Originally Posted by
Robin Frierson
I spared no expense and used mahogany on my boat. Most cypresses is new growth and just doesn't hold up in my view. I've had to repair a lot of rotten Adirondack chairs made with new growth Cypress. I would try to find some sinker cypress, the old growth stuff if you want cypress. And that stuff cost as much is good hardwood or more.
I would try to get an excellent piece of wood for the stem. That's where everything fastens too and will hold all the plywood together. White oak would be a good wood for that. I would use a really good wood for the transom. There's where you're going to have your handles to pick up the back of the boat. White oak would be good and won't break the bank. But I've seen boats made out of double three-quarter marine plywood for the transom too. Everything connects to the transom so you're going to be drilling into plywood if you use plywood for the transom. The Epoxy is what gives it the real strength though with a strong fillet in the corner.
Hold on there, Cap'n. We're talking 10 foot OA designs here. Not too many 10 footers need a 1.5 inch transom. We're also talking glassing and/or epoxy encapsulation here. Almost any wood, including cypress, will be unlikely to rot if properly built and maintained. I don't recall seeing a lot of Adirondack chairs getting fiberglassed or epoxy encapsulated. Or getting a whole lot of maintenance, either.
Fair winds and following seas,
Jim Waldron