Compared to cedar strip-planking, DuraKore strip composite construction is stiffer and lighter. As with solid wood planking, the strips conform easily to compound curves. In using this material much time is saved because milling, scarfing and most of the careful fitting has been eliminated. The strips lay very well, so time spent fairing up after planking is minimal. As with any cored hull, damage below the waterline must be attended to quickly. Because of the maximum 8 foot plank length and epoxy glue lines between the planks, the area of water intrusion tends to be limited.

The main drawback in using this material seems to be the cost. 1/2" DuraKore strips run about $7.86 per square foot. This is about twice the cost of strip-planked cedar and approximately 50% more than cold-molded cedar veneer. The other problem with DuraKore is the fact that it is only available in boxed quantities. One box of 1/2" DuraKore strips contains 146 square feet of material. If the designer is not careful, you could run out of strips when your project is 95% complete, forcing you to shell out for a whole new box when only a few strips are needed. Obviously, waste needs to be minimized. Some builders deal with these drawbacks by using only 1" x 8" DuraKore planks. Strips are ripped to width as needed and finger joints cut using a router fitted with a special jig. 1/2" planks are running about $4.20 per square foot, making the material less expensive than cold-molded veneer and competitive with cedar strip. This cost savings comes at the expense of greater labor, but no more so than other materials.

Is it worth it? The only way to answer this is for the prospective builder to sit down and honestly add up the cost of everything going into the boat. Be careful here and try to include everything. Final cost will vary widely. If you make your own sails (Sailrite), weld-up your own trailer and have access to good used hardware, then you can make a large impact on overall cost. The inescapable fact is, quality materials and hardware are expensive. Most amateurs tend to focus on the cost involved in building the hull shell and don't realize that it only represents a small fraction of the total man-hours and cost of the completed yacht.

The last step in this exercise is to compare the cost of your project with the price of the nearest commercial designs. If you do this I think you will find that your costs are very reasonable and the price of DuraKore may not be that much of a factor.

Note:
If you are thinking of building K-23 and must keep costs to an absolute minimum, instructions on alternate construction methods are included in the plan set. You might also want to look at David Brown's book Boatbuilding with Baltek DuraKore published by McGraw Hill International Marine, available from the NMD Boatbuilders' Bookstore.

For more information regarding DuraKore, contact:

Baltek Corp. 10 Fairway Court PO Box 195 Northvale, NJ 07647 (201) 767-1400