Plan Advice from Mr. Bolger
My brother and I have had good luck soliciting and receiving advice
from Mr. Bolger in the past, even though we've rarely gotten our plans
from him directly. The reason for that was not knowing how to contact
him, or in my brother's case, because he designed his own boat based
on Bolger's lines and precepts.
We do two things that seem to help. One, we send him a designer's fee,
usually 15% of the plan cost. We include this in a short letter
telling why we chose the design, and what we hope to do with it. Then,
we save up the questions until we have a reasonable list--not too many
to address, but not one at a time, either. Mr. Bolger's replies have
been helpful, informative, and fun.
Come to think of it, I did order plans from him once, in a way. When I
built the Teal, I wrote him a letter asking if plans were available,
and included a $25 check, saying that if the plans weren't available,
I thought I could make it on the descriptions in Payson's _Instant
Boats_, and he should consider the check a designer's fee. Mr. Bolger
sent us a complete set of plans, which I learned much later actually
sell for $35. I figure I owe him $10, unless I try to quantify the fun
I've had building, using, and thinking about his boats, in which case
I'd need to send a lot more . . . .
from Mr. Bolger in the past, even though we've rarely gotten our plans
from him directly. The reason for that was not knowing how to contact
him, or in my brother's case, because he designed his own boat based
on Bolger's lines and precepts.
We do two things that seem to help. One, we send him a designer's fee,
usually 15% of the plan cost. We include this in a short letter
telling why we chose the design, and what we hope to do with it. Then,
we save up the questions until we have a reasonable list--not too many
to address, but not one at a time, either. Mr. Bolger's replies have
been helpful, informative, and fun.
Come to think of it, I did order plans from him once, in a way. When I
built the Teal, I wrote him a letter asking if plans were available,
and included a $25 check, saying that if the plans weren't available,
I thought I could make it on the descriptions in Payson's _Instant
Boats_, and he should consider the check a designer's fee. Mr. Bolger
sent us a complete set of plans, which I learned much later actually
sell for $35. I figure I owe him $10, unless I try to quantify the fun
I've had building, using, and thinking about his boats, in which case
I'd need to send a lot more . . . .