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[Garabaldy]

Hi there,

Im looking into the possibilitie of getting a fibreglass hull built for my next project.  I dont feel confident enough to make one myself quite yet and would be much happier if some one more experience was doing it.  Obviously id pay for materials and time taken.  I will also supply the drawings.  Is there anyone who would be able to do this or be able to point me in the right direction

The hull im considering will be about 1500mm long, it will be a harbour tug of some kind.

Cheers,

[nhp651]

there are so many different tug hulls around these days from good british manufacturers, is there not one that would suit you.
to actually make a plug, then a mould ,then mouldings from that mould takes many hours, believe me.

[Colin Bishop]

nhp651 is right. To make a one off hull you would be talking hundreds of pounds minimum. That's why we do it as a hobby! Have a look at what is on the market already, you may be able to adapt something.

[Garabaldy]

I have been looking around but most harbour type tugs dont usually get much bigger than about 1000mm, im after something at least 1500mm.  Does anyone know of any hulls available?

With regards to the cost i was expecting it to cost hundreds of pounds, which im fine with within reason...

[tigertiger]

If you want something bigger, look at a Mr Darby

http://www.harbormodels.com/site08/info_pages/dumas/mr_darby_info5.htm

I have no connection with this site, and know nothing about the product. I have just seen the boat on other sites.

[cos918]

hi there . Harbor tugs are normal small in size compaired to ocean going tug. This means for a harbor tug to be 1.5m long it going to have to be a small scale which is not as common as bigger scales eg1:75,1:100. Try these links below if there is nothing there let me know and IL see what i can find.

john

http://users.skynet.be/florisjan/smb/page/E/index-slepers.html

http://modelsbydesign.co.uk/model_boats.aspx

http://www.mobilemarinemodels.com/

[nhp651]

regarding your hull for a 1.5mtre tug hull.
I have just commenced building a plug for a new lifeboat I want to build and it measures 51 inches, (1295mm) long.
I have been building that now for about 7 days, 7 hours a day,( 50 hours) and have reached the rough stage of filler.( it was built plank on frame).
There will be another week  (30-35 hours)of sanding, filling, sanding etc before I add the detailing to the hull.(another 10 hours)
Then comes the messy and hard work bit.......waxing up the finished plug (3 hours of waxing, polishing, waxing.etc until I have built up a good layer, of about 10-12 layers of wax)
After that the laying up of the split mould.in my case a 4 part split mould, but in the case of your tug 2 part split.......this would take a good 2 - 3 days (20 hours) to layer and lay up two different halves, plus wax the flange in between laying up the two halves.
Next the mould has to cure for 3 - 4 days, trimmed up, drilled for flange bolts, and then the whole mould has then to be waxed up with a few coats of wax.( another 3 - 4 hours)
Finally a moulding can be taken from that mould- to make a good one  say another 3 hours.

In total the man hours alone without materials ( and I hate to price them up due to the cost of oil based stuffs at the moment)
would be 90 hours ( NINETY)
If I were building for someone I would not build for less than £6.50 per hour ( which is still a pittance considering that a mechanic can charge £40.00 and a plumber.......well you tell me he can charge what the hell he likes?
So at £6.50 an hour X 90 hours   ..cost to make a mould for your 1.5 meter tug comes out at    £585.00 without materials, and I would think that timber, grp resin and other odds and sods would be another £100 - 150 for a hull that size..........grand total of( at worst scenario) £735.00p :'( :'(
you'd be far better seeking what is available, beleive me.

[Bryan Young]

There does seem to be a bit of exaggeration going on here. I am well on with the building of the "plug" for "Egham"...which is a "fairly" large(ish) hull. Using all new materials and counting every penny for this site, I cannot see why the finished hull should cost more than around £150. No recent posts on "Egham" because I want to get more of the plating done first. BY.

[DickyD]

Does your £ 150.00 include labour costs Bryan ?

[Bradley]

Garabaldy,
Have a word with Bryan at Mobile Marine Models - when I collected my Gribbin Head from him a couple of months ago he had an enormous tug hull in the workshop which looked as though it may have been a plug he was working on for a future model.  I passed a remark about the size but did not enquire further about it.   ???
Derek.   
PS.  That American one looks rather large.  Hate to think what the cost of shipping, import duty, etc., into UK would cost. :(

[nhp651]

yes, bryan.
if you are making it for yourself, then the materials cost would be £150.00. thats called a hobby
however if you want to have someone else make it for you, do you expect them to work for nothing.
try explaining your thoughts next time you go having your car fixed, your plumbing sorted or even your next kitchen fitted.
Sadly if you I think  they will do it no charge,you might have a big shock and find that you really DO  have to pay for labour, and at a hell of a greater rate than £6.50 per hour.
unless I'm missing something in this world of ours, no one will make a custom made object for someone else on a commission basis for free.......... :-\

[Bryan Young]

Does your £ 150.00 include labour costs Bryan ?

