Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 02-07-2015, 06:56 PM   #21
Guru
 
READY2GO's Avatar
 
City: Marathon, Florida
Vessel Name: Walkabout
Vessel Model: 1989 Sea Ray 380 Aft Cabin
Join Date: Jan 2012
Posts: 521
Katsailing,

I do not want to discourage you but you get what you pay for. We bought our MT 36' three years ago and paid $20K. Fast forward to today and we have $55K in her (more than we will ever get out of her). But we knew going in that we would have to put alot into her to make her the way we wanted and to equip her for cruising and liveaboard. We were fortunate that we found a boat that was structurally sound and had a good motor but needed cosmetic and new equipment. It worked out well for us as we could not afford a $55K boat, but we could afford $20K and 10K a year to refit.

Concerning your budget, think of it like this. A new MT 37 is about $250K and you have a $20 to 40K budget. If a new Ferrari cost $250K, what condition would one that you bought for $20 to 40K be in?

My $ .02 is look patiently and head to Florida. Boats are cheaper there and if you are patient you will find something that fits, but it won't be a turn key trawler for $40K.
__________________
"Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect." Mark Twain

www.mikeandsharondunsworth.blogspot.com
READY2GO is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-07-2015, 08:20 PM   #22
Guru
 
JDCAVE's Avatar
 
City: North Vancouver
Vessel Name: Phoenix Hunter
Vessel Model: Kadey Krogen 42 (1985)
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 2,877
Quote:
Originally Posted by RT Firefly View Post
Greetings,
Mr./Ms kat. You may have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find your prince (ess). The one thing that concerns me is your phrase "...but we need to find something soon..." Finding the "right" boat is not an exercise that should be performed under duress. That, coupled with your budget could easily see you make a bad, bad decision. Buying ANY boat is NOT an investment in any way, shape or form. It's a money losing proposition 98% of the time. Mr. cardude 01's suggestion is well founded. Within your budget and it will get you on the water. Do NOT, NEVER, EVER, NO WAY, NO HOW let emotion enter into a boat buying decision. As mentioned by several of my revered colleagues, take your time and look further afield.
I don't know where you heard a boat has to "dry out" every year but stop listening to that person. Do more homework, slow down, chill, enjoy the chase, relax and mostly...


<---What he said!!!!!!!!! We spent more time looking for a boat than when looking for a new house-both houses combined. It took us over two years. Looking back at the process, we were right to walk away from a bunch of boats. And 2 years later we are pleased with the boat we purchased.

Also the OP said: "Black oil left in tanks or metal shavings, we have seen this when pulling the dip stick out to check the oil."

Metal shavings on a dipstick? Hmmm. We did an oil sample analysis when we purchased our boat and they check for metals in the oil, but I'm surprised if metal shavings would come up on the dipstick. If so, run don't walk away. In hindsight the oil analysis should have been done sequentially at time increments after an oil change but I haven't done that since,


Jim
Sent from my iPad using Trawler Forum
JDCAVE is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-07-2015, 08:28 PM   #23
Guru
 
City: NC
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 1,350
Quote:
Originally Posted by katsailing View Post
Hi Everyone!

We are still searching for a Trawler, spent the last several days in Virginia, Maryland and New Jersey looking at Used Trawlers.

The problems we are finding are as such:
1)Black oil left in tanks or metal shavings, we have seen this when pulling the dip stick out to check the oil.
Black oil? Do you mean the oil in the engine is black?

Engine oil in a diesel will turn black very quickly. Even after an oil change the oil will quickly turn black when mixing with the old oil left in the engine.

Once you find a boat you think you would want to buy, get the oil tested which will tell you if the oil is in bad shape but also can indicate if there are metal particles and where the metal is from in the engine.

I have used Blackstone for years, Blackstone Labs. They will send you sample kits for free when you need to test some oil.

