: Though it is strange that apparently nobody builds out of covering panels
: that could be bent to shape.

: Oh, they still do build with this stuff. It is just outrageously expensive.
: There was a link a while ago on this board to a company that builds racing
: shells from oldgrowth cedar. Each hull is a single piece, which they draw
: from a dwindling stock of thin (1/4 inch) wide (about 24 inches wide, I
: think) and long (20 + feet) close-gained cedar.

Found the page on these boats, Pocock racing shells:

http://www.pocock.com/woodboat.htm

a single shell from cedar is US $6850.

according to their website:

"Pocock's Cedar Singles are constructed in the traditional fashion from carefully selected wood. The hull is unique in that the skin is made from a single steam bent plank of 3/32" thick Western Red Cedar. The planks were purchased in the 1970's and sawn from trees 600 to 800 years old. The fineness of the grain, often one hundred lines to the inch, was rare even in the 50's. These materials combined with 75 years of expertise result in the most finely crafted wood single in the industry."

Someday I want to take a tour of that place and see the steamr they use for such big, floppy pieces of wood!

PGJ

This boat has a 12 inch beam. If you think round hulls are not stable, then go figure how they manage to balane something that is both round and narrow!