How to scale Yostwerks kayak plans

[watermelon]

I am planning to build a Roldarka from yostwerks.com this is my first build so please forgive me.

I have encountered a problem:
I am trying to make the templates for the cross sections from the offsets here:

http://yostwerks.com/RoldarkaOffsets.html

However when i got them onto paper, i realised that there is no way i can fit my legs and body in there. I am 6' with a 32" waist and 34" legs. I am fairly slim but have cyclist thighs. my feet are size 11, and there is no way they will fit inside the current dimensions of the kayak.




Obviously, the plans can be scaled up or down depending on the size of the person the kayak is designed for. How do i do this, and how do i know how big to make it?

Thanks for your time

[Roy Morford]

Ask Tom Yost. You'll find him very helpful.

[watermelon]

where can speak to Tom Yost. i assumed his website hadnt been updated for a while. is he on this forum?

does anyone else know anything, as i dont want to have to burdon Yost with a beginner question.

[JimD]

Obviously, the plans can be scaled up or down depending on the size of the person the kayak is designed for. How do i do this, and how do i know how big to make it?

Actually, its not so obvious that the boat can be scaled as you intend. Kayaks, at least the better ones, are usually designed with weight and dimensions of the paddler in mind. Stretching or scaling the design might make it ride too high in the water, for example.

[gnack]

Tom replies and posts frequently on the Yost-Skin-On-Frame-Boats yahoo group.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Yost-Skin-On-Frame-Boats/

[DGentry]

You can email Tom directly - his address is on his site - or ask questions on the Guillemot kayak builder's forum. There is also a Yost kayak builder's yahoo group he checks out.

On paper, you will not fit . . . but, 3d is different. Tom's boats always, always look too tight to first time builders. In this case, the Roldarka is a fairly low volume boat (meant for rolling, mostly), yes - but you should still fit. If, indeed, your thighs are too much, then you should just build the long cockpit (LC) version - in the LC, the masik will be placed just below your knees, so your thighs won't be an issue. I find this to be much more comfortable and accessible, in any case.

As for re-scaling the boat - I say don't. But, you can quite easily add an inch or two to the height of the forward deck beam with little in the way of repercussions.

Feel free to pm me if you have any questions about the Roldarka - I built the prototype, and it's still one of my favorite boats to paddle.

Good luck! -
Dave

[James Corduan]

Have you read Robert Morris' book Building Skin on Frame Boats, he describes how to size a kayak to fit you perfectly. Of course he is using traditional building methods, but I don't see why the Greenland method of measurements could not be adapted to Yostwerk style building. One size does not fit all in Kayaks.