How Much Did Your UJ Cost? | SouthernPaddler.com

How Much Did Your UJ Cost?

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islandpiper

Well-Known Member
Jul 6, 2006
2,556
4
Ponchatoula, Louisiana
www.islandpiper.com
It looks like I'm about to kit out a UJ for a young fellow here in Ponchatoula. He's wondering what a UJ will cost, total.....first sheet of whatever ply to the last pint of varnish.

Now, i realize that there are lots of levels of construction and finish for UJs or any other boat. So, a pic might help so we know what you have invested in.

Thanks in advance, piper
 
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oldsparkey

Well-Known Member
Aug 25, 2003
10,479
123
Central , Florida
www.southernpaddler.com
We discussed that in a different post a long time ago but it is buried somewhere and I can't find it. It did cover all the ways to build one and what the approximate cost would be , not figuring in the inflation rate.

For a normal UJ Pirogue , two sheets of wood ( Luann at $ 10.00 each) , epoxy , glass and all the incidentals , the last time I added it up it came to about $300.00 and that was using the kit. With total fiber glassing of the whole boat. Best bet would be to fugue out how you want to build it and then look the items up to see what the cost will be , since there are so many ways to build one.

You can run the cost up if you use exotic woods , marine grade ply , add spacers along the railing. Less cost if fiberglassed taped the seams and epoxy saturation of the wood and painted.

The epoxy and fiberglass will be the major cost.

My 1st one........of many. :D 15 1/2 feet ..1/4 inch Luann , seams taped. The cost to build this one was a lot less , no fiberglass , just epoxy saturated and varnished.
w1.jpg


Hopefully some of the guys who have just made on will furnish the up to date information.
 
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islandpiper

Well-Known Member
Jul 6, 2006
2,556
4
Ponchatoula, Louisiana
www.islandpiper.com
Hey guys......there are no national security issues here, make a guess, OK?

Hey Chuckmeister: looking at your pic there it looks like that seat may be just a mile or so too high. Am I right?

I like to be about four inches off the bottom, not four inches down from the top. 'Course, being a little "light headed" would help. :D :D

piper
 
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oldsparkey

Well-Known Member
Aug 25, 2003
10,479
123
Central , Florida
www.southernpaddler.com
My 1st one , Yep a little high but with a few minutes in it , no problem.
Remember I started paddling a boat at a very young age , very young. Even before I had a bicycle to ride. Guess Dad thought if I could do that a bike would not be a problem. For some reason that just held over the rest of my life.

Paddling a boat , that is , the bike I did take a few spills on. :lol:
 
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gbinga

Well-Known Member
Nov 7, 2008
736
2
Hoschton, GA
Hard for me to guess. I had fg cloth left over from a previous project where the supplier sent me the tail end of a roll and I ended up with about three times as much as I paid for. And all my lumber was salvaged from jobsites. I know I probably spent about two hundred on epoxy, but part of the problem there was I started off with leftover, then kept misunderestimating my need and buying it by the quart at West Marine.

So I really just don't have a clue.

George
 
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rpecot

Well-Known Member
Nov 10, 2006
406
0
Katy, TX
Luan ply and red oak rub rails and ribs from Home Depot, probably $50 - 75. Multiple trips to West Marine buying the small cans of epoxy and hardener ('cause I didn't know what the hell I was doing), at least triple the cost of the wood, at least.

And I'm still not finished! :lol: Been making a little progress lately though. Just about got the UJ seat finished.
 
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savannahkelly

Well-Known Member
Dec 7, 2008
59
0
60
I am building 2 so $40 for the 4 sheets of luan, around $150 for fiberglass resin, $60 for the fiberglass, wood for ribs and rub rails came from wood already in the garage, $25 for paint and probable another $25 for misc. items. So I am roughly guessing in neighborhood of $300 for the 2. Hopefully I can get back to work on the 2nd one and get it finished up in the next couple of weeks.
 
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islandpiper

Well-Known Member
Jul 6, 2006
2,556
4
Ponchatoula, Louisiana
www.islandpiper.com
I get it, no one but Savanah wants to post on this in case their wives look over their shoulder some day......uh huh....

