How important to match plank weight on each side?

[dmede]

I'm prepping my next set of planks. The two WRC boards I have picked for the middle planks are of differing weights, one feels nice and light and weighs 10-11 lbs @ 11' and the other is a bit heavier, 13-14lbs @ 11'. The heavy board has to be dry by now, it's been drying for over 8 months now and is only 3/4" thick, from an already seasoned log.

So, is it a bad idea to use two boards of such differing weight in a small lapstrake skiff?

[Bob Smalser]

The heavy board has to be dry by now, it's been drying for over 8 months now and is only 3/4" thick, from an already seasoned log.

I have all manner of salvage cedar boards so chock full of water they weigh three times their mates in the same stack. They came from seasoned logs, too. It depends on where the drips in the stacks were.

Use a moisture meter. It's water. Pick another set and rack that one outdoors in the air for a while. Shouldn't take long.

[rbgarr]

No. Just sit a tiny bit to the light side when rowing.

(Really, it's not a problem.. If you were building a racing shell maybe it would, but those builders use bookmatched veneers on their boats.)

[dmede]

I have all manner of salvage cedar boards so chock full of water they weigh three times their mates in the same stack. They came from seasoned logs, too. It depends on where the drips in the stacks were.

Use a moisture meter. It's water. Pick another set and rack that one outdoors in the air for a while. Shouldn't take long.

When I first got the wood sticked I noticed some of the boards were quite a bit denser than the others. I figured it was just inter cell water and would dry in short order, that was about 8 months ago. They have been stickered in my garage the whole time and show no change in weight. The boards look like they have more rings per inch and feel a lot more like DF than WRC when I pick them up. I'm not sure they will get any lighter than they are. They sawyer said this was all one log, but some of the peices are really quite a bit different looking and feeling than the others.

If I had to choose between a heavier piece with rift grain, and a piece that matched in wieght but was more or less Q sawn, what would be the lesser of two evils?

[Bob Smalser]

....feel a lot more like DF than WRC when I pick them up.

They sawyer said this was all one log, but some of the pieces are really quite a bit different looking and feeling than the others.

If I had to choose between a heavier piece with rift grain, and a piece that matched in weight but was more or less Q sawn, what would be the lesser of two evils?

Could be a Port Orford Cedar log mixed in, as it grows where your sawyer resides. Color can be deceiving. I've seen nice POC here sold as WRC fence boards.

If it isn't water, then it has to be resin and silica, and 3lbs difference is too big for any explanation other than water or species.

I'd use it anyway. That's not enough weight to make a difference, and I still suspect the log is WRC, the weight is water, and it will drop with time. As I said, I've had soggy cedar stock that surprised me.

[dmede]

It must be water then, cause I know it all came out of the same salvaged log. Thanks.