Questions for beginner

I have several questions about layup and general production. I was hoping some of you more experienced guys could help me.

I have a full time job and I’d like to keep it. I have built 5 small 1-2 man boats for myself over the years using the glue and stitch method, so I’m familiar with fiberglass cloth and epoxy resin. My overall goal would be to step it up a notch and build or buy a mold and build roughly one 12’ fiberglass boat/month and sell it. I’d like to focus on a sneak boat/layout boat for duck hunting as well as a basic 2 person fishing boat like a micro skiff.

I’ve done basic research but there seems to be so much conflicting info out there. Here are a few of my questions.

Do most of you guys who hand lay fiberglass use epoxy resin or polyester resin on layups?

What layups work well for you for a small vessel like this? Example- cloth, then mat, then cloth?

Should I build my own mold to avoid getting sued by the creator of the mold or is this not a big deal in this industry?

Do I need to create an LLC to avoid getting sued by a buyer down the road if I’m only building 1 small boat/month? I’m aware we live in a sue happy time and I don’t want to put my family in jeopardy.

Are there any questions I’m not asking that I should ask?

Again, this is something I would do to sell roughly 1/month for fun and to make a little side money. Is this reasonable or is this not worth it at all?

Thank you so much for any helpful info

 

Welcome to the Forum John.

Did you sell each boat before starting on the next?
And if so, did you get a 'reasonable' price for it, when you take into account the cost of materials and the total number of hours that it took you to build the boat?

If you buy a mould, then you should not have any worries about being sued by the creator, provided that you agree beforehand on a royalty payment that you will pay to the creator for each boat that is built.

If you do not buy a 'ready made' mould, do you intend to design the boat yourself, or buy a set of plans?
If the latter, you will still have to (or you should ) pay a royalty fee to the designer for each boat built.
Are there any interesting designs out there that appeal to you?
If yes, can you post some links (if possible) to them please?

 

You first need to register yourself or a company as a boat builder with the USCG. They will issue you a 3 letter identifier that are first 3 of the HIN. You will need to comply with regulations by USCG, ABYC, etc. An LLC is always a good idea, but you need to be careful to follow the rules or you will lose the protection. If you buy a mold, it will probably have availble the laminate schedule from the previous builder or the designer. If you build a mold from a designer, all that information should be included. However, you need to ask yourself what will be better or more attractive about the boat you build. Also, can you compete in price with existing manufacturers? 12 foot boats are manufactured by the tens of thousands in a variety of models and materials.

 

Most are using epoxy resin.

Whatever the designer calls for, providing it's a sound, proven design.

 

Talk to your lawyer.

 

Talk to your lawyer.

 

Definitely.

 

That's a value's question so the answer is:
It depends.
Probably not.

 

Hi John, what will your boats do or have, which the others don't; the selling point to attract a buyer away from a (probably) cheaper mass produced factory build ? Plastic small dinghies are relatively cheap. Has the owner of the design already flooded the market ? Do you have an under supplied niche market ? Also, when you finish your day's work, and immediately begin your own production line, will you be able to keep it up without fatigue affecting your own work, and at your main job, family, and friends ? Burnout is real, and hobbies / recreational work is fun, but extra work load and commitments stress isn't fun. If you can do it profitably, good on you. I'd like waterproof lockable gun and gear boxes, strapped in cooler, regular OB bracket and electric OB bracket, and other accessories, at competitive prices. I do hope your plan works for you, and good luck with it.

 

John Lane:

You may want to prepare a business plan of sorts. In it you can include answers to the questions you’ve posed,(including input from this discussion), create a relatively detailed accounting of what each boat would cost to make (material costs, labour, other costs/overhead), and use it to compare to similar boats on the market and their prices, materials etc, or for comparing costs of different materials and methods of production for your own boat.

It doesn’t have to be fancy - I did most of this kind of work in Excel (or on a similar spreadsheet) and often included in my workbook a sheet which listed “competitors” or similar boats with their specs. It is a useful exercise even for someone who doesn’t plan on pursuing the venture full time, and is a great way to plan for contingencies before they become unpleasant surprises.

When it’s all said and done it can be used as a scorecard, to see how things are going, and help you determine if there’s room for product (or cost) improvements.

Good luck!

 

I did sell each boat I built before building the next one. I only sold them for what I paid for materials.

Thank you for your input. Really good stuff

 

I did not know this. Very informative. Thank you!

Great thoughts about what will make my boat stand out from the others since the market is so saturated with 12' boats.

Thanks again

 

What questions should I be asking?

 

Thank you for the feedback. Honestly, I am starting to realize this after I got all these replies. It is really helpful

 

Wow, this is SUPER helpful. I will start a list and spend some time thinking through these things. I really appreciate your thoughtful points.

Waterproof lockable gun and gear boxes on a boat? Or just in general? Id be interested in making something like that