So, you've been looking at the Michalak scow Boxtop and saying to yourself "I could knock one of those together in a hurry for not a lot of money..."
So what would it cost to build?
Well for starters, you're looking at around 50-sheets of 1/2" plywood which, if you go marine, is a chunk of change. Marine ply would set you back between $4500-5000 but you could go the best quality exterior route for about half that.
Then you'll need lumber for the framing and spars. My quick guesstimate for that is about $1000.
Of course, you'll need something to glue and seal the thing together so expect to spend around $350 for epoxy (double or triple that if you want to glass it as well).
It goes on but we're at the point where we have to ask ourselves why are we spending this kind of money when we could buy a 28-foot sailboat already fitted out in fair to good condition for less?
Which is not to say we should not build this or another boat but since we're not going to save any money doing it there would have to be some other compelling reasons why we should.
For me, this particular boat's virtues are its rig and its extreme shoal draft. Face it, if you want a boat that draws a foot or sports a balanced lug rig, you're going to have to build it yourself. Offhand I'd say that is more than enough reason to build if I actually needed those features in a boat.
One thing to keep in mind is that the need/want test for any boat building exercise is crucial...