Good Luck,
Dan
dannc is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-07-2015, 08:34 PM   #24
Guru
 
City: Venice Louisiana
Join Date: Dec 2013
Posts: 1,097
From what you have posted I would say that you need to LEARN a lot more about boats, and trawlers in general before putting down your money.
kulas44 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-07-2015, 08:36 PM   #25
Guru
 
cardude01's Avatar
 
City: Victoria TX
Vessel Name: Bijou
Vessel Model: 2008 Island Packet PY/SP
Join Date: Nov 2012
Posts: 5,290
I agree. I'm the most impatient person I know, and it took me two years to pull the trigger.
cardude01 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-07-2015, 08:42 PM   #26
Senior Member
 
City: Maryville, TN
Vessel Name: malu lani
Vessel Model: Albin 27 FC
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 113
Katsailing, I believe the hunting is much better in Florida. I lived there and worked in the marine trades for several years. There are always some very good boats there for a good price. Retirees usually head for the warmer climes and a lot of them leave this world there. The kids just tell the broker to "sell the boat and send me the money". The brokers ask the going price but are very receptive to ANY offers, 'cause the kids are on their tails daily. You can make a low offer and insist the broker present it to the absentee owners. I had a good friend who was a broker and he told me tales of some hiway robbery episodes. It's true that the sun is tough on the brightwork in FL but that's easy to make right, and a good compounding of the 'glass can usually make things much better also. Don't be afraid of Florida boats but BE PATIENT! Your boat will find you! Good luck, Ben
tego is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-08-2015, 12:53 AM   #27
Moderator Emeritus
 
ksanders's Avatar
 
City: SEWARD ALASKA
Vessel Name: DOS PECES
Vessel Model: BAYLINER 4788
Join Date: Feb 2011
Posts: 6,267
Quote:
Originally Posted by eyschulman View Post
Have you checked out any old Bayliners?
Good call...

Often a 1980's Bayliner 38' can be purchased pretty inexpensivly, and they have relativly few problems, (although any boat of that vintage can be problematic if not maintained).

And, that particular boat can and has cruised the Bahamas, the Caribbean and into Central America.

Read the "diamond Lil" series of books, which are an excerpt of Melanie Woods adventures on her 38' Bayliner.
__________________
Kevin Sanders
Bayliner 4788 Dos Peces
Seward, Alaska - La Paz, Baja California Sur
https://maps.findmespot.com/s/XLJZ#history/assets
ksanders is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-08-2015, 01:11 AM   #28
Guru
 
BandB's Avatar
 
City: Fort Lauderdale. Florida, USA
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 21,449
Quote:
Originally Posted by ksanders View Post
Read the "diamond Lil" series of books, which are an excerpt of Melanie Woods adventures on her 38' Bayliner.
And very enjoyable reading.
BandB is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-08-2015, 04:58 AM   #29
FF
Guru
 
FF's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 22,553
Look at the Gulfstar and other US brands.

Usually no buried house ply , solid GRP hull and decks and deck house.

$25K to $40 K will get a fine boat in the 35 -40 ft size.

ANYTHING can be repaired , but time and cost may be excessive.

Go solid , go simple , go now!
FF is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-08-2015, 07:42 AM   #30
Senior Member
 
City: St James City Fl
Vessel Name: Paradox
Vessel Model: Mainship
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 165
We looked at over 50 trawlers before we found a 40 ft sundeck that we could afford that was not total junk. Many adverts with pictures are deceiving. Many brokers told us what they wanted us to hear. After 40+years in the car business I thought I could spot the lies but some were very slick. Hire a good surveyor! There are bargains out there. Our friends looked for a year before buying a $85000. older trawler to replace their Grand Banks that was too small for them. We only had a small kitty to work with and found owners that would work with us. We have a lot of sweat equity now but enjoy a paid for boat full time. If you can't do your own work (Electrical, wood, light mechanical) you will be upside down very fast. Good advisement here on this forum!
Autoteacher is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-08-2015, 08:14 AM   #31
Guru
 
ranger58sb's Avatar
 
City: Annapolis
Vessel Name: Ranger
Vessel Model: 58' Sedan Bridge
Join Date: Aug 2013
Posts: 7,088
Quote:
Originally Posted by tego View Post
Katsailing, I believe the hunting is much better in Florida. I lived there and worked in the marine trades for several years. There are always some very good boats there for a good price.

It's true that the sun is tough on the brightwork in FL but that's easy to make right, and a good compounding of the 'glass can usually make things much better also. Don't be afraid of Florida boats but BE PATIENT! Your boat will find you! Good luck, Ben

And shopping on boats with little to no brightwork in the first place an sometimes at least partially mitigate that, too.

