Cost of sprayhoods - daylight robbery.

[Buck Turgidson]

The last sprayhood I had made was almost 10 years ago was £600 so sounds about right.

My current boat's sprayhood frame is quietly falling apart as we speak. If you know where I can find some fittings for the end of the tubes do let me know. Thanks.

https://www.makefast.com/acatalog/SPRAYHOOD_FITTINGS.html

 

[Poignard]

The last sprayhood I had made was almost 10 years ago was £600 so sounds about right.

My current boat's sprayhood frame is quietly falling apart as we speak. If you know where I can find some fittings for the end of the tubes do let me know. Thanks.

I bought some from a cover maker near Emsworth. I can't recall the name of the firm but they are an old-established firm so should be easy to find.

 

[James_Calvert]

The last sprayhood I had made was almost 10 years ago was £600 so sounds about right.

My current boat's sprayhood frame is quietly falling apart as we speak. If you know where I can find some fittings for the end of the tubes do let me know. Thanks.

Collections

I used these people when I needed some bits a couple of years ago.

 

[FlyingGoose]

£1600 for a 42 ft boat this included 3 visits to the boat , a special pattern made as it was a one of , fitted by them and all materials , seemed reasonable , to me shopping around may save a few hundred pounds but this was a very reputable company

 

[Lucy52]

These people do a large range of Stainless tube, fittings and fasteners:

Online Stainless Steel Fasteners and Marine Hardware

No connection.

 

[steveeasy]

I had quotes from several companies last year and for a 30ft boat the price ranged from 1000 to 2700 plus vat. This I thought was expensive.
This year I used a local canvas worker and to my utter supprised got a new cover and ss frame with 3 visits for 740 plus vat. Now that was too cheap.
Sprayhoods are all different and take time to make.they have to fit perfectly and everyone needs to make money not coppers. As for the more expensive quotes I'm sure they are premium products and for that you have to pay.
Steveeasy

 

[LittleSister]

There used to be a chap (Martex Marine?) who sold kits for making your own sprayhood, including canvas and fittings. I don't know if he's still around.

Now About 7 years ago I needed a new full cockpit cover for an LM27. These covers are about 5 or 6 times larger than my Crabbers sprayhood. They are also a lot more involved, sides and rear panels all have good windows and all roll up individually. The whole cover rolls up very nicely for sailing or when not needed. I had ridiculous quotes for a new one until I contacted the sailmaker in Denmark who made the original one for my boat back in 1975. He asked me what year my boat was, what colour I would like, then supplied a new one in a week for £800. This included Danish VAT at 25% and about £50 for postage.

The Danish one might have been an off-the-shelf item perhaps, whereas the Crabber one is a one off bespoke unit?

Probably enough LMs in Denmark to have a good standard pattern.

Schultz sailmakers were the original suppliers to LM for covers (the cockpit canopy was a standard fitting on the motor-sailers). They apparently still have the original jig they used to make them for the LM27 (and likely other LM models, too). I think they normally have a few of the most popular colours and specs on the shelf, but most are made to order (they have a huge range of materials, colours and options).

I bought a full cockpit canopy, cockpit 'tonneau' type cover, and saloon hatch cover for an LM27 from them. Not cheap, I thought (though maybe it was, in light of some of the prices mentioned in this thread), but the quality and fit is impressive. They were able to establish from its serial number that the cockpit canopy (still usable, but on its last legs) that was on the boat when I bought it had been made by them 16 years earlier!

 

[Poignard]

We had a new sprayhood made up using the old one as a pattern by Sabre sails in Swansea. Cost us £400

New sprayhood using old one as pattern.

Four posters on this thread said they were happy with sprayhoods they had bought from Sabre Sails.

 

[Mataji]

So Sabre Sails can do it for less than half the price of the others. Even allowing for the visits to the boat the other makers might do this shows how excessive their prices are.
On another tack, last year I was feeling lazy at the start of the season and asked a marina on the Devon coast for a quote to service my engine - a Yanmar 2YM. I was quoted £550! Needless to say I did it myself.

 

[Bobc]

The Danish one might have been an off-the-shelf item perhaps, whereas the Crabber one is a one off bespoke unit?

One or two days work (guessing here) for a professional so circa £1k does seem a bit pricey, but then, welcome to the wonderful world of sailing. It transpired on here recently that a boat gel coat repair professional charged £50 an hour. £400 a day!!! Seemed outrageous to me until I remembered that my local VW dealership charged over £80 an hour for labour in the workshop. We’re probably being shafted, but there’s not a great deal can be done about it, or is there?

Don't forget £100 of material and £200 of stainless tubes and fittings. Add to that £500 for 2 days labour, and you have £800+vat, which is £960. Sounds about right to me.

 

[Stemar]

I've no doubt that plenty of companies charge a significant "marine tax", but not all. I had to replace the transducer on my NASA depth sounder last week and Marine Superstore had it in stock for change from £30, which strikes me as fairly reasonable.

The problem with spray hoods and the like is that they're very labour intensive. If it's an off the shelf item, it's bad enough, unless you want one from China, but for a bespoke job, there's a hood couple of hours measuring, and don't forget travelling time, then putting it together. Parts aren't a lot, the problem is all these uppity tradesmen wanting a living wage. Sure I could do it myself, but do I want all the faff? I have skills in several areas, but 3-D design and sewing aren't among them, and I'd really like it to fit properly and not fall apart in the first gale.

 

[peteK]

Sabre sails prices are based on you using the original metal hoops whilst some of these other prices are to supply the with the hoops.The stainless frame is not cheap.

 

[Poignard]

Sabre sails prices are based on you using the original metal hoops whilst some of these other prices are to supply the with the hoops.The stainless frame is not cheap.

Good point.

 

[[3889]]

We had a new sprayhood made up using the old one as a pattern by Sabre sails in Swansea. Cost us £400

I thought using the old one was a no-no as it will have stretched.

 

[Graham376]

Sabre sails prices are based on you using the original metal hoops whilst some of these other prices are to supply the with the hoops.The stainless frame is not cheap.

Yes, they also don't have travelling time & cost plus an hour or two discussing with the owner and time to make patterns.

Very obvious many posters have never run a small business and don't realise the cost of overheads such as rent, rates, insurance, vehicle, etc., and the limited product turnover taking into account the time taken to produce each one-off. Turning out standard products would be far cheaper.

 

[FlyingGoose]

Also these businesses have invested in CAD machines use the best materials and measure up.
My hood as I said was bespoke and 3 visits from their factory 90 miles away . Excellent service , excellent fitting and excellent product , expensive yes worth it absolutely,
My wife I pretty good at the old sewing machine but no way for a speayhood my marriage is more important

 

[TernVI]

I thought using the old one was a no-no as it will have stretched.

Or shrunk!
Or both in places!

 

[Hoolie]

I thought using the old one was a no-no as it will have stretched.

Ours has shrunk to an extent that it's probably useless as a template. The guy at Comfort Afloat in Gosport said he could sew a replacement from the old one but I fear that is no longer possible.

 

[Poignard]

I thought using the old one was a no-no as it will have stretched.

That was my understanding also. At least that is what various cover makers have told me to be true.

Yet four contributors to the thread I linked to above have said they are happy with the sprayhoods made by Sabre Sails, Swansea.

 

[Dutch01527]

We had a new sprayhood made up using the old one as a pattern by Sabre sails in Swansea. Cost us £400

Same here and also had a stack pack sail cover done at the same time for about the same price. Pleased with the quality Was a bit slow in delivering but that was not a major issue.