Efforts to make your own not working out so good? Keep at it, you'll get it eventually.

Don't try making docks with the kind of piers you're probably thinking of. A good tip is to try to keep your boat's port side facing the shore; never back in or out of a dock. That way you don't have to rebuild dock sections when you inevitably pilot it straight into your dockhouse.

And if you possibly can, try to find a sheltered area to build it. Someplace a bit inland from the open ocean, where the waves will be less severe during rough weather.