1. What is an “Alistego?”
Alistego is a completely fabricated, made-up name of a fictitious kingdom that our two children used to use while playing together. One day my wife turned to me and said, “That would be a good name for a boat.” The rest is history.
2. How long will it take me to build an Eun Mara?
It depends. I took five years, working during the warm summer months. The shortest I know of is eighteen months, by Mike in Perth. Some never will finish. I do suggest a much smaller boat as your first one to see if you like the process and can complete a boat building project.
3. How much will a boat like this cost?
The cost will vary wildly. If you are good at scrounging and have access to good used boat hardware, and make your own sails, the savings can be substantial. If you go top of the line (as in bronze, lots of bronze) and buy everything new it will cost a lot more. Our boat, leaning more toward the latter, came in right around $30,000 CAN, including trailer, outboard, and sails. We had to have the boat surveyed for our insurance provider and it was appraised at $60 000 CAN, though it is insured for material/replacement costs alone to keep the rate down.
4. What if I need help building the boat?
The first thing to do is buy Iain Oughtred’s book, and also try the Wooden Boat Forums.
5. Does the designer have a web site or an email address?
To be polite, Iain has not exactly embraced the internet himself, even though his designs have a strong presence here. He does however, reply very promptly to regular mail. Write him at: Struan Cottage, Bernisdale, Isle of Skye, Scotland, IV51 9N6. Phone: 01470 532732.
6. Do I have to loft the Eun Mara?
No. The plan set comes with full-sized station mould patterns and plenty of detail to build the building frame. Compared with many plans out there Iain Oughtred’s plans are very detailed. Almost anyone with sufficient motivation can build a boat from his plans.
7. Building a home made boat is cheaper than buying a production sailboat. Isn’t it?
In short, no. If you want to get sailing as soon as possible with the least cost, buy a good used fiberglass boat. However, if the kind of boat you want is not available any other way, then building it yourself is more economical than having a professional build her for you.
8. I don’t like yawls, are there any other rigs available?
A sloop version is available.
9. Where did you get the plans from?
I ordered the plans directly from Iain Oughtred (see #5 above). Classic Marine, in the UK, sells them online, as do others. I have dealt with Classic Marine and have found them to be very helpful.