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Solo microBootlegger kayak
Sale
microBootlegger Solo
Sale
Bruce B built a bookmatched mahogany model of the microBootlegger Solo
Solo microBootlegger kayak Thumbnail
microBootlegger Solo Thumbnail
Bruce B built a bookmatched mahogany model of the microBootlegger Solo Thumbnail

microBootlegger Solo

Builder Testimonials

A light and fast single kayak in the inimitable style of Nick Schade's microBootlegger.

  • Skill Level Advanced
  • Estimated Build Time 180 Hours

Builders undertaking this kit should be comfortable reading traditional boat plans, and have at their disposal stationary tools such as a tablesaw and a bandsaw. The drawings and documentation assume a good working knowledge of woodworking, epoxy, and fiberglass techniques.

This time estimate assumes builders have already built a couple of stitch-and-glue boats.

Build this boat if...

  • You are seeking a comfortable kayak for paddling around quiet harbors
  • You want a kayak that would work as fun rock garden playboat
  • You want to combine these needs into a sleek elegant craft that evokes the mahogany runabouts from the 1920s

  • For Woodcrafters

    Boatbuilders, sharpen your block planes! 

  • Classic Appeal

    Traditional looks that will never age

  • Sophisticated Design

    Nothing else like it to buy or build

If you love woodworking, this is a project where you get to make wood shavings. You'll need to be comfortable with a sharp plane and a Japanese pull-saw, but the reward is a work of craftsmanship that's all your own.

Classic Appeal

Some might argue that small craft design reached the zenith of looks and performance in the 19th century. We wouldn't disagree. Designs like this one will still look good in a hundred years.

This is a design with qualities and features that are unique in the marketplace, both among DIY projects and production boats. Refined, tested, uncompromised, outstanding, and unique!

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Take One of our Boatbuilding Classes

We offer classes for many of the boats we sell. Teaching sites stretch from Maryland to Washington State and from Maine to California. Click here to find out more.
Solo microBootlegger kayak

Solo microBootlegger kayak

microBootlegger Solo
Bruce B built a bookmatched mahogany model of the microBootlegger Solo

Bruce B built a bookmatched mahogany model of the microBootlegger Solo

Solo microBootlegger kayak Thumbnail
microBootlegger Solo Thumbnail
Bruce B built a bookmatched mahogany model of the microBootlegger Solo Thumbnail

Specifications

Length
14'0"
Beam
26"
Cockpit Size
35" x 19"
Hull Weight
42 lbs.
Paddler Weight
110 - 190 lbs.
Max Payload
250 lbs.
Knee Height
13"
Max. Men's Shoe Size
14

Performance

Stability

3 out of 5
Very Tippy
Very Stable

Speed

4 out of 5
Cruiser
Racer

Cockpit Room

3 out of 5
Close Fit
Huge Cockpit

Payload

3 out of 5
Day Tripper
Freight Hauler

Ease of Construction

1 out of 5
Requires Patience
Very Easy
Solo microBootlegger kayak
Solo microBootlegger kayak

Overview

With the growing popularity of his microBootlegger Tandem Kayak, Nick Schade has created the microBootlegger Solo with the elegant look of a 1920s mahogany runabout. It's a roomy boat with a large cockpit, almost what one might call a double paddle canoe with a deck.

The microBootlegger Solo is stable and comfortable with room to move around, yet long and narrow enough to be an efficient boat to paddle all day. Although it was meant primarily for relaxing paddling in sheltered harbors, more adventurous paddlers may choose to build it with a smaller keyhole cockpit to make a capable rock garden play boat.

The hull can be built of strips of mahogany, the boat will fit with the look of the old runabouts from which it derives its name and inspiration. Alternatively, the hull can be built in cedar its handsome lines result in a sleek, refined vessel.

Do you fit in this kayak?  Study our kayak fit chart.

