What We Offer

Building boats up to 25 feet from kits.
Building boats up to 25 feet from plans.
Completing partially built boats.
Building Stand Up Paddleboards (SUPs).
Building Surfboards.
Finish work on completed boats.
Restoring finish on old boats.
Repair of wooden boats.

We also offer custom options for any of the above services.

Contact me for a free estimate for your next wooden boat.
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Check out my largest project yet! I built a Didi 23 sailboat over the course of 2 years.


Click here For the project page.
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The upcoming 2024 schedule of boat building classes I will be teaching at the Center for Wooden Boats in Seattle has been announced! Join me at the Center for Wooden Boats' beautiful workshop to build your own boat.


For more details and to sign up go to:
https://www.cwb.org/chesapeake-light-craft-boatbuilding-classes
Wait list:

In progress:


Queue:

1.
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We are excited to announce that our kayak, the Kea Kayaks Mollymawk, earned an award for Best Human Powered Boat at the 2018 Lake Union Wooden Boat Festival!


Click here to see more photos!
Check out the latest view of the workshop.
Why buy a wooden boat?

Stitch and glue and cedar strip small boats and paddle boards are just as strong as production fiberglass boats. They are much lighter than plastic boats and are equivalent in weight to high end fiberglass boats. The advantages of wooden boats include; the variety and beauty of wood designs, durability, ease of repair, and ease of customization.
Cost

The final cost will depend on the size and scope of your boat. A typical stitch and glue kayak will cost about $5000, a strip built kayak $6000, and an open boat under 15 feet would start at $8000. Contact me for an estimate of what your desired boat will cost. If you provide the kit, we will only charge for supplies and labor. 
 
I take cash, checks, Venmo, PayPal, and Visa/Mastercard (add 3% fee for Paypal and credit cards.)

Delivery in the greater Seattle area available for a fee. Boats can be shipped anywhere in the US/Canada for an additional fee. A typical 18 foot kayak will cost around $1500 to ship, this includes the cost of a protective crate.
Partnerships

We are happy to promote a partnership with Angus Rowboats.  They offer several unique and beautiful designs contact me for a quote to have one of these built for you. Check out their website at www.angusrowboats.com.

We also are happy to promote a partnership with Puuvenepiste Boats. This Finland based company has some great, and very fast rowboat designs. Contact me for an estimate!
https://puuvenepiste.fi/en/index.html
Links

Below are links of companies who sell kayak and small boat kits that I can be hired to build.  Please contact me if you have another design that you would like built.

Angus Rowboats
Chesapeake Light Craft
Puuvenepiste Designs
Bateau Boat Designs
Guillemot Kayaks
Newfound Woodworks Inc.
One Ocean Kayaks
PT Watercraft
Orca Boats
Pygmy Boats
Redfish Kayaks
Laughing Loon
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About Us

I started Kea Kayaks in 2006, a few months after finishing construction on my first boat, the Chesapeake Triple featured on this site. I enjoyed working on it so much that I thought I would offer my services as a builder. I changed the name to Kea Custom Boats in 2019 to better encompass my offerings. I am based in Bainbridge Island, WA, in the heart of some of the best kayaking and boating in the world.  

Casey Wilkinson