Thanks savanah, that's about what my last pair cost, except that most of the wood came from the fellow who got the other boat, I kicked in the labor and we split up the epoxy and glass.

piper
 
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savannahkelly

Well-Known Member
Dec 7, 2008
59
0
60
In fact tonight the UPS truck delivers the latest order of resin so I can finish up the 2nd boat for our son. Of course my wife asks, what is that??? I tell her and she proceeds to ask, "how much more is that d*@# boat going to cost??? Now I have to explain how much more I have to do and that this will be the last I will need!! (for this project!!) If she only knew how much time I want to use it this fall!!!
 
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oldyaker

Well-Known Member
Aug 26, 2003
1,949
31
I'd say 200 bucks or less for mine.....Chuck's advice however was priceless! :wink: While were on the subject of UJ's boats, I have a question. I have almost a full gallon of resin and the hardener to go with it. I was going to build another boat not very long after I finished the first, but like Piper the SOB job got in the way! :evil: Now I'm starting to look at retirement and thinking of boat building again.........So, what is the shelf life on epoxy and resin? Will I need to pitch this batch and buy new when I'm ready?
 
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oldsparkey

Well-Known Member
Aug 25, 2003
10,479
123
Central , Florida
www.southernpaddler.com
No idea what the shelf life is. All I know is that I can keep it around here for a couple of years or longer and when I go to use it , it is just as good as the day I got it. If there are any worries about it , mix a small batch and see what happens , my bet is that it sets up nice and hard. ( if you mix it right) :lol:

I get the three gallon kits of the epoxy which is plenty for two boats and sometimes three. When it starts to get real low then in comes a new batch and the old gets used , then when there is just a little left it gets mixed in with the new when the new starts to go down.

Chuck.
 
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savannahkelly

Well-Known Member
Dec 7, 2008
59
0
60
When I started the building process, I had some outdated resin and hardner I had picked up at work. I probably had that in the garage for a couple of years after I had got it from work when it was going to be thrown away because of its use by date. It seems to have worked as well as a new can right off the shelf. Funny all the rules and regs we have to deal with in the avaition industry and the FAA.
 
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mds

Active Member
Jul 9, 2009
36
0
61
Delaware
I am two months in and at around $220. Laun is $11 per at Lowe's, Pine was $6 per 1x4x12, search for some clear stuff, 4 would make the steams, ribs and double rub strips. The epoxy and glass is the real cost. I went to US Composites and paid $160 for 1 gal resin (3:1), 5 yds of 60" 6oz cloth, 8 oz of graphite, 50 yrds of cloth tape, 2 lbs aerosil and some mixing cups. I this also covers deck covers and material for bulkheads.
 
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beekeeper

Well-Known Member
Mar 4, 2009
1,917
59
Don't know if this will help with the cost of an U.J.. but my firewood boat cost was approximately $114.20 befor painting.
IMG_0367.jpg


Aprox. cost because taxes were not calculated. Some supplies had left overs. I did have to buy an extra sheet of plywood ($19.79 that is included in the $114.20)because my boat is wider than a pirogue. I used (please forgive) screws and S.S. ring nails (328 of them), and no epoxy or cloth. 1.5 gal. of paint $22.00 would have been plenty. I made the mistake of under estimating how thirsty Luan can be and bought quarts, also changed the interior color one time.

beekeeper
 
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beekeeper

Well-Known Member
Mar 4, 2009
1,917
59
islandpiper said:
thanks BK. lots of info there for this person, i think that glass outside and glass inside too will be the only way the boat will survive. I will raise the cost and weight, but increase the usable lifespan, too.

piper
Click to expand...

piper I started another post with a question about this. It is off the cost issue so I didn't want to change the original question. I built my boat as cheap as possable because I didn't know if it was going to work for me. Also used it to learn and practice on. I probably should not have invested so much time and care into it, not knowing if the design was for me. After finishing it my thoughts were "I put all this time and effort into it and I like it. Wished I had used better wood." My first boat cost a lot more ( cloth & epoxy). It doesn't suit my needs as well. Wished I wouldn't have spent so much. The cost of our boats is like other things we have to buy. Some times the cheapest is not the best value. Sometimes more expensive is not worth the money.

beekeeper
 
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