I for one completely understood in what reference you used the term "professional" Steve, although it did tend to sound a little elitist, but there are obviously many others who didn't understand\ and were taking the reference "literally". As for the development that I have put into F14's I have to say generally I have put in over forty years of research and development together with many hundreds of thousands of dollars (actually much more, and in cold hard cash), and what can I attribute directly towards the F14? I have spent 9 years research and development together with some twenty various hull prototypes, many rig configurations, over 5 years of computer simulations, many different finished sets of moulds (all except two sets destroyed after they fulfilled their purpose) many C/B and rudder variations and their appropriate moulds, and more, much more. To put an actual dollar price on it is difficult but to say that it has cost me more than $300,000 would be very conservative.
When “boats” of all description are your ruling, life time, all encompassing “passion” Steve, you are obliged to follow every possible avenue to succeed at your project, and it is not a matter of spending/committing “enough” to get by, the commitment has to be total or else why bother in the first place. If I wasn’t totally committed I would have just gone out and bought some boat that some one else had made and “just go sailing” instead.
When it comes to a comparison between the time, money, research and development and other resources that I have put into the design of the Alpha Omega F14 and the equivalent that has gone into the development of any other comparable craft, I feel confident in saying that I doubt very much if “they” would come out on the plus side of the ledger against my involvement both developmental and fiscal.
Oh and just one small point, the actual numbers of anything that makes its way into the public domain, bears no relationship to the amount of funds, time, research, and commitment, put into its development.
If the reverse was the case, (as you seem to imply Steve), then we would have to say that “they couldn’t have spent much time, money, or development on the space shuttles could they? There has never been more than a handful of them ever built”