From: Patrick Pierquet <ppierquet@teltech.com>
To: "'baidarka@lists.intelenet.net'" <baidarka@lists.intelenet.net>
Subject: RE: [baidarka] red oak
Date: Tue, 4 Aug 1998 06:51:45 -0500
I don't think baidarka builders have to worry much about rot resistance.
Our boats are not moored in the water for many months at a time; we
generally take them out and store them after each use. So relative rot
resistance is really not an issue - witness Brinck's recommendation for
using WILLOW which, according to "Encyclopedia of Wood", falls into the
category "slightly or no decay resistance". As a precaution, I coated
the ribs of my kayak with a product called Men-Wood, an
industrial-strength wood treatment marketed for coating the outside of
log cabins.
- Patrick Pierquet
ppierquet@teltech.com
> -----Original Message-----
> From: kyak@rockisland.com [SMTP:kyak@rockisland.com]
> Sent: Monday, August 03, 1998 8:51 PM
> To: baidarka@lists.intelenet.net
> Subject: [baidarka] red oak
>
> >A question for my esteemed colleagues. (forgive me patrick), I
> have
> >heard that red oak tends to rot whereas white oak does not (it
> rhymes!)_ Is
> >this information factual.....HAVE I BOUGHT INTO AN URBAN MYTH?????
> Your
> >opinions, learned gentlemen/women. Gentlepersons. (That's it.)
> >Gentlepersons.
> >Chris
>
>
> Red oak has tubular passages thru the cells like staws (supposedly you
> can
> blow thru them) which THEORETICALLY means the can take up more water
> faster
> and rot. Howevcer, the late John Gardiner of Mystic Seaport actualy
> prefeered red oak in small pieces for boat work - said it was less
> prone to
> twist and other movement.
>
> As the dean of American boatbuilders I'll take JG's practice over
> theory any
> day....
> Skip