Building costs, was Idlewild 12/16/05: Communications at sea
Bob Austin wrote:
I also am very interested in the costs. The building of the boat is
a project which could be undertaken by any skilled welder or wood
worker. The interior appears to be quite utilitarian. I would not
be surprised if this boat could not be replicated for well under
$200,000 and some labor on the owner's part. However in plywood it
would be much cheaper. A quick calculation shows that plywood costs
about 25% of aluminum for raw material. For just the hull
(including frames--rough calculations show about $7500 for plywood
and $30,000 for corrosion resistant aluminum) However the use of
wood would require Epoxy and cloth plus fastenings, and bring the
cost closer to 35% to 50% of Aluminum. The engine at 55 hp could
come in at around $10,000, Gen set $8,000--you get the idea..
Of course you have to add your own labor at $3.00 an hour (about
what amateur boat builders "earn" when they sell their projects if
well made).
George Buehler reply:
A common question and one I address IN DETAIL in my two books
Buehler's Backyard Boatbuilding and, The Troller Yacht......
His ply vs aluminum material costs might be accurate, I don't
know. But the wood version can be built by any even semi handy guy,
and the metal one requires far more skill.
10K would likely cover the engine but why an 8K genplant? If one
is wanted (note, NONE are needed) a $900 Honda 2 kW in a deckbox
would be plenty. Many 5th wheelers use these things as well as many
boats.
I'd probably epoxy at least the bottom but there are thousands of
old ply boats out there, built of MDO, with no epoxy, going strong 40
years later. Chris Craft and Owens alone built thousands. There's
plenty of new plywood boats with no cloth, or only cloth on the
bottom. It doesn't hurt to do the whole thing, of course.
Outfitting is the biggest expense for a home builder and that can
be done simply or extravagantly. Again, the two books mentioned
above go into great detail on this.
How much would it cost to build one of these boats? The variables
are to great to speculate other than I KNOW yiu could get a pretty
decent plywood one in the water for a 1/4 or so of what this guy's
aluminum guess speculated. If a guy built it himself. If hiring the
labor the alumium might cost about the same because it would go
together much faster so you'd have less labor costs.. Boatyard labor
rates at 50-60/hr (or more) add up very fast.....
For what it's worth that's what I think!
Best:
George