Looking at a 1972 65 foot wooden Romsdahl

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eclinden

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 30, 2022
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No I am not completely insane, just partially.
I have owned a number of glass boats and a 42 foot steel boat. This would be my first adventure into a wooden boat. I'm going to personally have a look at the boat this coming Friday and have a surveyor lined up a few weeks out to go through it. He's $30 an hour and needs two days to complete the survey. The asking price is 95K. I need some advice/guidance from people who know more about this than I do. Is that price even rational for this boat? Surveyor says that unless this boat has had a complete refit in the last few years that it would be a huge undertaking. The harbormaster that recommended the surveyor, who is supposed to be the best in the SF bay area, chuckled and said that the first thing he's going to tell you is don't buy a wooden boat, but I'm looking anyway. It's been hauled out within the last few months for a bottom job, where through hulls were replaced some planks replaced the intake valves on the diesel replaced and a bunch of batteries replaced. I talked to the marina that has been doing the work on the phone today and they said it looks like this boat comes in here about once a year for work. That's probably a good sign. What advice can you folks give me when I go to look at this boat on Friday? What things my observe that make me say that this boat is a no go and I don't have to hire the surveyor do the hall out and all that. I'm hoping to live aboard this boat and travel extensively with my kids and guests. I am trying to make this decision rationally rather than emotionally, I can tell you, the boat has a very strong appeal for me. It's absolutely beautiful. I can definitely see myself on this boat with a sailor hat and an eyepatch. Thoughts?
 
Surveyor: don't worry about checking out anything aesthetic. Honestly I'd just spend the first day on the hull only. Wood is your biggest concern.

If day 1 looks promising then on day 2 have (him/mechanic) start checking out main engine, generator, fuel tank condition, steering system, etc.

You're investing a lot of effort and money into a boat you don't have a contract on. I respect you for being serious about this. Chances are that your $500+ investment will be wasted, so try not to be delusional. If you do make an offer I'd come in at half price or less. Maybe 1/3 price. Then you can see how serious the seller is as well.

Seriously if there is only 1 thing I can tell you is take off your rose-colored glasses, your pirate eye-patch and any hint of emotion. Go into this like a banker or a robot.
 
eclinden said:
I am trying to make this decision rationally rather than emotionally, I can tell you, the boat has a very strong appeal for me. It's absolutely beautiful. I can definitely see myself on this boat with a sailor hat and an eyepatch. Thoughts?
Click to expand...

She's a beauty, all right. If you make this decision rationally, you will go look at this boat, think it over and then move on. No one who is entirely rational buys an older wooden boat, no matter how entrancing and seductive it may be when you first see it.
 
A nice looker! Appears to be well maintained, too!
However, I've read about enough large wood-boat experiences on this forum over the last three years to come to the clear understanding that the cost of purchasing such a boat is INCIDENTAL to what you will need to spend to bring it up to date and maintain it. The purchase could make some sense if it's going to be your long-term home but you'd still need to have deep pockets to cover the significant expenses for this depreciating asset.

I had large live-aboard wood boat dreams at one time, but fortunately did not have the financial means to get to first base with them ;-)


(Think: Live-aboard & dinner cruise operation)
 

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I suspect with the cost of the surveyor in the haul out this survey is going to cost close to $3000. I like the idea of coming in at half or less as long as the hull is sound. I had this thought that I would take the results of the survey, present them to the marina and ask how much it would cost to fix all this. Heck the seller may owe me money just to take it off his hands.
 
I have an 83' wood boat.
Even if the boat is in great shape, the 2 biggest issues will be financing and insurance.
 
Are there parts available for a Kelvin and anyone to work on one?
 
My budget is between 50 and 150 K. I plan to pay cash for the boats so no financing. Insurance is gonna be a big problem though. I may end up with just liability but even that might be challenging.
 
That's a good question. I thought about it but haven't actually researched it. The marina where it was most recently hauled out said that they had replaced or reworked the intake valves on the engine so I'm guessing they were able to get some parts. This does bear some research though. It's the first time I ever heard of the Kelvin engine.
 
How the hell did you find a surveyor in San Francisco Bay for $30/hr? With availability? Skilled in wooden boats? Not related to the seller or his broker?

Can't speak to Kelvin engines, but if I wanted a diesel mechanic in the Oakland area, my first and only call would be Eric Mashbir*(510)*851-1246. Fast, straight shooter, expensive, and a good value.

Honestly, sounds like a really, really expensive $95k boat. As far as offering less, don't bother. It's either worth $95k or it's not worth 95-cents

Gotta ask if you're feeling okay. Have you consulted a loved one about this? Wife? Are you on any psychotropic medications? Any other irrational thoughts or medical conditions?

