Thread:

Is it possible?New boats?New families?

Depends a lot on how much work you're willing to do yourself. I figure you're talking about putting together an all-new hull with all new stuff (new prop, v-drive, plate hardware, etc). Assuming you are doing all the final assembly, with a couple off the cuff numbers:

New hull: $10k with/ underwater rigging + Plates (this is highly variable, but I think I saw a deal like this recently).
V-drive: $1500
New Prop: $500-700
Crate Small Block: $5k
Seats: $1500

That's $18.7k (with 10K hull). $1300 is not enough for odds and ends, but a few extra thousand, should be enough for some basic steering, fuel tanks, exhaust, mounting hardware, wiring, guages, and plumbing. Assuming you can put it all together from the parts, I think you could reasonably build an all new family ski flatty for 22-25k. Not far from the mark. You can also save a lot by going used on some of the parts, or getting a donor boat- I've seen a lot of old boats going for $1000 that have many times that amount worth of parts if you were to buy it all new.

Even at 25k, that's about what a new Bayliner would run you, and half what a decent rollbar boat runs, so I don't think it's such a bad deal.

Hate to say this, but we need to make some hulls in Mexico. The laws are lax there, labor is less expensive, and there is skilled labor for hand layups. Needs to get a hull and trailer together for about $10K. We could fit them up with toyota forklift engines and vdrives from oil platform tenders...

hopefully to help the scene not hurt it its not the boats that are hard to come buy ther are plenty of decent starter boats so to speak with good running tunnel ramed big blocks from 5 -10k but us whipper snappers will only go and get scowled at so many times , very small handfull of folks and the actual race teams have bean friendly at any event i have been to just saying that may have something to do with it ,your circle will not get bigger if only your circle is welcome

I don't think a comparison to the Oakland Roadster Show is quite on the mark. There are a lot of non-blinged out ski boats at the v-drive shows, and Billy B and the rest are trying to get more to show up. Also, I think the situation is really quite similar to hot rodding- there are plenty of old boats out there that are well within the budget of young guys (like me), just like there used to be lots of model Ts and As back in the 60s. In the 60s, you had the kids playing with the vintage metal, and guys with some bankroll buying the new stuff. Nowadays, the kids have the old Civics and whatnot to play with, and people with $$ can buy a new fast car. The difference in boats right now is that nobody is building new [hot] boats to just go out and buy. I don't think that's a problem for real hot rodders- there is plenty of material out there for the kids and other would-be v-drivers to learn on if they are so inclined. Whether or not the fact that non do-it-yourself types can't get into v-drives is a problem or not could be debated. V-drives just take a lot of work- I don't think they were ever meant for people that can't work on their own stuff.

I think in another 20 years we might have a problem, though- we're in the postwar glut right now. P-51 Mustang engines may be cheap now, but nobody is building any more- eventually we will run out. People built a lot of hot boats in the 60s and 70s- thirty years later they are cheap.

Originally Posted by 76sanger

So I was wandering with all the brainiacs that are on these boards if it is possible to make a new hull,small block(ford,chevy,mopar) motor and all the running gear and keep the price in and around say 15 to 20 grand?
I mean "Vdrive" boating has been my life for 43 years now,missed being born on shasta lake by two hours on a 67 stevens with a bbc427 in it.I love boating,I hear all the time that this person or that person would love to get a hot boat and take there family boating.But then you hear them say that they have looked and it would cost your left and right nut and part of there "yaaahooooo" to buy one.
So is it possible any more to build a,say a 18' back to back seating with a small block in it.It doesn't have to have all the fancy ano parts and braided lines,black water lines,c clamps and well you get the picture.

New, no way. Put a nice used deal together, definitely.

I may not be understanding the question and it seems that it has been answered two ways so far:

1. a new boat built buy a manufacturer? My thinking would be no way as answered previously for just liability.
2. Find an old boat and build it for 15 to 20 grand? You could build a nice v-drive for that amount of money if you don't just get on a web page and order new parts and then send the boat to someone else to put together. I have less than $15 grand into two flats, bought my first one when I was 24, paid $5500 for a nice 1981 19' Sanger, cleaned it up re-built the motor and trailer with my Dad and ran it for several years then I found a nice bare hull 77 Sanger a few years later with custom paint, gutted the 81 and have been running the 77 ever since (I call the 77 stupid move because I never should have dumped the 81' "stupid move" is the boat in my avatar)

I am 42 and have been around flats my whole life just like many others on these pages. I always remember the stories from my dad and his friends, they didn't buy complete boats but parts here and there and had a group of buddies working on them to get them to the River. One guy was a machinest, one guy did pait, one guy did motors, etc... this is how my family got into this sport back in 1948 and we are stll going strong with the flats and the family camping together every year. We still work on our boats like this today, I am building a Spectra 20 v-drive, bought a cheap boat tore it apart and am putting it bakc together, slower than a snail but it's coming together with the help of my family and friends, I love the build process but if you don't like the process and have the cash to spend, God Bless you and the great shops that build this stuff need your business.

Think I went way off topic but I was confused on the original question... sorry.