Hi everyone, we're building a boat!

[JPA Cate]

Ya know, Chotu,

That list is a real caution. You're quite the survivor. Now if you can only finish the boat, eh? Good luck with it.

Ann

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by JPA Cate

Ya know, Chotu,

That list is a real caution. You're quite the survivor. Now if you can only finish the boat, eh? Good luck with it.

Ann

Yes. My intention was to just post that so that people could see how much can actually go wrong. Ha ha. That will hopefully help them take a lot of these random events into account that you don’t always think of when you are starting to build a boat. Lord knows I didn’t think of half of these happening.

But on the good side of things, we are getting ready to do the composite chainplates now. I finally have some metal work going on next week. That will get the front crossbeam on the boat. The sticking points have come unstuck. Thankfully. It was looking pretty dire this summer.

I plan to take it out for a little cruise this winter. And of course there are going to be some Forum members invited who have helped me along the way with advice and things like that. They can come out for a little tour with it. See some of their advice in action.

[RaymondR]

First thing to do is set aside a week or two to deeply ponder on whether or not you really need a 50" boat.

[MicHughV]

A 50 footer isn't just 10' bigger than a 40 footer, it is likely 2 or 3 times bigger, volumewise.
Overall lenght doesn't tell the whole story.
The displacement of the two vessels tells the real story. ie, the overall volume.
a 50 footer is a really " big" boat.
Might not sound sound big on paper, but in real life terms, it's huge.

I remember the day I flipped my 38 footer...

I thought to myself....wtf have I taken on here...this thing is HUGE !!!

[MicHughV]

my pic didn't attach

[kapnd]

As you can see from the majority of the posts so far, building your own boat is a very challenging proposition in so many ways.
Add to that the fact that you are not a sailor, and don’t even know if your body/mind can tolerate life onboard, I’d be looking for opportunities to confirm your commitment to such a project before jumping in.
Go charter a boat for your next vacation, or bum rides to get some hands on experience, and sprinkle some fiberglass dust in your sheets for a few nights!

[cdreid]

Originally Posted by Chotu

This is really good advice from someone that knows exactly what they are talking about.

I started building a fast cat to charter with the wife. We were already doing a very successful charter business. I started building then:
....

An example of what can go wrong during a build. Prepare for the worst. Hope for the best.

I dont know what you did in a past life to earn this karma but there had to be roasted babies on the list :P Even then i think youre paid up and and have some credit stored up!

[LakeSuperior]

SoCal hey - Help you Rhonda help help you Rhonda!
My father spent 20 years building a 37 ft yawl. He started in his 30s with a 5 year build plan.

[MicHughV]

I got to know a guy building a 53 footer, back when I was building mine, 40 years later, he is still at it. Must be in his 70's by now.

'tis not for the feint of heart for sure...

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by Rhonda S

Greetings, I'm 67 and a retired travel consultant. You can guess what my role on the boat will be! My younger brother, Phil, and his wife, Marianne, are in the process of buying a highly customized Schionning Designs catamaran kit. We plan to start the build in January 2023 and have a 2 year build time. He started planning a round the world sail over 10 years ago. I jumped aboard the plan about a year and a half ago. I have watched a lot of YouTube videos (you can learn from them), have read a good deal, and been taught a lot by my brother. We are located in southern California and will be shake down cruising on the west coast before heading to Mexico and across the Pacific. My sailing experience is 1 day on the Chesapeake, which is quite a story by itself. My brother has been sailing since he was ten. I've been an avid reader of this forum for a year and a half, and look forward to chatting with all of you and asking lots of questions. Because we have had so long to plan, we have a very detailed website and will be joining the vast numbers of sailors sharing videos on YouTube opcorn : including the entire build.



Rhonda - S/V Lynx

S/V Lynx

You are certifiably mad in the head

You’re retired. Take your money and go sailing

[Calif.Ted]

You are importing a 50' Catamaran Kit from South Africa to build it in California?
Where will you do that and will that be more efficient than having it built in South Africa?
Nordhvn has their International Headquarters here but they build the boats in Asia, take them to San Diego by freighter, then spend 6 months getting electronics installed in Dana Point. Cheaper to build there and ship it here, owners are native Californians been building boats for a long time, started with Mason and other well know sailboats. Just look in to having it built somewhere someone has ALREADY built one. You weren't planning on doing this with fewer than 5-6 full time experienced people I hope. If it's just you with friends and family I think you are behind schedule already.

[Simi 60]

Wow, 67 is over a decade away yet for me, couldn't imagine taking on such an immense project at that age and I'm a boatbuilder by trade.

Built a 33 ft cat in my 30"s , skipped the 40 in my 40's and went straight to a 50+ fter built in a shed in the backyard of a house we bought for that build

It broke me , put me in hospital and I couldn't get back into it.
She still sits under wraps back at the dirt house

Bought our current vessel for less than the cost of finishing it and have been enjoying the last 6 years of our lives on her while still young.

Good luck to you.

Add: re read your post and it's not you building, phew.

[Ballsnall]

Wow, all this love and encouragement is just overwhelming, maybe the op could reduce their dreams to just a 15' canoe with a seven year goal of paddling across a small lake.

[MicHughV]

This CF can be a "reality show" for some.
One can't deny the dreams of others, but it needs to be tempered with a dose of reality.
Not saying it can't be done, but at age 67, it might be three years or more, before stepping onboard for the first sail.

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by MicHughV

This CF can be a "reality show" for some.
One can't deny the dreams of others, but it needs to be tempered with a dose of reality.
Not saying it can't be done, but at age 67, it might be three years or more, before stepping onboard for the first sail.

50 cat , two people , one 67 , he’ll be dead before it splashed and he’ll be broke to boot.