I've been looking to build a large wooden hull tug for some time but being adverse to splashing out lots of cash at once I bought a set of Panart Anteo tug plans. They were quite expensive at £30 but are very detailed and drawn so well you could frame them and hang them on your wall as art.

They also are taken from the kit which sells for around £330 complete. Now I'm beginning to suspect this wasn't quite a good idea as once you've sourced the plywood and the planking and the accessories you've probably doubled the kit price – except that you can spread the cost over many months.

But there seems to be a snag in that I suspect the plans – which include the outlines of all the wood parts – don't exactly match the sketches of how it should go together. For example, parts that have an identical mirror part when cut out are not the same size – it's as if the outlines are provided for identification purposes and not as a cutting guide.

However, the effort of cutting out each piece of wood and then 'adjusting' it to make it fit and the associated struggle, anguish and tears (not yet) seem to be quite fun. In the end I'm going to finish up with a unique version of the Anteo – not at all scale but 'customised'. So my way is not the same experience of buying a kit and putting the parts together as it's more expensive and more difficult.

I'll post some pictures once I've assembled the keel.