cedar strip value

[WishIHadABiggerShop]

Providing that one could build a quality cedar strip canoe, what is it worth being sold by an amateur builder? is it legal to sell canoes built off of plans purchased from a retailer? what are the normal outlets for selling these type of craft other than the internet? thanks for you patience with my rookie questions.

 

[jmann652401]

Here is what I found out after building a strip canoe followed up by a strip Adirondack Guideboat........photos attached.
I built them with the intention of selling them upon completion. I still have them both. Don't know if there is a market for them, but honestly I never really tried too hard to sell them. I put a good deal of work into them both, and now my family and I get a great deal of enjoyment using them. If someone came up with the right amount I'd probably take the money, just don't know what that amount is.
Two similar kit guideboats (mine is not a kit boat) went for around $5,000 on ebay. I've seen strip canoes on ebay go for around $1,200 to $1,500. The WCHA has a classified section. Don't remember seeing any strippers there.
I've taken my strippers to the No Octane Regatta in Blue Mountain Lake NY, and to the Mid-Atlantic Small Craft Festival in St. Michael's MD. Plenty of nice comments, but nobody was making any offers.
Right now I'm restoring a '43 18-ft Old Town Guide. When that's done I'm looking into a rowing dory, could be another stripper, haven't thought it through yet. I've got room for a few more.
So I'd say, enjoy building one, enjoy using it, and make room for it. You'll end up keeping it for a bit. You could get hooked.
Good luck
Joe

 

[Dan Lindberg]

Wish...

I may be a bit pessimistic but, I suspect that if an amateur could get his expenses out, and maybe a bit more, he would be doing good. Certainly what an amateur could ask would be less then what a pro could ask.

I'm closing in on finishing my 3rd, and have considered parting with the 1st, if I could get $1000, I would be very happy and would take less. Either way it doesn't come close to paying for my time. Note that I live in MN where many strippers are built each year, as the local canoe club, the MCA, has promoted strip canoes for at least 40-50 years.

I suspect, at least here, that most folks who are interested in owning a stripper are also interested in building it themself, and have less interest in buying one.

It would be interesting to know how the/a pro views this.

Dan

 

[jackbat]

strippers for sale

It is true that it is difficult for an amateur to make any real money from strip built canoes. In fact it is difficult for proffesionals to make money at it. That is probably best illustrated by the fact that there are so few doing it. The materials are cheap enough (about $400 per boat), but as has already been pointed out, it is the manhours that add up.

I design and build them for a living so that I can make videos to teach others. After building dozens of them it still takes me about 40 hours to finish one off from scratch. I can usually get between $1,800 and $2,500 per boat without trying to hard so you could make a living at it if you really wanted to but you wouldn't get rich. Of course that all depends on where you live and the kind of people that see them. Building kayaks take about the same amount of time but can fetch about 30% to 40% more money with the right clientelle. The do take greater expertise though.

As for the legality of it. When I sell plans and videos it states on the plans that they are for the right to build one boat. People ignore this all the time and of course I view it as stealing. The right way to do it is to talk to the designer and offer them something as a fee. Most of us are pretty reasonable. Or you could use some of the designs that you find in books that for the most part are from out of service canoe companies and if they were published prior to 1938 I think they are all non protected. There is nothing wrong with doing that. Even the great John Gardener published a series of books with nothing but classic boat designs and plans taken from history.

That is my perspective....for what it is worth....

Jack Battersby
Sandy Point Boat Works
WWW.sandypointboatworks.com

 

[WishIHadABiggerShop]

area

everything in the replies makes sense, i can see how most poeple that want one of these boats will build one themselves. i would not look to get rich for certain, not even to make a living. i simply enjoy building and would be interested in making the cost of materials back in order to build another, and if i could clear anything over that i would put it toward the costs of my other outdoor endeavors.

you mentioned that it mattered where i lived, and who was seeing the boats. what kind of area would be considered a good area? i live near the atlantic coast, there is tons of waterfront property and the money that comes with that, tons of rivers, bays, lakes ect.... boats of all types are a big there here, is this the kind of area that you would consider a good area for being able to sell strip canoes?
thanks for all the info guys.

 

[jackbat]

Give them what they want

Because I sell plans and videos, I get to see a large sampling of who buys what and where they are from. If you live by the eastern seaboard where money is your neighbor then play to that. Strip building goes way beyond the basic canoe. The simple and obvious play is kayaks but you would have to do a nice job to tug them away from the store bought tubs.

I made a design for a decked canoe/kayak called the bay hawk and that is very popular for the demographic of the boomers with money by the shore. I live by the shore and I wanted to go kayaking with my friends but did not want to squeeze into that little round hole so I developed a boat that could keep up with them but was comfortable enough for my lazy bones. Turned out that there were a lot of other 40, 50, and 60 somethings with the same attitude. In fact it is so popular that I have been commisioned to design a two person version which should be done this week.

Whitehall style rowing boats as well as small Cat style sail boats would most probably do well.

The point is you don't want to be in a foot race with something that gets tumbled around in a mold and pops out in 30 minutes if you don't have to. Give them something different that they can't get everywhere else. As far as you are concerned it is all the same. All of these boats can be built using the same woodstrip methods you use for canoes. Once you get comfortable with that then you can move on to other methods of boat building.

I have built, plank, strip, fiberglass lab strake and now cold molding and every one was as enjoyable as the other and strip building pound for pound is about the most expensive. Like you I build because I like to build. But start with what you know. As for getting your money back that should definately not be a problem.

Just for the record, if you told me you lived in the Ozarks I would have a very different take on the subject.

Good Luck
Jack
WWW.Sandypointboatworks.com