shop work and the behind the scenes work. Everyday I go in with a goal, sometimes it works out, sometimes not. Things happen for a reason, and I'll keep going with the flow because it's working thus far.
Petrel Play production is at the top of my list. When I last wrote, the forms were cut, assembled and aligned. It was ready to be stripped. I was eager to get to this step, because I've been patiently waiting to get the chance to build this version of a boat I love paddling. I am happy to report, the hull has been stripped and we finally have a look at the shape of the hull.
One of the defining characteristics of this hull, is the transition from a soft chine in the front to a hard chine near the paddlers knee. What this does is give the paddler a unique combination of high performance handling in the rough stuff and excellent maneuverability on back creeks and skinny water. The big question in my mind is how was the more rounded shape going to affect the profile of the chine. Now that the hull is done, I can see that the shape is not affected at all. Just blended in the front like a typical soft chine boat. The chine line is identical to it's more utilitarian looking Petrel
Play SG. To say that I can't wait to paddle this boat is a gross understatement. I'm going to give it the same trial by fire that the Black Play got a few months ago.
Going back to goals. My goal was to have the hull finished by Monday afternoon. Well, that didn't work out so well. My compressor arrived over the weekend and I figured it would take a few hours to connect. After six trips to the big box home stores, two days of frustration and a lot of salty language, I finally had a working air system to power my array of sanders and spray equipment.
Part of the business plan is to do repair work as well. My first customer arrived on Monday to have some enhancements on his kayak. I'll be adding a retractable skeg and a few minor repairs. I have a few other irons in the fire as well, so May could shape up to be a very, very busy month. Progress will be paramount on the prototypes, so my days are going to get longer. Once the shaping is completed on the hull, I'll glass it to lock the shape in place. Then I can get to building the deck. This is where the design aspect gets fun. The Vacuum pump and catch pot will arrive next week, so I can also get to work on all of the little pieces that will need to be constructed. Skeg components and coaming molds will need to be made. The pump will make the process of construction faster and give me an opportunity to work the bugs out before setting up for a hull and deck. There is so much to do and so little time.
Visit the website for more info, product info will be available soon www.turningpointkayaks.com
Petrel Play production is at the top of my list. When I last wrote, the forms were cut, assembled and aligned. It was ready to be stripped. I was eager to get to this step, because I've been patiently waiting to get the chance to build this version of a boat I love paddling. I am happy to report, the hull has been stripped and we finally have a look at the shape of the hull.
One of the defining characteristics of this hull, is the transition from a soft chine in the front to a hard chine near the paddlers knee. What this does is give the paddler a unique combination of high performance handling in the rough stuff and excellent maneuverability on back creeks and skinny water. The big question in my mind is how was the more rounded shape going to affect the profile of the chine. Now that the hull is done, I can see that the shape is not affected at all. Just blended in the front like a typical soft chine boat. The chine line is identical to it's more utilitarian looking Petrel
Play SG. To say that I can't wait to paddle this boat is a gross understatement. I'm going to give it the same trial by fire that the Black Play got a few months ago.
Going back to goals. My goal was to have the hull finished by Monday afternoon. Well, that didn't work out so well. My compressor arrived over the weekend and I figured it would take a few hours to connect. After six trips to the big box home stores, two days of frustration and a lot of salty language, I finally had a working air system to power my array of sanders and spray equipment.
Part of the business plan is to do repair work as well. My first customer arrived on Monday to have some enhancements on his kayak. I'll be adding a retractable skeg and a few minor repairs. I have a few other irons in the fire as well, so May could shape up to be a very, very busy month. Progress will be paramount on the prototypes, so my days are going to get longer. Once the shaping is completed on the hull, I'll glass it to lock the shape in place. Then I can get to building the deck. This is where the design aspect gets fun. The Vacuum pump and catch pot will arrive next week, so I can also get to work on all of the little pieces that will need to be constructed. Skeg components and coaming molds will need to be made. The pump will make the process of construction faster and give me an opportunity to work the bugs out before setting up for a hull and deck. There is so much to do and so little time.
Visit the website for more info, product info will be available soon www.turningpointkayaks.com
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