Launch Day for S/V MON TIKI Approaches!

David Ryan

David Ryan is a boat builder and USCG licensed master captain. He is the owner of Sailing Montauk and skipper of Montauk''s charter sailing catamaran MON TIKI You can follow him on Twitter @CaptDavidRyan

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16 Responses

  1. Burt Likko says:

    Looks like David’s baby is nearing birth too. Mon Tiki makes five!Report

  2. Tod Kelly says:

    “Do you think she’ll float? And do you think she’ll float upright? I hope so!”

    This may be the wrong time to be asking these questions.

    When it’s launched (or right before) you need to take a picture of the entire boat. We’ve gotten so many teaser shots of this part or that part over the year, I’m stoked to see the whole enchilada. I bet she’s gorgeous.Report

  3. Jennifer says:

    She’s a beauty. She will surely float. Your day has finally come, Captain.Report

  4. Fnord says:

    As for the valuation. I don’t want to tell you or the surveyor how to do their jobs. But you do know how much it cost you to build, right? Presumably that would be a good starting point when it comes to determining valuation.Report

    • David Ryan in reply to Fnord says:

      The miracle of capitalism is that merely counting labor and materials costs does not fully represent the value of the object created.

      Lots and lots of theories have emerged for how to account for this difference, but the method most fully accepted today is the Free Market System, wherein the value a good or service is determined by what someone is willing to pay for it; and when a value is to be assigned assent a transaction, an appraiser looks at sale of comparable items.

      Now here’s the rub.

      It’s axiomatic that one-off builds of unusual designs will not resell for the cost of materials, let alone material and labor, let alone materials labor and a profit. The reasons for this are two-fold:

      An unusual design is unusual because there is not a demand for it in the market. The two reasons it can still make sense to build an unusual design is because: a) it may perform as well or better than a more readily available design at a lower cost, and; b) it may have capabilities that are uniquely appealing to the builder that are not broadly appealing to the market.

      The second is that there is less surety of the build. As a one-off from a builder with no track record, the buyer assumes more risk that something hasn’t been done right, and that he’ll have make corrections sometime down the line.

      On the other hand, it’s a readily observable fact that USCG Inspected Vessels sell at a premium. Again the reasons are two-fold:

      As an Inspected Vessel, the boat in question has been regularly inspected, and warranted as fit for the service intended.

      As an Inspected Vessel the boat has a COI that designates here legal carrying capacity and legal routes. This give a perspective buyer a way to calculate the vessel’s earning potential.

      The reason we elected to build MON TIKI is that we believed under a worst case scenario that we could build her for about half of what it would cost use to buy a a well-found second-hand Inspected Vessel of similar carrying capacity and we believed there were aspects to the design that were of unique benefit to our business plan and our private enjoyment of the boat in the off season.

      Which is why I say it’s an interesting question to fix a value. MON TIKI will have a COI for 49 passengers while also offering accommodations for 4-6 for extended sea-going journeys. To buy a vessel of similar capacity would cost about $650,000, but we didn’t spend anywhere near that much constructing MON TIKI. The very reason we chose the TIKI 38 design is because she offers those capacities for a fraction of the cost.

      At any rate, as I’ve been typing the surveyors report has arrived via email and been forwarded to our broker who will in turn forward it to the underwriter. Cross your fingers we’ll be bound by this afternoon!Report

  5. James B Franks says:

    How are you going to rig the slings?Report

    • David Ryan in reply to James B Franks says:

      This is where this whole thing gets a little silly.

      Although the same length MON TIKI (a catamaran) weighs about half of our previous boat, INTEMPERANCE (a heavily ballasted fin-keeled racer/cruiser.

      The difference is that MON TIKI is structurally lighter (remember I told you about the British fighter/bomber the Mosquito, that was also built from plywood) and she derives her stability from her form (ie her wide catamaran stance), rather than from having a 3 1/2 ton lead fin bolted to her bottom. But because of her width (21′) we have to use the BIG travel lift, which is capable of lifting boats up to least 72 tons (F/V PONTOS was in the slings a couple weeks ago.)

      The little travel lift, the one we’d use for INTEMPERANCE (38x12x8 tons) only has two slings, so there placement is more important.

      MON TIKI (38x21x4 tons) will be lifted by four slings, so the load is very spread out. As our engineer John Marples put it,”Oh, four slings? You an put them anywhere.”Report

  6. Remo says:

    “Do you think she’ll float? And do you think she’ll float upright? I hope so!”

    I hope so.

    So does the insurance guy.

    Yes, we need pictures of the day!Report

  7. Shazbot3 says:

    Hey, you built a boat.

    When did that happen?

    You should’ve written about it as you were doing it.Report