Foreword
Welcome to my Kiribati 36 DIY build journey. A 36′ Aluminium ‘Bluewater’ sailboat with twin rudders and a retractable keel. After completing a global circumnavigation on two wheels (See: Blog | YouTube) I now set my sights on doing the same by water. My hope is that the build, cost tracking and lessons learned will aid aspiring boat builders in their own quest. Please know the following:
- I have no affiliation with the company selling the boat plans, in other words, my words are my own. I am however affiliated with Google AdWords in the hope that any revenue made will assist towards the completion of this project.
- In the event of me deviating from the original build plans, adding my own parts, or amending parts then this is highlighted in the articles with ‘** Note‘.
- An up-to-date parts/article Index (including total expenditure) can be found: HERE
- Feel free to ask question via this blog, YouTube comments, or email: kiribati36 @ modularhippo.com – My aim is to respond to all questions within 24 hours.
Cost To Date: £6,666.40->£7,808.59 | $7,890.04->$9,265.18
Index
Build Progress
Time had come to start working on the keel itself. Decided to split the task up into ‘Lower Keel Skeleton’, ‘Upper Keel Skeleton’, ‘Keel Bearings’ and ‘Lead Ballast’ and ‘Outer Shells’ to make task easier to handle. Started with the ‘Lower Keel Skeleton’ as below and started of by laser cutting the relevant parts. After that put them out on the floor in my living-room to make sure it all lined up. Once happy I wrote instructions for the welder who took it from that point:
Cost Tracking
Total Cost Chronological Order:
| 12 | PARTS/MATERIAL | EXTERNAL LABOUR | TOOLS & MISC. | TOTAL |
| (GBP) | £703.36 | £438.83 | £0.00 | £1,142.19 |
| (USD) | $842.56 | $532.58 | $0.00 | $1375.14 |
Breakdown (when applicable):
Parts/Material – Any raw material that I needed, or any ready made parts.
External Labour – External help with machining, milling or welding.
Tools & Misc. – Cost related to project, but not part of physical boat itself.
Category Breakdown – Cost Tracking per Category in £|$|%.
| PARTS/MATERIAL | (GBP) | (USD) |
| 1 x Solid round bar Al 6351 T6 – Length 1755 mm | £48.00 | (≈$57.50) |
| 1 x Rear Keel Spine Blade: K03-12 (198×1524) – (Material) | £149.96 | (≈$179.64) |
| 1 x Keel Vert #4 Al Plate 5083 10mm (106×1531) – (Material) | £84.02 | (≈$100.65) |
| 1 x Keel Vert #3 Al Plate 5083 10mm (106×1785) – (Material) | £97.86 | (≈$117.23) |
| 1 x Keel Vert #2 Al Plate 5083 10mm (106×1913) – (Material) | £104.84 | (≈$125.59) |
| 1 x Keel Vert #1 Al Plate 5083 10mm (106×1726) – (Material) | £94.65 | (≈$113.38) |
| 4 x Transversal Structure #1 Al Plate 5083 10mm – (Material) | £21.44 | (≈$25.68) |
| 4 x Transversal Structure #2 Al Plate 5083 10mm – (Material) | £25.16 | (≈$30.14) |
| 4 x Transversal Structure #3 Al Plate 5083 10mm – (Material) | £42.96 | (≈$51.46) |
| 4 x Transversal Structure #4 Al Plate 5083 10mm – (Material) | £34.47 | (≈$41.29) |
| (Part 12) | Lower Keel Skeleton | £703.36 | (≈$842.56) |
| EXTERNAL LABOUR | (GBP) | (USD) |
| 1 x Rear Keel Spine Blade: K03-12 (198×1524) – (Laser-Cut) – (External Labour) | £44.13 | (≈$52.86) |
| 1 x Keel Vert #4 Al Plate 5083 10mm (106×1531) – (Laser-Cut) – (External Labour) | £23.80 | (≈$28.51) |
| 1 x Keel Vert #3 Al Plate 5083 10mm (106×1785) – (Laser-Cut) – (External Labour) | £13.62 | (≈$16.32) |
| 1 x Keel Vert #2 Al Plate 5083 10mm (106×1913) – (Laser-Cut) – (External Labour) | £8.55 | (≈$10.24) |
| 1 x Keel Vert #1 Al Plate 5083 10mm (106×1726) – (Laser-Cut) – (External Labour) | £16.03 | (≈$19.20) |
| 4 x Transversal Structure #1 Al Plate 5083 10mm – (Laser-Cut) – (External Labour) | £7.84 | (≈$9.39) |
| 4 x Transversal Structure #2 Al Plate 5083 10mm – (Laser-Cut) – (External Labour) | £10.04 | (≈$12.03) |
| 4 x Transversal Structure #3 Al Plate 5083 10mm – (Laser-Cut) – (External Labour) | £15.36 | (≈$18.40) |
| 4 x Transversal Structure #4 Al Plate 5083 10mm – (Laser-Cut) – (External Labour) | £9.46 | (≈$11.33) |
| Welding of skeleton frame (all parts) – (External Labour) | £290 | (≈$354.30) |
| (Part 12) | Lower Keel Skeleton | £438.83 | (≈$532.58) |
| CATEGORY | (GBP) | (USD) | % |
| PARTS/MATERIAL | £703.36 | (≈$842.56) | 61.58% |
| EXTERNAL LABOUR | £438.83 | (≈$532.58) | 38.42% |
| TOOLS & MISC. | £0.00 | (≈$0.00 | 0% |
| TOTAL | £1,142.19 | (≈$1375.14) | 100% |
Lessons Learned
Learn how to weld and save yourself allot of money in the process.
