Gmarr
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- Non Trawler ;-) Ask me if it matters LOL
Both are still for sale, what ended up being purchased? I love the good ending to a story!
Going to look at 2 boats. . .how do you figure what a fair offer is?
- Thread starter cool beans
- Start date
The friendliest place on the web for anyone who enjoys boating.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
OP
OP
cool beans
Senior Member
Nothing yet
I did finally put in an offer on a Bayliner 3870 about a month ago. Everything I could see and inspect looked good enough to pull the trigger on a survey (hull and engine). When it was pulled out the running gear was pretty mangled and had been for some time. I pulled the plug on finishing the survey, the guy left it on the hard to get repaired. I'm waiting to hear back from him, but not getting my hopes up. . .Not the end of the story, but the suckiest chapter by far. Spending $1200 on basically nothing kind of sucks the fun out of boat shopping
dhays
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Shopping for a boat is fun. Actually buying a boat, not so much. Taking possession of a new boat is fun. So you have a fun sandwich with a sucky filling.
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Nothing yet
Not the end of the story, but the suckiest chapter by far. Spending $1200 on basically nothing kind of sucks the fun out of boat shopping
Price it out on repairs and hit him hard and LOW!!! Most people selling boats don't want to spend that kind of money and headache to replace the running gear. That is exactly how I got my boat. I basically came back at him at 50% of the previous contract. He took it. And it cost me about $11k to replace two shafts, two rudders, and a propellor as well as a bottom job and blisters and cutlass bearings and shaft seals. I thought I did pretty well!!!
CPseudonym
Moderator Emeritus
Spending $1200 on basically nothing kind of sucks the fun out of boat shopping
Or, the $1,200 you spent saved you at least $10,000 on running gear alone from the sound of it. All about perspective.
BruceK
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Commiserations. Here, hauling cost is on the buyer whether the deal goes through or not. Used to be on the seller if the deal failed. There should be some penalty for a seller who has to have known the state of the boat where you could not. A local TFer recently got caught with badly "repaired" osmosis, and the fees. You`d never recover the survey fees but if a seller duds you like that they should at least bear the haulout cost. Might encourage sellers/brokers to be more upfront.
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- Now boatless - sold 6/2018
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O C Diver
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Nothing yet
If you find yourself in that situation again, finish the survey. A really low ball valuation from the surveyor might give you a great deal on a modest project boat. I would much rather steal the boat and have it repaired the way I want it. Most owners in that situation are ready to give it away than throw more money at it.
Ted
Mule
Guru
Here is what appears to be a beauty going begging.
1998 Bruce Roberts Custom LR Trawler Power Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com
1998 Bruce Roberts Custom LR Trawler Power Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com
SaltyDawg86
Senior Member
Man that is an awesome boat!
Cool Beans- what's your price range and what are you looking for in a boat? You've looked at a lot and always found reasons not to buy (yes, valid reasons). A boat will always require work.
Cool Beans- what's your price range and what are you looking for in a boat? You've looked at a lot and always found reasons not to buy (yes, valid reasons). A boat will always require work.
What an intriguing boat.
I would really like to read comments from folks qualified to talk about the build quality and materials.
$450,000 in work, over 6 years, redoing a lot of original installs less than 10 years old.
Is this now a complete boat or an ongoing (major) project boat?
OP
OP
cool beans
Senior Member
Well, we split the haul cost. . .and the surveyors gave me a discount for not finishing, and offered me a discount on my next survey if I used them. . .so not a complete loss.
I might give the guy a call this weekend, see what he is up to with it. I haven't seen it relisted, maybe he could be willing to listen to a "make the problem go away" offer. I was a little too disappointed at the time to think it thru, I basically just wanted to GTFO there
What I'm looking for has always been so vague and generic, it really doesn't help. Comfy dockside liveaboard with easily accessed outdoor space that's nice to take people out in, can be single handed in nice weather, not a foreseeable money pit, and won't break the bank with maintenance. . .and I'd like to keep it under $50k.
Lots of boats out there fit that bill, most of them need some kind of work at my price range. Just trying to find the right kind of "needs work" boat. That bayliner fit the bill until it was hauled out.
