Building a stitched lapstrake canoe

July 26, 2007
Stitching the planks -- 2:41 hours


Yesterday I borrowed some lumber from my friend John (above left) so I could build 2 sturdy saw horses. I made them 36" high as I am over 6ft tall and that makes a comfortable working height for me. John and I set right to work today to get the thing in shape. While he cut 4" lengths of 18 gage copper wire, I began by stitching the center seam.

We worked our way out from the center of each plank, drilling holes and adding a stitch at a time. With each plank the canoe shape is beginning to emerge as we both wonder how the ends will pull together to form the final shape. We'll find out tomorrow!

Here's a stitch detail on the outside of the hull, and the hull so far.

Here's a movie made from images taken every minute as we stitched the hull together,
time invested today 2:41