Hi. what is minimum size of ocean cruise?

You can achieve that a lot easier and a lot smaller with a sailboat. An ocean going sailboat around 40' will do that trip, maybe even smaller. If you're talking an actual yacht, something as small as a 46' Nordhavn or other expedition yacht with the range.

The smallest boat to cross the Atlantic was shorter than 2m long.

Unless you speak Spanish well the easiest place for you to build a boat would be your home country. Being able to communicate well is important.

You should start by building several boats much smaller than your final boat. Also, your final boat should be built from plans that were drawn up by someone who draws up boat plans for a living.

Some of what seems like a good idea really isn't. There are many very important aspects of hull design that someone unfamiliar with boats might miss.

Every year there are people who go out in boats they built themselves. Some of those people listen to experts and build beautiful functional boats. Some of those people scoff at experts, and build their own death traps.

You're a software engineer and intend to build a large yacht. Why in Chile? Not like thats the hotbed of boat building. Frankly, if I was a builder or designer I'd take a bit of offense to your belief that it's all so simple anyone can do it. You think a Captain here could design and code an integrated system to cover all areas of software for a manufacturing company in Korea?

And just your initial question shows you clearly have no knowledge of what you're getting into. The one thing I do agree with is that the first thing upon completion should be crushing it. Perhaps that will keep anyone from getting hurt. I don't mean to be rude but this is just an absurd quest you're talking about.

Handling glass is just human power? You really think it requires no skill or experience? Well, on that basis, coding software is just human power. There is a tremendous arrogance to think of your own area of specialty requiring expertise but then think just anyone should be able to throw a boat together. Do you intend to build it out of wood and glass over it? Or are you going to create molds first? Any idea how much builders spend in designing a boat and then building all the molds and tooling necessary to actually build it? I'd suggest testing your 3-D ideas on some small remote controlled boats.

I similarly don't see why anyone would want to build in Chile.

If the goal was to build a boat to sail to Chile that would be a desire I could understand.

P_Bear, I suggest that you consider building in wood and then coating it in Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP, Fiberglass) to protect and strengthen it. If you are building a big GRP boat the cost of the mold you build it in will be very expensive.

I don't see as much arrogance as Older Boater sees. I do think that you are probably underestimating the difficulty of building and the difficulty of communicating. Also, when you crush a boat, you destroy it, and you haven't got a boat any more. You intend to test its strength, Olderboater thinks you should probably destroy it.

When you work on software you and the person that you talk too both speak the language of code. Neither you or your Chileans will speak the language of boat building.

In any case this is probably not the right forum for you. Yachts come in many varieties. There are plush and luxurious palaces floating on the water. There are bare bones sail racers that fly on gossimer wings. There are hardy explorer yachts with simple sturdy fixtures inside. All of these yachts have one thing in common, they are all made by expert craftsmen.

If you carry through with your dream you will build a boat, it might be a nice boat, it might be a big boat, but it will probably not be a yacht.

Boatdesign.net is probably a better place for you to take your questions.

Also, for his purposes and type of boat that he's looking to build steel would be a lot better building material and easier to do a one off besides, especially in the countries he's talking about. You can also buy plans to successful hull designs out of steel that have been proven and tested over the years. Even then you can take a successful hull design, and severely screw it up making it totally unsafe at sea, by getting the COG wrong or weight and balance wrong. Building a yacht is not like putting Lego's together.

I too agree that building a yacht is definately not an easy endeavor and that this is not the right forum for the OP.

Hi,

Whats with the Chile bashing here today?

There are undoubtedly yards in Chile that can build yachts just like anywhere else.

Not everything happens in the contiguous 48.

When I questioned Chile, I wasn't bashing Chile, just was surprised at that choice as he's in Korea presently. I wasn't thinking in the U.S. I was thinking of Korea, itself, and all those places closer. There is a lot of boat building expertise far closer than the Americas. And also I am not aware of any boat builders in Chili. Few in South America but the ones I'm aware of are in other countries. So, Chili seemed a bit of an odd choice unless there were some reasons we were unaware of. Are you aware of yards that build boats in Chile? I'm aware of some in Brazil and Argentina.

Hi,

First hit on Google

Alwoplast - Chris White Designs

You've misunderstood me. There are undoubtedly Chileans who can build great boats. I do not get the impression that he intends to hire them in particular.

It's not bashing Chile to suggest that a particular trade is not known by all the men of the country.

As a proud Alaskan I would never suggest that things only happen in the lower 48.

Asenav Shypyard - Products

ATMOSPHERE - Passengers ship: current position and details | IMO 9401001, MMSI 725015400, Callsign CBTM | Registered in Chile - AIS Marine Traffic

Expedition motor yacht ATMOSPHERE -

Hi,

Rather well stuffed (full)that one is.

150ft, 28 guests and 32 crew according to the Charter site

True.

Atmosphere Yacht Charter - Asenav Luxury Motor Yacht

Asenav Explorer | Boats for Sale


P.S.- Always nice to have room for a few extra friends.

Dancing - YouTube

That seemed to be an unnecessarily harsh post....

The OP doesn't seem at all arrogant to me, and people have succeeded at stranger or more impossible quests than this one.

I don't think he's claiming to be able to do it himself anyway: he clearly stated he plans to hire "engineers" to do the building or designing.

i agree with chapstick. English is clearly not the OP's first language and a lot can be lost in translation. For one i didn't read anywhere in his post that he plans to design/build this boat on his own. he actually specifically states that he plans to hire an engineer (aka naval architect) to design the boat for him. And for all we know he might actually intend for a qualified yard to have the boat built.

3D modeling may be more complex than boat building (boat design uses a lot of 4D modeling, which is 1D more complex than 3D modeling). However, that doesn't have much baring on the issue. It's not that anyone thinks you cannot handle the complexity eventually. It's that no one has ever been born who could handle it without a lengthy learning process.

Korea probably has more ship builders and more boat builders and more locally owned yachts than Chile. The point about the materials was not the material qualities, but the build process. GRP lends itself well to building multiple hulls, because there is a one off plug and mold cost.

The minimum wage is lower in Chile, but you will not be paying that if you are paying boat builders.

As to Chile being warm, Most of northern Chile is high desert, with a very narrow strip of very valuable flat land right next to the water. The prevailing wind off the ocean keeps the winters mild, but at the latitudes you are likely to end up (further from the equator than you are now) you are going to experience some cool winds in the summer too. Patagonia is beautiful though.

Have you considered China? It's near by, better industrialized, better supply chains, lower wages, south china is warmer, there is more yachting culture in China than in Chile or Korea, more shipyards, more expertise. You are also more likely to find linguistic common ground that makes projects like this work so much better.