Vista (Kha Shing) experiences or info

[DonLawson84]

My wife and I are looking into a 1988 38' Vista double cabin with the twin 250hp Cummins and finding any info on them is nearly impossible.
We are scheduled to look at the boat for the second time tomorrow and probably submitting an offer, would you recommend anything particular to look out for? what is a good cruise speed any with similar setup have found and how many knots / rpms? After looking at about 8 traditional Trawlers, this Vista seems to have everything we want and from the design and with the motors I am hoping may get 12-14 knots and still stay under 2000 rpm
Thanks,
Donny Lawson

 

[Comodave]

Welcome aboard. We have a 41’ with twin SP225s. It tops out at 17 knots. We cruise at about 9 knots and 1600 RPM. At 12 to 14 we would not want to pay for the fuel. Check the decks for wet core, use a phenolic hammer, and try to see what condition the fuel tanks are in. Check for current or old leaks around the windows. Good luck, hope it works out for you.

 

[DonLawson84]

The broker is saying the fuel tanks are coated aluminum, I plan to bring a magnet and look into the boat a little more tomorrow. I did check for leaks around the windows and seen no staining (boat is in a covered slip), every trawler we looked at with the exception of an Island Gypsy had at least one window with stains below. I did not feel any soft spots with my 220lbs and size 13's, any further will be on a survey.

 

[Comodave]

The surveyor should do either a test with a moisture meter or percussion testing for wet core or both. If it has aluminum tanks that is a good thing. Good luck.

 

[Taras]

I had a 1987 52’ Kha Shing trawler and loved it. I really like the extensive use of solid teak for all the frames and the solid fiberglass hull. The fit and finish of the interior teak was really good. Leaky fuel tanks and potential leaky teak decks are the primary issues I’d look for.