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Wow--the length of this thread must be some kind of record! I believe I left one question unanswered. For the steering link I used a length of stainless-steel tubing, 3/8" OD X .063" wall. I tapped it internally for a 5/16" X 24 thread and installed a rod end on it. All of the materials were Swagelo...

You don't realize how small the Zip is, until you see it parked next to any modern boat. As vupilot says, you don't want to take the Zip anywhere you wouldn't take any other 14-foot boat. I had four adults in our Zip, on our local lake, and I was getting nervous about the lack of freeboard at the tr...

Looking forward to seeing photos of your build. Regarding tools, you probably don't need a lathe or jointer, but a 14" band saw with decent blades and guides will make your life easier. A table saw will also come in handy for ripping chine logs and sheer clamps. I would also buy or borrow a decent 1...

It's looking great! It appears that the wood quality is very good as well. Unless it's already included in the kit, I would suggest adding "T" stiffeners to your battens, between the transom and Frame 2. My dad's first Zip exhibited flexing back there and when we built Zip No. 2 in 2008, we added 1'...

The Malahini would be a great first build. I built a Zip and it's a fun boat, but with a family of your size I'd stay in the 15--16-ft. range. Another great choice would be the Geronimo. Kirk Bellamy built a very nice one and you can see it in the Customer Photos page. It seems to have worked well f...

I prime the bare wood with epoxy to gain penetration, and then make the actual joint with cotton flocking added to the epoxy. As Jimmy says, a consistency of applesauce works well. The flocking is a bear to sand, so be sure to wipe away as much excess as possible. The wood flour is a great filler in...

Nice job on the bullet, John. The Ridgid sander will definitely make things easier. I have a 12" JET disc sander and I wouldn't be without it. Another must-have tool in my shop is my 14" band saw. If you don't want to buy new, check your local ads and garage/estate sales. You can find some real barg...

We used the Teleflex "Safety QC" system on our Zip. It does not have the no-feedback feature, but on a lower-powered boat such as the Zip (40 HP) I don't think it's really needed. When we had a 48" skeg under the boat, there was very little feel to the steering, and when I replaced the skeg with a f...

We built our Zip in a one-car carport, with the fixture bonded to the concrete floor, and this didn't really present any problems. When I built two Can-Yaks in my one-car condo garage that also stores my power tools, things got much tighter. At any given time, one boat would occupy my living room wh...

I had a very nice email conversation with Al Neill some years ago, and he's a really nice guy. At the time I was considering an Audeen or Mist Miss (essentially a stretched Audeen), and he was able to offer up a couple of pointers. Al's boat has a Ford 302 for power, and he said that Ford marine par...

The weight of the Flying Saucer is listed as 190lbs and the Zip is 375lbs. I wonder why the Zip is almost twice the weight and is only 2’ longer? I don't think the bare hull of the Zip is anywhere near 375 lbs. When we completed the bare hull--fully decked and painted, but no seats, etc.--two of us...

This may be coming your way but as of this year in Nh plugs have to be pulled and bilge dry before you can leave the ramp That's not nearly as bad as we've had things in California, where most lakes require everything to be dry before launching. Wash your boat, or take a "bucket cruise" in the driv...

Curt, I wouldn't sweat the size of the cockpit too much. Even with the full-length cockpit, the 14-foot Can-Yak is pretty cramped for two people, and if they're full-sized adults you won't have much freeboard above the waterline. You probably know this, but with one person aboard you have a ton of r...

You numbers pretty much reflect ours. With the 10"-pitch prop I usually see 29 mph at 5,500 rpm. The 11" prop reduces the rpm to about 5000 with little to no change in maximum speed. It should be noted that our Mk 55 has never been apart, so your newly overhauled motor should have a performance edge...

From your description, your Zip is virtually identical to ours, right down to the Mk 55E. As Chris mentioned, it's possible that your prop is slipping on the hub. Out of curiosity, what prop are you running? We found that a 10" pitch, two-blade prop would give us ~30 MPH @ 5500 RPM, and with none of...