The Big Build

Viking Longboat

Nick and the team create an exact replica of an 1,100-year-old ship using traditional materials and techniques.

The Fort

Lewis and Clark, racing Oregon's winter chill, built the 50 foot square Fort Clatsop, a double structure shelter with seven rooms, a sentry box, and a parade ground, in just 15 days. THE BIG BUILD's version is scaled down, but so is the timetable. Working in a dense patch of Kansas woodlands, John McPherson, a specialist in log structures, directs the team as they dig fire pits, raise raw wood walls, and fashion doors from rawhide. The end result may not be pretty, but it would keep the winter at bay.

The Speakeasy

Nick and the team fashion a jazz-era watering hole beneath the suburban home of two Chicago police officers. The ultimate hands-on blend of history and engineering. Hosted by contractor and former pro football player Nick Mystrom. Master builder Frank Sullivan transforms a basement room into a ‘20s hideaway.

Lighthouse

The BIG BUILD team reconstructs a historic lighthouse on the shores of Lake Erie. Explore the inner workings of a classic lighthouse as it gets a new lease on life. The ultimate hands-on blend of history and engineering. Hosted by contractor and former pro football player Nick Mystrom.