An Interview with Riley Kenji McMath Retail Manger at Edensaw Woods
What are the primary differences between your Hydrotek, Okoume, and Sande marine plywoods, and why might a boat builder choose one over the other?
It really comes down to the species used in the veneer core. I will often recommend Hydrotek for structure in static pieces. Think of bulkheads, bilge soles and blocking, but could serve well as hull or deck members. While I find Okoume has the best balance of attractiveness and strength, most of the skiffs I build are of our Sande ply, for its better price.
Are their any other less-expensive or fringe plywood options—maybe something with only an exterior grade—that you sell to small-boat builders looking for the cheapest possible solution? For boatbuilding, I never recommend any sheet goods other than marine ply. It’s important to select the correct materials for your use, to protect your labor and other costs. It's not exactly a bargain to have to replace something you’ve just built!
What specific features provide a plywood the “marine” designation? And how important is the BS-1088 standard?
Marine plywood is constructed from waterproof glues paired with marine appropriate species for the veneers. They should be void free and feature virtually no defects. The 1088 British Standard is a certification that should bring you a certainty that your marine ply is in fact graded and appropriate for boatbuilding. The BS-1088 includes tolerances for veneer quality, glue quality and should be as square a piece of ply as you can buy.
Do you sell any marine plywoods in longer than 8-foot lengths?
Our marine ply is sold in 4x8’ sheets but our wood-stretching department (CNC) is well practiced at milling puzzle joints and such to achieve the lengths needed for our customer’s builds.
Suppose some boat plans call for “oak or mahogany” for structural members, are there some potential relatively analogous woods you carry that are popular with builders? And how do costs compare? True mahogany has many competitors, such as khaya, sapele or meranti. Oak can be replaced with ash if left out of a bilge. And while iroko is sometimes referred to as “poor man’s teak,” it is in fact harder than teak and carries a high oil content. It even silvers the same!
What’s a wood you’re selling that maybe isn’t real common, but is becoming popular with boat builders for its appearance or virtues? Afromosa. It’s a dense equatorial hardwood from Africa and is a lovely red brown. When quartersawn its long straight grain is really shown off. It would look phenomenal varnished.
Older builders often lament the declining quality of boatbuilding woods. Do you see a decline? I often hear this as well, but I do not see a marked or recent decline in lumber quality. However, availability is something to pay attention to, as over the years we have done quite the number on the Earth’s forests. Market demand is high for the classics like teak, mahogany, and domestic conifers, which can be a factor in their cost, but not necessarily quality. Boatbuilders have long turned their noses up at certain woods such as plantation teak or second growth fir, but the fact of the matter is these materials are still viable and will likely last longer than the builder, when used properly.
Which of the popular boat building woods is looking least sustainable or hardest to get? Given certain geopolitics and steady demand, teak remains the trade’s drama queen. Some mills have stopped producing large heart free amaranth, which I personally struggled sourcing only a couple hundred miles from where it grows. The bright side is if anyone can get it, it’s Edensaw.
Which is most sustainable with the best long-term projection?
For maximum sustainability you would have to consider plantation wood, such as teak. Old growth timber won’t be replaced anytime soon so a good marine tolerant species that is planted and grown for the purpose of harvest is our best bet.
Does Edensaw ship all over the country if readers in other regions want to order lumber from you? Yes! Our trucks leave Port Townsend, WA every morning to deliver around the Puget Sound. For those customers that are farther away, we will work hard to get you the best price on freight. •SCA•
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That’s a very informative article. I like that Edensaw is knowledgeable and approachable.
I contemplated building a wooden boat, but will probably not because of the price of recommended wood. It is easy to say, "Oh, I know it is getting expensive", but it is a problem that needs a real solution. I think we need to look at reasonable, man-made alternatives. Another choice might be treatment of less recommended plywood to treat the concerns of its use during or prior to construction.