Our strip-built and hybrid kits ship with 50% Western Red and 50% Alaskan Yellow cedar bead & cove strips. Photos on our website and printed materials may show patterns and accent strips with walnut or other materials. Optional walnut strips are available and can be shipped with kit orders

Buying Options

Choose Your Boatbuilding Experience

Select the components that are the best fit for your strip-planking project.

  1. Select Your Configuration

    Build From a Kit:
    Most builders start with the Base Kit. It’s all there.
    Build From Scratch:
    Build from scratch using our Plans & Manual.
    Build From a Wood Parts Only Kit:
    For those who have their own supply of epoxy, fiberglass, and hardware.
    Forms and Strongback Only Kit:
    Just the computer-cut stuff: the forms and strongback.
    Order Study Plans or Manuals:
    Like to study up a bit first? Download study plans or a copy of the assembly manual. 

  2. Choose Options and Add-Ons

    Additional Components:
    You can choose colors for your strips! Also add rudders, hatch options, spray skirts, and more. 

  3. Get Building!

    Kits feature all of the latest tweaks to ease assembly, including slot-together molds, CNC-cut marine plywood cockpit recesses, and precision-milled strips.

Standard Configuration

Sale
$1,879.00 $1,680.00

The Solo µBootlegger kit includes CNC-cut forms & strong...

    The Solo µBootlegger kit includes CNC-cut forms & strongback, hatch blanks, epoxy kit, fiberglass, precision-milled bead-and-cove Western Red & Alaskan Yellow cedar strips, wooden slatted seat, Keepers footbraces, hardware, and drawings.

    Alternative Configurations

    $390.00

    $245.00

    $119.00

    Additional Options

    $24.95

    A kit for flush hatch hold-downs, requiring no deck hardware ...

    A kit for flush hatch hold-downs, requiring no deck hardware to sully your strip-planked deck. Internally mounted bungies hook to hatches. Includes machined wooden parts, hardware, and instructions. Read the instructions here.

    Kit includes enough material for two hatches. Specifically: eight wooden blocks, bungie cord, stainless steel hooks, and hatch cover reinforcements.

    Almost any hatch system, flush or otherwise, will work with the Invisible Hatch Hold Down scheme. These kayak kits include flush hatch kits: Shearwaters, Arctic Hawk, Sea Island Sport, Night Heron S&G and all Guillemot strip-planked kayaks.

     

    Videos

    Stripping the Solo microBootlegger

    Building a Wooden Kayak - Making the microBootlegger

    Buying Wood microBootlegger Sport - E1

    Frequently Asked Questions

    How do I order this kit?

    Click on the Buying Options tab the top left of this page and follow the directions.

    If I buy one of your boat kits, what else will I need?

    Chesapeake Light Craft kits contain all the parts and materials you need to build the boat. The kit includes pre-cut parts, hardware, epoxy, fiberglass, plans and instructions. Our standard kayak kits also have the seats, hatches, bulkheads, footbraces, and the deck-rigging. About the only thing kits don't include is the final finish: paint or varnish. Your boat's color scheme is entirely up to you.

    You'll need a few ordinary tools, like a cordless drill, a decent 5-inch sander, and for most boats a wood plane. You'll need disposables such as sandpaper and paint brushes and mixing cups.

    You need a workspace a couple of feet bigger all the way around than the boat you want to build, and you'll need to be able to maintain temperatures between about 55 degrees F and 95 degrees F during steps when epoxy is being applied or curing. Since a lot of boatbuilding gets done during winter, we've written up some tips on how to heat a cold space cheaply, easily, and safely.

    How much does this boat weigh and how much can it carry?

    The weight and payload of this boat, along with other statistics such length and beam, can be found under Specs in the Specifications section, which is just below the lead image seen at the top of this page.

    Can you send me the plans digitally?

    Sorry, but until digital rights management technology for marine architectural work catches up to that used for books and music, we are unable to transmit digital plans. Currently, only study plans and manuals can be sent digitally.

    Classes

    Take One of our Boatbuilding Classes

    We offer classes for many of the boats we sell. Teaching sites stretch from Maryland to Washington State and from Maine to California. Click here to find out more.

    View Classes

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