Nine years ago I ordered the plans for the Single Expedition. This build was expected more difficult than that of the Night Heron. At this moment the Night Heron is ready but the water is to cold to have it baptized and make the maiden trip. So I still do not know how its caracter is.
I now have two kayaks designed by Nick Schade and want to try another designers plans. I did make a choice for the Fire Star by Rob Macks.
The North Star, about which Etienne Muller is enthusiastic, is a bit too much in volume and the Fire Star is a scaled down version of the North Star.
My son and daughter don’t like the bifurcated bow of the design. I also had my hesitations but the more I looked at the plans (on the website) the more I liked it. So I ordered the plans and will start to build in a few months.
Rob Macks gives very detailed building instructions and I will start with making the stern and the bow section molds.
The strips I will be using are poplar again. I will try to book match and make more consistence strip thickness. I have still a few boards of poplar and Western Red Cedar is expensive still. I calculated that it would cost me € 500 and the poplar will cost me nothing because I already have it.
I bought the wood two years ago from Wietske’s Friese Fijnhouthandel (https://www.haalhout.nl)