PACKRAFT: DIY Packraft Kits

Because I don’t have enough projects (I have too many projects), I just took the plunge and bought two Skeena packraft kits from DIY Packraft.

I opted for the airtight tube zipper add-ons to make the build (and future repairs) easier and increase the functionality of our boats (storing gear in the tubes before inflating them lowers the center of gravity for more stability and leaves more leg room in the boat.

I wanted to add on the spray decks and spray skirts, but they were out of stock (material shortages & supply chain issues: story of 2020… and probably more of our futures, tbh). Luckily, those can always be retrofitted onto the boats after they’re done (once the materials are available and they restock).

I ordered a 47″ (120cm) Skeena in green for me, and a 51″ (130cm) Skeena in camo for the fella (this was a surprise purchase, or he’d have chosen a red one- but if all goes well, this won’t be my last set of rafts to build). We’re about the same height, but he’s all legs… he was a little confused when I measured his seated hip to toe distance without telling him why. If we get to do a packraft hunt or longer paddling excursion at some point, he may need a larger boat (and I could size up to the medium) but want to put some water miles under these first to decide if we’ll want another Skeena, or the beefier Telkwa with the wrap-around floor, or the really big 2 person boat.

The boat kits finally arrived (safe and sound, via Canada Post) and while I was waiting, I started collecting a few necessary tools. In addition to the precut material kits, I ordered a couple tubes of adhesive seam sealant from REI (the large tubes were out of stock, but this will be enough to get me started), a leather iron for heat sealing and a seam roller from Ali Express, and since the sealing iron is only available in 220v, a step up and down voltage converter, which seemed much safer than the other alternative, swapping the plug or using an adapter. This part was a little bit intimidating, but hopefully works fine. I ordered the fabric sample swatches and the kits also have plenty of extra material to practice heat welding the TPU fabric materials together before starting on the actual boat pieces.

Once these bad boys make their way to the top of the to-do list, I’ll blog about the builds here, so stay tuned!