-Chris
__________________
Chesapeake Bay, USA
ranger58sb is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-08-2015, 08:26 AM   #32
Guru
 
psneeld's Avatar
 
City: Ft Pierce
Vessel Name: Sold
Vessel Model: Was an Albin/PSN 40
Join Date: Oct 2011
Posts: 28,151
Trawlers from Florida that have been in the water all year need a very good look at their hulls underwater.

2 of my liveaboards from Florida either had or developed blisters....the one I have now required cost prohibitive bottom repair had I not done it myself. The surveyor missed a tad of issues and I foolishly missed the haulout.

The topsides are small potatoes in many respects...depending on your fit and finish requirements.
psneeld is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 02-08-2015, 09:24 AM   #33
Dauntless Award
 
Wxx3's Avatar
 
City: Wrangell, Alaska
Vessel Name: Dauntless
Vessel Model: Kadey Krogen 42 - 148
Join Date: Jan 2013
Posts: 2,820
Quote:
Originally Posted by ragin cajun View Post
That $25-40,000 range will buy you what you're finding right now. Metal shavings in the oil? That's a major Pandora's box. Rotten wood in aft cabin and head liner joists can be repaired by a DIY. Removing the teak decks and fiberglassing over is a long process that can be done by your hubby. Living on board while doing these projects would be extremely difficult. I would take a guess to take a run down trawler and bring it up to livable conditions would be double your initial price of the boat.
Look at same size trawlers that are in good condition with little to no work needed, take that price and subtract what your fix-r-upper is selling for. Difference is a starting point for repairs. Sorry to be so negative. I would build up that boat buying kitty to at least $80,000.00 and buy a boat in far better condition.
TheI think this is excellent advice.

A few things to add:

You can't be in a hurry and find the right boat. Bargains are out there, but if so easy to find, they'd be gone already.

Look at boats double your price range. How can you know if a $40k is worth it, if you haven't seen some at $60, 80k and $20k too.

That's another reason it's a long process.

Find some body you know that knows boats. TF is great, but to every question, there are many answers and I think at your stage, that's not helpful.

E.g. to have to ask about metal shavings in oil twice, is wasting your time.

Boats in the water year around are no better, no worse than boats out of the water.. In fact, out of water can mean many things, not all of them good.

On your budget, Florida is even more attractive since there are so many boats, you are more likely to find what you want st a price you can afford.

We looked at many boats before we bought. Many I knew we had no interest in, but it's important to know what's out there.

Good luck.
I hope this helped.
I wish I could have cats, but...
__________________
Richard on Dauntless,
New York

a Kadey Krogen 42 currently: https://share.garmin.com/dauntless
Blog:
https://dauntlessatsea.com
Wxx3 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-08-2015, 09:34 AM   #34
Guru
 
City: Carefree, Arizona
Vessel Name: sunchaser V
Vessel Model: DeFever 48 (sold)
Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 10,186
Katsailing

What do you want to do 75% of the time with the vessel you acquire?
sunchaser is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-08-2015, 09:38 AM   #35
Art
Guru
 
Art's Avatar
 
City: SF Bay Area
Vessel Model: Tollycraft 34' Tri Cabin
Join Date: Feb 2011
Posts: 12,569
Katsailing - Get a purchase broker on your side.

Let the broker recommend boats to you. Be sure to provide the broker a typed list of ALL your needs, use plans, and budget for your boat. Begin to read-up on all info you can find about pleasure boats... internet is great for doing this, library books can be good too. Seems you are not well versed in pleasure power crafts so your learning curve will be nearly vertical at least for some time.

Good Luck - and - Ask Questions Here! There are those who can provide answers.

Happy Boat-Search Daze! - Art
Art is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-08-2015, 10:02 AM   #36
Veteran Member
 
City: Pennsylvania
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 33
Quote:
Originally Posted by RT Firefly View Post
Greetings,
Mr./Ms kat. You may have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find your prince (ess). The one thing that concerns me is your phrase "...but we need to find something soon..." Finding the "right" boat is not an exercise that should be performed under duress. That, coupled with your budget could easily see you make a bad, bad decision. Buying ANY boat is NOT an investment in any way, shape or form. It's a money losing proposition 98% of the time. Mr. cardude 01's suggestion is well founded. Within your budget and it will get you on the water. Do NOT, NEVER, EVER, NO WAY, NO HOW let emotion enter into a boat buying decision. As mentioned by several of my revered colleagues, take your time and look further afield.
I don't know where you heard a boat has to "dry out" every year but stop listening to that person. Do more homework, slow down, chill, enjoy the chase, relax and mostly...

