After building my first and second dinghies, I have a better idea about this kind of construction cost. And it costs, a lot. I receive often questions about how much it costed me to build Kerness. And honestly, I have not done any accurate calculation, but this was not cheap. One would think that building your own boat is cheap, but when looking at good quality plywood, epoxy, sails, trailer and all the jewerly, it adds up quickly.
So for this SB18, here is my budget:
Marine plywood okoume: $2,000 - 43% of the hull cost.
Other material (lead, fir...): $1,000 - 21% of the hull cost.
Fiber glass: $ 800 - 17% of the hull cost.
Epoxy and filer: $ 900 - 19% of the hull cost.
Total for the hull: $4,700 - 44% of the project cost.
Rig (aluminum spars): $3,500 - 33% of the project cost.
Sails (dacron): $1,500 - 14% of the project cost.
Trailer: $1,000 - 9% of the project cost.
Total project cost: $10,700
It better be fast...!
This week, I have had some rough quotes from various suppliers for about everything. I am still looking for a good way to cast the keel bulb. I am not keen to handle 360 lbs of melted lead...! So I am looking for a local foundery who would help me out. My next step is to buy the douglas fir required for the keel and then shape the bulb keel and get all this on track...