Most boats I've decided against usually were to far gone either structurally or mechanically (or both) for me to want to mess with for the price they wouldn't budge from. I'm pretty flexible when it comes to structural issues too, what I really want is sound mechanical systems. Given all the years I've spent in junkyards, under/inside trucks and cars, partial restorations, boat engines, etc. . .when I crack open an engine hatch and see a rusty hunk of neglected machinery, I cringe. Yeah, it runs fine now. But eventually those 35 year old rotten hoses will need to come off, the injectors that have never been serviced, the weeping manifold bolts, rusty water jackets, the engine mounts that have had water dripping on them for decades. . .all those rusty fasteners, all I need to do is have one shear off flush with the block
Anyways, getting late and I'm rambling. . .my philosophy to buying a boat:
"I'm not buying a used boat, I'm buying someone else's future problems. . ."
I might give the guy a call this weekend, see what he is up to with it. I haven't seen it relisted, maybe he could be willing to listen to a "make the problem go away" offer. I was a little too disappointed at the time to think it thru, I basically just wanted to GTFO there
What I'm looking for has always been so vague and generic, it really doesn't help. Comfy dockside liveaboard with easily accessed outdoor space that's nice to take people out in, can be single handed in nice weather, not a foreseeable money pit, and won't break the bank with maintenance. . .and I'd like to keep it under $50k.
Lots of boats out there fit that bill, most of them need some kind of work at my price range. Just trying to find the right kind of "needs work" boat. That bayliner fit the bill until it was hauled out.
Most boats I've decided against usually were to far gone either structurally or mechanically (or both) for me to want to mess with for the price they wouldn't budge from. I'm pretty flexible when it comes to structural issues too, what I really want is sound mechanical systems. Given all the years I've spent in junkyards, under/inside trucks and cars, partial restorations, boat engines, etc. . .when I crack open an engine hatch and see a rusty hunk of neglected machinery, I cringe. Yeah, it runs fine now. But eventually those 35 year old rotten hoses will need to come off, the injectors that have never been serviced, the weeping manifold bolts, rusty water jackets, the engine mounts that have had water dripping on them for decades. . .all those rusty fasteners, all I need to do is have one shear off flush with the block
Anyways, getting late and I'm rambling. . .my philosophy to buying a boat:
"I'm not buying a used boat, I'm buying someone else's future problems. . ."
- Joined
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- Now boatless - sold 6/2018
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- Had a Clipper (CHB) 34
cool beans said...
"Anyways, getting late and I'm rambling. . .my philosophy to buying a boat: I'm not buying a used boat, I'm buying someone else's future problems "
Yes, but don't forget, the whole idea is to also buy into the pleasure potential that someone else has had as well.
"Anyways, getting late and I'm rambling. . .my philosophy to buying a boat: I'm not buying a used boat, I'm buying someone else's future problems "
Yes, but don't forget, the whole idea is to also buy into the pleasure potential that someone else has had as well.
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SaltyDawg86
Senior Member
I've ran a brand new, $70 million vessel that had issues....
The bottom line is all vessels are projects.
The bottom line is all vessels are projects.
sunchaser
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Looking for a relatively problem free boat is never easy. Often the add ons or fix up costs only show up following a detailed inspection and survey. Early on vetting is the key. With a boat smart buddy do your best to inspect and rate the vessel prior to haul out. Finding the "tells" on an acceptable - or not - vessel is indeed possible.
But, finding a good boat in the 35 - 40' range may not be easily achieved for $50k. Maybe you should be looking at really nice $100k vessels and offering $50k?
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OP
OP
cool beans
Senior Member
All vessels are definitely projects!
Final update: Got a hold of the owner. He has it all fixed up, and is so excited at how well it runs now he is going to keep it for a bit
Is it worth even offering half price on a nice boat?
Final update: Got a hold of the owner. He has it all fixed up, and is so excited at how well it runs now he is going to keep it for a bit
Is it worth even offering half price on a nice boat?
I surveyed that boat in 2003. It is cold molded (three layers of 1/4" mahogany ply) and quite well built, Spotless at the time but a lot can happen in 13yrs. Cold molds can be a hard sell because people associate them with the dreaded "wood".