Don't worry, we aren't jumping at the very first boat we see. My husband has been searching and researching information since last summer. It wasn't until recently in the last month we saw more Trawlers in our price range. Most of the urgency came about in the last 2 months. You see we would like to sell our home get out from under this load and live aboard a boat and travel instead of being stuck here in Pennsylvania with 9-5 Jobs and nothing to do but pay bills, come home and sit on the couch watch movies, do gardening and just generally feel like life is passing us by.
katsailing is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-08-2015, 10:14 AM   #37
Veteran Member
 
City: Pennsylvania
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 33
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wxx3 View Post
TheI think this is excellent advice.

A few things to add:

You can't be in a hurry and find the right boat. Bargains are out there, but if so easy to find, they'd be gone already.

Look at boats double your price range. How can you know if a $40k is worth it, if you haven't seen some at $60, 80k and $20k too.

That's another reason it's a long process.

Find some body you know that knows boats. TF is great, but to every question, there are many answers and I think at your stage, that's not helpful.

E.g. to have to ask about metal shavings in oil twice, is wasting your time.

Boats in the water year around are no better, no worse than boats out of the water.. In fact, out of water can mean many things, not all of them good.

On your budget, Florida is even more attractive since there are so many boats, you are more likely to find what you want st a price you can afford.

We looked at many boats before we bought. Many I knew we had no interest in, but it's important to know what's out there.

Good luck.
I hope this helped.
I wish I could have cats, but...
Thanks Wxx3, you made some very good points. My husband does have a friend he keeps in contact with that has his Captain's license and has chartered boats before. He runs a lot of the information about the boats we have looked at by him. My husband does have some sailing knowledge, I am very much the newbie or novice. He is a quick learner and knows what to look for on the boats right down to the damage that may cause a problem for us down the road. I have been mostly brushing up on sailing terminology as much as I can. We have found something to put a bid on when we were in New Jersey, hopefully this will be the one. Wish us luck, ok?
katsailing is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-08-2015, 10:18 AM   #38
Veteran Member
 
City: Pennsylvania
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 33
Quote:
Originally Posted by psneeld View Post
Trawlers from Florida that have been in the water all year need a very good look at their hulls underwater.

2 of my liveaboards from Florida either had or developed blisters....the one I have now required cost prohibitive bottom repair had I not done it myself. The surveyor missed a tad of issues and I foolishly missed the haulout.

The topsides are small potatoes in many respects...depending on your fit and finish requirements.
Thanks for your input psneeld that was what we were hearing a lot of with the Florida boats. Besides it is too far for us to travel to look at boats, that would put our budget through the roof not to mention we would need a place to stay while browsing. We are sticking to the New Jersey, Maryland and possibly Virginia & North Carolina areas. The last to states being last, very last on our list.
katsailing is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-08-2015, 10:30 AM   #39
Guru
 
Codger2's Avatar
 
City: San Diego
Vessel Name: Circuit Breaker
Vessel Model: 2021..22' Duffy Cuddy cabin
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 6,691
Quote:
Originally Posted by katsailing View Post
....... instead of being stuck here in Pennsylvania with 9-5 Jobs and nothing to do but pay bills, come home and sit on the couch watch movies, do gardening and just generally feel like life is passing us by.
GEEZ! What's wrong with that? (I guess the grass is really greener out side of Pennsylvania!)
Attached Thumbnails
Relax.jpg  
__________________
Done with diesel power boats! Have fallen in love with all electric!
Codger2 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-08-2015, 11:51 AM   #40
Veteran Member
 
City: Pennsylvania
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 33
Exclamation Rudder Problems and Maintenance

Hello Everyone,

In our searching for a Trawler we came across this on the boats rudder shoe:
Picture files attached.
We are looking to buy the boat on which this rudder shoe is attached, how concerned should we be about the extent of the repair work needed on this rudder shoe. Does anyone know how this is made and what is possibly inside? Any information would be appreciated and thanks!
Attached Images
  
katsailing is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Trawler Port Captains
Port Captains are TF volunteers who can serve as local guides or assist with local arrangements and information. Search below to locate Port Captains near your destination. To learn more about this program read here: TF Port Captain Program





All times are GMT -5. The time now is 06:25 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Search Engine Optimization by vBSEO 3.6.0
Copyright 2006 - 2012