I have just about gotten my 40' x 20' temporary garage setup. This is where I will be actually building the boat. I also have a 30x20 woodshop that I will try to do the panel cutout and most of the other work in not related to actually hanging a panel.
How much materials does it take to build the hull of the Great Alaskan out to 28'? Well, check the photos out!
I got nearly all of my materials from the nice folks at Boat Builder Central in Vero Beach, Florida. Joel Shine is a very nice person and gave me a lot of tips. He was in the process of building some very cool stuff. He was working on an 18 foot skiff that I was eyeballing pretty hard, and will probably build oneday! Also, the prices on all their materials were as good or better than anywhere on the net. I would highly recommend giving them a call if you need boatbuilding materials. The rest of the fiberglass materials that BoatBuilderCentral did not have I got from US Composites in West Palm Beach. Once again, the prices and customer service were top notch. I spoke with Lisa on the phone and she was very helpful.
I got 17 sheets of 3/8" Meranti 1088, 11 Sheets of 3/4" Meranti 1088 and 1 sheet of 1/2" Meranti 1088. 30 Gallons of MarinEpoxy with the slow hardener. Lots of fiberglass tape and cloth, and bags and bags of wood flour, silica, glass beads, phenolic microballons and glass minifibers.
I also got a little ahead of myself the other day, and went ahead built my 32 gallon livewell first. Hey, it just seemed like the right thing. I made a mold out of some scrap lumber and formica and started fiberglassing over it. Once it got thick enough, I popped it out of the mold and put light blue gelcoat all over the inside. Why light blue? Because I always wanted a light blue livewell. I think it will keep the live bait happier.
Also, last week at a heavily reduced price, I bought a brand new aluminum outboard bracket with swim platform. I want the boat to have a full closed transom. This bracket is made by Stainless Marine. The outboard motor setback is 30 inches, and the swim platform is around 77 inches wide. It came with all the mounting hardware and is ready to go.
Yesterday I put the cover on the top of my temporary garage. It is a 30x40 white tarp. Needless to say it was not fun at all to put it on, and without help from my wife and kids, I would have never got it on. Now it looks like we could hold a circus in the backyard! I will have to get a picture of that when I get a chance.
Finally, today, I went back to the same place I got the outboard bracket and got virtually everything I need, as far as hardware, for the boat build. (practically everything except the motor and trailer!)
I got a hydraulic steering system, trim tabs, anchor windlass (no more pulling up the anchor by hand!), Sony radio, JBL speakers, cup holders, rod holders, anchor, anchor roller, electrical switch panels, bilge pump, livewell pump, fuel line, LED nav and anchor lights, LED courtesy lights, battery terminals, battery switches, hatch covers, swim ladder......the list goes on and on! Here are some pictures of just some of the loot.
From Lowes, I ordered my 24 foot laminated veneer lumber beams for my stringers, and they are going to deliver them this Saturday. This week I am going on a business trip and I am going to re-read the construction books and study the plans again this week. When I get back, it will be time to start cutting some wood.....
If someone is interested in seeing "roughly" how this boat is going to be built, here is a link to a site detailing the build process of a very similar boat:
Also, this is the site of the boat designer for the boat I am going to build:
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