It IS supposed to be a hobby Richard. Time shouldn't be a factor unless you are building to sell or for a profit. For myself I treat the whole thing as a learning experience. Which is why I keep on trying out new ideas..some work, some do not. Over the years I have found ways of cutting costs without compromising "important" stuff. Keep watching and reading and perhaps you will be correct...or maybe I will be right. Cheers. Bryan.

[DickyD]

Just wondered Bryan as Garabaldy wanted a labour and material price as he wanted to commission someone to make it for him.

[nhp651]

i don't think Malcolm Darch or John Haynes quite treat their profession as a "hobby", Bryan?

[Bryan Young]

I get the impression that we are talking at cross purposes here, and that two guys called Bryan doesn't help! I am talking as a hobbyist only.(This is Bryan Young). Tiger-Tiger has suggested that I read the original post...which I have done. All I can come up with is inadvertent and probably unavoidable confusion. My own point still stands. For a "one-off" hull in fibreglass £150 seems pretty normal to me. (And I don't scrimp on materials). BY,

[Bryan Young]

As an "extra", I can only say that the only way to learn is to go ahead and actually do it. Forget "confidence". We all start somewhere and if you make a mistake the first time then do it again, otherwise you will be forever feeling "incompetent". It is not a particularly difficult task if you have decent drawings to start with. Plus the fact you have a multitude of folk on this forum willing to give advice.
Please, as a fellow modeller, try it for yourself first before going down the outsourcing route. You may surprise yourself. BY.

[nhp651]

bryan,
 I think you are missing the point here in that the original poster did not ( in my opinion) think himself confident enough to build a tug hull at 1.5 metres as he didn't know what was involved, and therefore wanted to know how much someone WOULD CHARGE to build him one.I.E a commission..
Speeking from experience I know how he feels as it is a big step for someone to start delving into the world of GRP and also what IS actually involved in grp moulding.That is why I listed in detail the hours taken to produce a good mould from scratch.
If you feel that you could build one for £150.00 why don't you offer to build him one.........I'm sure he would snap your hand off, and also as you say, any experience is good practice and an experience never wasted,
 you would also gain from the build.
You would both then be winners,or are you too, a little more mercenary than you would want us all to believe.
There is a quantum point for any build that is not your own hobby work, and I am sure that all the time and effort put in to such a project has it's price, even for you?
I know I have.

[tigertiger]

I think the crux of it is that:
- you can do it for £150
- but you can't get someone else to do it for £150 quid

I think the original poster wanted to know how much it would cost somebody else to do it, or where he could buy one ready made.

Now it would be good if we could get the thread off the roundabout and back on track please

[John W E]

Hi there Garibaldi

First of all - may we ask, what is your modelling/building experience?

The reason I am asking is - to complete a model from a basic fibreglass hull in some respects needs the same skills and knowledge as the skills & knowledge to produce fibreglass plugs and moulds.  I was just wondering in a polite way, would this project not be a little bit 'too advanced' just to begin with?

Unless, of course, there is a 'time-element' involved, where you feel you may not have the time and patience to complete such a hull.

The other thing I can think of is the medical-side - are you allergic to some of the resins as the majority of resins carry a health risk.  When I first commenced using fibre glass, I was allergic to the paroxide this is contained in the catalyst.  The paroxide used to bring me out in scabs and rashes in fact when I used to work they used to call me 'The Singing Detective' (remember that series on the television - scabby/flaky fella.) 

The way I am thinking is it may pay you, like everyone else is suggesting on this topic, the money you would pay someone to build a hull for you; you could purchase a good kit and the electric gear to go with it - plus all the fittings.  Instead of thinking quantity as in size, think quality and a smaller better finished hull.

aye
john e
bluebird

[nhp651]

well said John. much easier in the long run.

[Garabaldy]

Cheers everyone.

My intentions here were only to explore the possibilty of some one else building a hull.  I was never set on it.  All good stuff  being said on here.  I was aware of the time it takes to build a fibreglass hull, but i figured there was no harm in asking.

Im bought a fibrelgass hull from models by design and thats what im building up just now but i am about 2/3rds through the build and now thinking about the next build.

p.s. my dad did the gell coat on his RIB in the shed a few years ago, the smell in the shed stuck around for weeks!  Im pretty sure his g/f would be too pleased if did the same thing......

[nhp651]

I tell you, garabaldy......i'm as high as a kite for days when i work with it.....better than a handfull of marajihoojy, and it's all legal too. but, boy does the head pound when you've finished.just like a twenty pint hang over