Aluminum production? Can it compete?

[RDB]

Anyone have any thoughts on aluminum in a dominant fibreglass market, say over 35'? Do you think people will pay extra for aluminum, if the boat aesthetically is comparable? Interested to hear peoples opinions. And also, anybody who has a particular reason they don't like aluminum, other than appearance, I'd like to hear. Cheers.

[Jimbo1490]

I stripped and painted a couple of aluminum yachts and each involved a very laborious re-fair after stripping. A boat maker can fair a plug to perfection, then his molds will be darn near perfect, too. No such luck with a welded up aluminum hull. Each one has to be faired, and there are few shortcuts here.

IHMO

Jimbo

[Vega]

Originally Posted by RDB

Do you think people will pay extra for aluminum, if the boat aesthetically is comparable?

No, if you are talking about mainstream market.

Take a look at the French market; they are the ones that sell more aluminium boats. The number is quite small, if compared with the total of produced French boats, but the market for aluminium boats is steady and even increasing.

In the French market aluminium boats are voyage boats, not marina boats. In many the hull is not painted or only partially painted, and people don't expect them to be so smooth looking as fiberglass boats...but expect them to be stronger, and they are.

There are several small manufacturers that sell the boat in several finishing stages, from the hull to finished boats, and I believe they sell more partially build boats than finished boats.

For links take a look to this thread:

Brewer aluminum design?

Jimbo, you are dead right about the amount of work for painting an aluminium boat.
For painting the hull of a 40ft (that is standard delivered with a not painting hull) the manufacturer asks 20 000 euros. They also say that an aluminium hull is better left unpainted.
If painted you have to have extra care, because if you scratch your paint in one small point, all electrolytic corrosion will be directed to that point.

[RDB]

Agreed, painting and grinding goes under the "suck" column. But thats definitely in the price, cause if takes about 12-1500 hrs to paint a 45. Considerably more than fiberglass, because as you said that mold pops nothin but fair hulls.

[Jimbo1490]

Americans will not accept anything that looks less than perfect. Even if that 'perfection' is acheived by layers of plastic filler and is nothing more than a superficial visual effect, as long as it looks perfect, then it must be perfect. Aluminum is fine for work boats, though.

Jimbo

[Vega]

Aluminium is fine for sailors, too

[RDB]

So the general consensus seems to be that regardless of the material advantages, if the overall aesthetic finish isn't comparable to fiberglass, nobody will go for it. Seems about right. I ask because Audi dumped a huge amount of money into aluminum frame technology and then went on an advertising blitz about the benefits of aluminum. How many people went out to buy an audi cause it was aluminum? How many sold cause they look sweet? Probably more of the later. However, and audi isn't worth $1,000,000. Anyways, thanks for your insight everyone.

[Ike]

Well, I look at it a little differently. Yes most production boats are fiberglass, but there is a significant number of production manufacturers producing in Aluminum. Lund immediately comes to mind. There are thousands of smal utility and john boats produced in aluminum. Also Monark and Sea Ark are aluminum, Most houseboats are aluminum and the list goes on. And why paint aluminum anyway?

I also agree that a lot of work boats are built in aluminum simply because they are one off and aluminum is rugged and durable. Aluminum is particularly popular in the Pacific Northwest where rivers and beaches are very rocky. Aluminum can take the beating this kind of environment hands out.

So Aluminum has it's place, as does fiberglass, and wood and even steel.

[Thunderhead19]

For one off custom boats, designed by the right person, and put together by the right yard, there is no question about how competetive Aluminum can be. When it comes down to simple dollars and cents, for a one off, there are no moulds to make, there is no cure time required, and there is little or no handling or grinding of dangerous materials. I contracted a life threatening illness at 28 while working as a designer at a major yard that built large fiberglass yachts. I'm not saying it was caused by the chemicals, but they didn't help either.

[Vega]

Originally Posted by RDB

So the general consensus seems to be that regardless of the material advantages, if the overall aesthetic finish isn't comparable to fiberglass, nobody will go for it..

I don’t know where you have got that consensus. What I have said was:

Originally Posted by Vega

No, if you are talking about mainstream market.

.... The number is quite small, if compared with the total of produced .... boats, but the market for aluminium boats is steady and even increasing.

...If painted you have to have extra care, because if you scratch your paint in one small point, all electrolytic corrosion will be directed to that point.