wrote:

Doug, I think we've taken up all the bandwidth on this NG we should on
this subject...rec.boats.building still has the lowest trash-value ratio
of any NG...I'd like to help keep it that way, and this has wandered
considerably afield from anything to do building or repair. If you want
to move the discussion to email, I'll be glad to continue it:
peg(dot)hall(at)sbcglobal(dot)net.



Peggie




Peggie and Doug, and to all that have added...

This has been fantastic! I've forwarded this thread to my cousin
Jerry, hoping he'll respond when he gets back from vacation. I'm no
boat builder, but I've learned a lot from this thread. I'd wish you all
could keep adding. after all, this IS a NEWSGROUP isn't it???

Wasted bandwidth? LOL! At least theres no 340+ posts on trashing
jet-ski'rs!

Tim


Now that all the theorists have had a say, I'd like to jump in with a few words.

I've been doing what your cousin is thinking of doing for 10 years now.

Is it a viable proposition ? Not if you intend it to be your only source of
income, and certainly not if you have no prior experience in the work.

I've kept at it because I love the work, and I am officially retired, so the
boat work is secondary income.

"Word of mouth" has generated a lot of customer repair work, which is nice, but
it takes time away from the rebuild projects.

When I resell a boat I generally get around double current market price for it,
*AND* I have a waiting list of buyers. BTW, I specialize in FRP sailboats.

Even at that, I consider myself lucky if I clear actual expenses over the life
of the rebuild. I say "actual" expenses because I do not draw pay, so my labor
is not accounted for.

One has to be extremely careful in choosing a boat to rebuild. It has to be a
popular brand/model and it has to be one that requires the least amount of work
possible consistent with the purchase price. I have been unlucky just once and
that was a boat I intended to keep for my own use (eventually cut up for
landfill). Some of the cost was recovered in selling off parts from it, but I
still lost money overall.

One must do a first class job, otherwise word will get around that your jobs are
slipshod and you'll quickly lose business. With all my rebuilds (as opposed to
repair jobs) I strip to a bare hull and rebuild from the ground up. All
electrical is renewed, as is all plumbing, and running rigging. Every fastener
in the boat is discarded and replaced with new. All tabbing is renewed and
every manufacturing defect (and there are always a lot of them) is corrected as
a matter of course. Any other item that I consider is past its prime, or that I
can not refurbish, is replaced with new. Usually the boat receives a full paint job.

Some examples are on my website, www.anzam.com .

An earlier respondent advised against getting a "Resale Certificate" because of
the hassle involved... That is just pure bad advice... You *must* arrange to
buy at at least wholesale due to the high markups on anything to do with our
business (read "Marine")... Certainly you might be able to arrange some small
discount for things like fasteners but you won't get a meaningful discount on
higher ticket items unless you can prove you are in the business and the first
item of proof requested is your "Resale Number". Usually, a pre-requisite to
obtaining a resale number is having a business license.

Taxation implications are such that you have to have a reasonable accounting
system in operation and if you set that up correctly, doing the State Sales Tax
reporting is not an item. Just make certain you keep absolute track of sales
tax received so you don't spend it on other items.

Financing the business can be a problem. When rebuilding for resale you have to
allow for the fact that you'll be putting out money for at least 12 months
before you see any income. Fortunately, I am able to take advantage of the
continual zero APR offers I get from card companies which allows me to change to
a new card every 12 months and never have to pay interest.

If your cousin cares to contact me direct I'll be more than happy to answer any
specific questions he might have.

Regards,

Brian C