I did try making the hull I made in sheetmetal. I got it to rip fine, but it did not recognize the bends even though I was very careful about keeping the flat surfaces flat. In general, many of these surfaces in practice are "twisted" and that simple won't work in sheetmetal unless you make the twist in sheetmetal.
I am certainly not suggesting it isn't possible, but for the most part, it is not necessary.