I feel like I have started in earnest now though I had a momment of doubt as I was driving home from my first big order. I kept thinking "what am I doing setting out on a boat building project!" I'm over it now though doubt will likely raise it's ugly head again.

Today I ordered 29 sheets of plywood and $1,500.00 of epoxy. After looking for a source of FSC Fir plywood so I could build "green", I was disheartened to discover that it is not available in marine grade on the west coast on N. America. It is available in Europe but not here - go figure! Ordering "green" plywood and then shipping it with jet fuel over such a great distance seemed pointless. I am now back to using Okume BS1088. Fortunately, the way the panels layout, there will be very little waste. For an epoxy system I chose to go with System 3, www.systemthree.com , over West System. I've used System 3 before and have had good luck. They have tailored a new line of resins specifically for marine use. It is truely a system with various mixtures of varying viscosity for each different application; laminating, gluing, fillets and filler. Hopefully it will work well. They even have a line of paints specifically blended to go with their epoxy.

Now that I have plywood and epoxy, I need to figure out what I will use for dimensional wood for stringers, deck beams and all those little bits. The goal needs to be to keep the weight at or below design weight without compromising strength.