1985 Oceania Present Sundeck

was going to look at an OP 42. Is this a displacement hull or a semi V. Does any one know of the superstructure construction. Any yeas or nays of the Chung Hwa Boat Yard built boats. I am new with trawlers and appreciate any and all advice.

THANKS
FLORIDA CRACKER

If this is the one:

1985 Oceania Present Sundeck Power Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

The quick list I would check would be whether the foredeck is spongey or not and if the side decks have leaked onto the tanks where it can cause corrosion. Both related to teak overlay on the decks.

Lots of old matching paint on the engines suggesting they have seen little use or maintenance for a long time.

Check the AC electrical system for basic equipment. Transfer switches that account for numbers of inlets and overcurrent protection where required.

There is much more but most you can see and smell when you step aboard and are done looking around below decks.

Fairly certain it is a Monk designed displacement hull but at any rate, you will never get it above displacement speeds . Chung Hwa, aka CHB, built a lot of boats with a lot of different brand names on them. Marine Trader is one of the more well known of them. CHB built boats have the same shortcomings as most Taiwanese boats of that era. Watch out for soft decks and rotten balsa core beneath the teak, leaks/rust on the "black iron" fuel tanks, leaky windows and crappy electrical wiring made worse the addition and deletion of equipment over 30+ years. The need for bottom peels is not unheard of.

On the flip side, old Taiwanese boats can usually be had at good prices for all the previously mentioned issues.

Yes that is the boat on Yacht World. Thanks for all the good things to look for. Should I steer away from any teak decks? If not now all will probably be big problems in the future. Or if in good shape could be maintained for future use. Maybe just stay with the Clorox Bottles?
THANKS GUYS

Unless the decks have been replaced, yeah, it is generally a good idea to avoid them on 30 year old Taiwanese boats. Deck leaks and leaks around the fuel and water fillers are a prime cause of fuel tanks rusting although there are other causes. If you get a boat with teak decks, expect to eventually put $10-15K into replacing the balsa core and re-glassing the decks. If you are a glutton for punishment, you could do it yourself....a real fun job in the FL sun.

Our 1984 Taiwanese Tub was kept inside 7 months during winters and it was an always fresh water boat but it still had a few soft spots and eventually I would have had to redo the deck. It is hard not to like the teak decks when walking around the boat but eventually, water finds its way through the screws holding the teak down and there are hundreds if not thousands of screw holes. Newer boats use adhesive instead of screws when teaked.

Florida Cracker said:

Yes that is the boat on Yacht World. Thanks for all the good things to look for. Should I steer away from any teak decks? If not now all will probably be big problems in the future. Or if in good shape could be maintained for future use. Maybe just stay with the Clorox Bottles?
THANKS GUYS

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Don't be put off quite so easily, is my advice. Ask me how I know. Happy ownership of a CHB 34 of 1975 vintage, is why. Yet if I had allowed myself to be overly swayed by all the dreadful stories, we would probably have given up, and missed out on 15 yrs of very enjoyable boating, as we had a limited budget, and boats that came within it were always in this category. New was out of the question.

That vessel looks a very nice example, and very good for the money. It might have also had a fastidious owner who did all the right things, and had the decks recaulked in time to prevent all the bad stuff happening. Donsan has painted the worse case scenario, and some do end up like that, but many don't, and often the fixes are still way cheaper than buying the near perfect boat.
Just sayin'...

It is a lot of boat for the money. Just approach it eyes wide open to avoid too many surprises down the road.

<rant>[For crying out loud! They couldn't have at least straightened up some before taking the listing pictures?!? I mean, come on! the broker's coat and portfolio are just dropped on the chair. That's a little bit of a red flag there just by itself.] </rant>

That's a good price, but you can see subtleties that look like they might need attention. The sundeck teak looks good (finished anyway), but the engines and general engine room condition (of what we can see anyway) looks a bit unloved. Remember, this boat is going to take a lot of regular and new maintenance. Every 40+ y/o boat will, but these older trawlers are especially susceptible to thinks like soft decks, leaky windows, smelly hoses, and sketchy wiring etc. It's all good if you go in with your eyes open and expect it, but don't expect a turn-key experience. Not for this price anyway. It's priced to sell for a reason and not because the owner just feels like helping the world out.

If you can afford it and are seriously considering it, get thru the survey and see where you are, but prep yourself to lose that money. A good survey on these trawlers could have a very long list of "stuff". It will sometimes scare people away... but some can see past that and well have proper expectations set. I have even paid a surveyor (with the owners permission) just do a walk-thru before an offer is even made just to scan the overall condition in a high-level look without digging down into a full-blown survey. Some will do it... some won't.

Anyway, I don't want to be too opinionated about a boat on pictures alone, but I always look at listings with a grain of salt until I get onboard. Still, old boats are old boats. It's not about the yard or the brand... It's about its history and how much love (READ: maintenance) it received.

Good luck!

Peter B said:

Donsan has painted the worse case scenario, and some do end up like that, ....

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Fear mongering.....mea culpa!

Greetings,
Around the fill cap on the upper starboard side appears to be moist. Might be a place to check for rot. Also as mentioned, housekeeping is a bit lacking which might suggest poor maintenance or simply deferred maintenance at best. ER is a bit of a dog's breakfast again, lack of or deferred maint'.
Might be that little old lady is one of or the owner(s) and the vessel is simply becoming too much to look after. The shabby state may be recent or an ongoing situation. GOOD survey needed!

Speaking from experience on my own Marine Trader, Yes I had leaky windows, my decks must have been replaced at some point, they are not teak. My interior floors are not parquet, they are holly and teak. I suspect they were also replaced at some point as they are gorgeous. Teak is constant maintenance. I painted my exterior teak trim with Pettit ezpoxy. I did not want to be a slave to it. I also replaced my exterior teak stairs with Trex.

Fuel tanks can be scary. Set up a reserve account for them if you have the "black iron". I do not know what mine are, they are not visable even on survey.

The engines in the pic seem tired. BUT, without a survey and engine start it is impossible to tell the true condition.

About the electrical. On my boat the first owner was an electrician. Got lucky there. Everything is labeled and in excellent condition. You might get lucky there too.

There is always a ton of money that you will put into ANY 30 year old boat to make it your own and take care of any issues. You just have to decide what your threshold is. I planned 20,000.00. I will be close to that figure after my bottom paint. Like I mentioned above, I also have a reserve in case my fuel tanks go bad. I put extra money in there when I can. The estimate for replacing them for me is 10 grand.

Have a survey done if you are truly in love with the boat. Best thing I did and had very few surprises when she became mine and I love her.

Lots to think about and I hope I was some help to you. Good luck with your purchasing journey.

THANKS for all the advice, you guys and gals are the greatest. Ive gotta go look.

So, I take it the visit didn't go so well since the OP is still for sale.

It looks overall pretty nice considering it’s age. The photos are almost 2 years old though. Interested how it looked in person.

Donna,

How long have you had the Petit Ezpoxy n your teak and how is it holding up?