Building a Boat

Stitched-plywood hull on table at i3Detroit

The boat currently taking shape in the shop requires a 14-foot work table, plus walking space at either end. Such dimensions are prohibitive if your only options are a home garage (too small AND too cold) or the living room (whose new carpet precludes its use as a workshop). But that’s why i3Detroit exists!

The canoe in question is a Moccasin, a computer-aided design from B&B Yacht Designs. While digital in origin, the plans arrive as paper in an envelope, and require a process called “lofting” to lay them out on the full-size sheets of plywood. The progress since that point is documented on my Flickr.

If you swing by the space in the next few days, you might find the boat stashed overhead so the shop can be used for other things, or you might find the rest of assembly and finishing in progress. Check i3Detroit’s Twitter feed for times.