Thanks everyone for your suggestions.
I looked a bit at the Champlain, nice, but for some reason the Redbird is stuck in my head. I'm mostly a lake paddler with the occasional lazy river thrown in, so I think that the Redbird is a decent choice for those purposes. It also has the size for me to take my two boys along, and I like that I could sit in the bow for solo outings since its symmetrical.
All logic aside, the lines are burned seductively in my mind. Enough so to put up with the agonizing over lumber length. --- Really?!, you had to be 17" 7.5"? Why not 17' 2.5"? And of course it's a full 2ft from 18' to 20' when most of that will be chopped! Still thinking about it though. With the Redbird's big recurve, it seems that there are only a few strips that really stretch the full length. I have a feature in mind that will span a half dozen strips or so, right in that area, so I will be adding length in those strips. I will ponder some more as I hunt the elusive lumber and most likely play it safe with the longer stuff.
I've been heartened by seeing other people's build spaces and knowing that some beautiful canoes have been born in some relatively cramped spots. I did a test layout of my build space and brought up my spare bench from the basement. I'm thinking that I'll move my table saw up to the front of the garage in line with the bench, and then move the workbench, currently at the end of the garage, in line as well. The bikes will go in front of my wife's vehicle. The tape measure on the floor is max beam. I should have 2 feet clearance at each end, as well as room for a couple of access points through the the benches. I think I'll put posts attached to the benches to support the lumber above head level when not in use. You'll notice that I've pretty much decided to put the benches in between the vehicle and the canoe, instead of along the wall. Better safe than sorry....(aside from my wife's, at times, creative parking, my boys will throw those doors open without a care.). That should work, don't you think?
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