A quote that I received for a custom made bimini with stainless tubing and
sunbrella was priced at $500. I spent about $250.
The attraction to me of making one on my own or having one custom made is
that you have a lot greater contol over the manufacturing process. So, if
you have any unusual requirements, it is a lot easier to handle them locally
rather than at a distance.
The smaller the boat, the more critical the issues. On the P-15 I wanted to
maximize headroom and coverage while still clearing the companionway, boom,
and end boom sheeting. In addition, it had to be able to stow out of the
way. One other modification that I had to make was to the tiller. It was
not possible to use the original tiller and have the bimini stowed on the
transom underneath the tiller.
On my larger boat, a Catalina 25, I purchased a stock bimini. Because it is
so much larger, it was much easier to accept generic solutions for these
considerations.
Christopher A. Chung, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
University of Houston
Dept. of Industrial Engineering
Houston, TX 77204-4812
tel. (713) 743-4195
fax. (713) 743-4190
cchung@uh.edu