Fuselage Frame Kayak Model

I want to build a fuselage frame kayak.

Fuselage frame kayaks are very lightweight boats made building a wooden frame and skinning it with some fabric.

They are also known as "skin on frame" kayaks.

Never done such thing before, I decided to build a 1:10 scale model at first

• CAD Software
• 3D Printer
• slim wood strips
• glue
• rubber bands
• small clamps
• tiny wires
• sanding paper
• patience

I purchased a plan. My boat is a Kudzu Craft Vardo .

There are some plans for kayaks on the internet for example free plans are available on www.yostwerks.org

Recieving the plan as "paper" i have to transfer everything to my favorite CAD software, in my case Fusion 360. At this time i had no skills with CAD software, but drawing the frames does not need any advanced CAD technics.

Since such a boat is symmetrical, I recommend drawing only one half at a time and then mirroring it.

The real sized frames will be cut out of plywood, so making it 3D is very easy: you only have to thicken your 2D drawings to the thickness ouf your plywood sheets.

For the 1:10 model i have exported the frames as .stl files.

The sizing for 1:10 is done in cura slicer.

Printed in good resolution with PLA filament on my Ender 3.

Now comes the tricky part.

You need:

• the 3D printed frames
• slim wood strips
• glue
• rubber bands
• small clamps
• tiny wires
• sanding paper
• patience

You can replace the strips of wood with sturdy cardboard, but the model is then less stiff.

I have used a small piece of scrap wood as a base. On this base I have marked the positions for the frames. This information will be found in the plans of your boat. In the case of boats, it is usually customary to indicate the dimensions from the stern.

At the beginning I clamped a small piece of the wooden stripe (the keel) to the base.

Shorten it to the proper length of your keel and glue the bow and stern to it.

Now I have glued all frames onto the keel, using the position marks on the base.

Next step is applyig the wooden strips which will give the boat its final shape. This needs calm hands, glue and the help of many wires, clamps and rubber bands. ( See pictures)

Once you succeeded your model sould look like the one in the picture:

Having in mind building a real sized fuselage frame kayak at the end

I have learned many things about what to expect building the big boat:

How do the parts fit together, aligning the parts and doing things in the right order.

Skinning the model helps to understand how to fit the fabric and to be sure every thing is alinged the right way.

Using plastic wrap on the model you can check if it floats as expected.

I have finally managed to build this beautiful fast and lightwight real life kayak.

The model was a helpful step on succeeding with this project