> With stitch and glue you start with a sheet of plywood and end
> up with a boat shaped piece of plywood. With a stripper you start
> with a pile of thin strips and end up with a beautiful wooden boat.
> I find strippers a much more satisfying project.

No bias there, eh, Nick?

Actually, Nick is right, strippers are probably _the_ most beautiful human-powered wooden boats you can build.

CLC boats would probably be the easiest to construct - single hard chine, S&G, only 5 panels to align. They are beautiful--not as beautiful as a stripper, but _way_ more beautiful than a plastic boat.

Pygmy boats, with their multi-chine construction would be a bit more difficult to construct. They would handle more like a soft-chined boat than a hard-chined boat. Which is better? Personal preference--I can't tell you that.

Newfound Woodworks would be the most difficult of the 3 to build, but they provide everything you need, so it wouldn't be nearly as difficult as buying stripper plans, and sourcing and preparing all the materials yourself.

I have a CLC Chesapeake 17, I love it, but I'm ready for something more challenging (to build) and that I can be more artistic on.

Here's a link to my journal of the construction of my brother's and my boats.

Good Luck, Shawn