Peter
 
My 2 cents:
Go for it.
If you have 150k in cash then you are doing well enough to buy yourself a toy.
Don’t consider this an investment or think about depreciation, just figure that money is gone and have fun with the boat while you can.
If you don’t know about wood boats then make sure your surveyor does.
If you can’t fix wood boats yourself, make sure you find someone that can, before you buy.
If you fell in love with this boat and are considering buying it for the asking price, assume the current owner is also in love with it and thinks it is worth that, don’t waste everyones time thinking you can buy it for a quarter the asking price, regardless of what the survey turns up.
 
I communicated with the seller, at one point, and read the last insurance survey that he provided. Did you talk about the generator? I was operating under the assumption that I would need to “price in” a new generator install rather than try to salvage the Onan. YMMV.
 
Lepke said:
I have an 83' wood boat.
Even if the boat is in great shape, the 2 biggest issues will be financing and insurance.
Click to expand...


If you can't pay cash for it you can't afford to maintain it.
 
Do you have an almost endless supply of money? If not you may be getting in over your head.

The intake valves are not engine specific but generic thru hull seacocks. Are parts available for a Kelvin?

Do you have a marina that will let you dock a wooden boat of that age? Can you get insurance? What is your boating background? If you don’t have experience in boats of that size you will likely not be able to get insurance so then you will probably not be able to get dockage. There is really a lot of things to research before you even begin to look at a boat like this. Don’t want to be a downer but these are reality questions.
 
After years of faithfully buying a ticket every week, the owner of an old wooden boat won 5 million dollars in the Florida Lottery drawing. Asked by the local radio station what he planned to do with his newfound wealth, he replied, "I'm just going to stay right here and keep working on the boat, until the money is all gone."
 
eclinden said:
30 per foot for the surveyor
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That makes more sense. Thanks. Good luck. Fingers crossed this works out well. As a guy restoring an old Willard, I really love to see old boats given a new lease.

Peter
 
Some suggestions (perhaps over the top):

1- Liability only of course. It would be foolish to consider hull coverage.
2- Get it into decent running condition then head straight west to either SE Asia or India.
3- They are masters with wooden carvel construction and can completely refurbish for you.
4- Have a new engine/gear shipped from China. An 855 from Shanghai Stone with an Advance gear. Or if you’ve really got balls (and it sounds like you do) then install a Weichai 6160 medium speed diesel.
5- Obviously a new genset.

If you make this boat your life’s endeavor for the next one to two years, then go back to work after, you can do this realistically.

Suerte!
 
There is no boat that feels like a wooden boat. Quiet, soft ride, warm, proud. Now a reality check.
Today you have insurance, tomorrow you don’t
You have a dock space today, tomorrow no wood allowed
You haul for service today, next time try say no.

Finding proper timber for maintenance will be as difficult as paying for it. I run a mechanical business so there is no diesel that scares me but you should research parts and a tech before making a decision. I love the boat and can understand your interest.
 
mvweebles said:
How the hell did you find a surveyor in San Francisco Bay for $30/hr? With availability? Skilled in wooden boats? Not related to the seller or his broker?

Peter
Click to expand...

lol:rofl: I can't find a guy at the home depot parking lot for that.

sorry didn't see the later posts
 
I got a 58’ William Garden fall of 2020. Built 1952. Has had really good care. Total refit in 2002 ($750k+) and the previous owner had funds and able to keep her up. I had a 40 Year shipyard vet walk through it as well as a marine electrician. Got thumbs up, my friend said “you got nothing big to do for 10
Years, it’s been done”
Did hull and mechanical surveys in Port Townsend (Mecca for wood boats) All good…We are thrilled with our boat.

943BD4DB-6FC1-43DF-949E-1C0C36E2F26A.jpg
 
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I put a new bow stem in a big Romsdahl some years ago. I had done lots of them on fishboats, tugs etc., but that dog gone thing was the most complex stem I ever worked on!
The owner brought the boat into the yard here in La Conner, then sold it to a local fella, who promptly began a huge restoration of the rest of the boat, then to get it done and still have some money left over, which he seemed to have a lot of.. he bought the boatyard!
Once he got his boat completed and back in the water, he sold the yard to someone else who ran it for some years, before he had enuf and now its still operating under new ownership.
Dont know what happened to the boat but it looks just like the one the OP posted about.
 
trawlercap said:
I got a 58’ William Garden fall of 2020. Built 1952. Has had really good care. Total refit in 2002 ($750k+) and the previous owner had funds and able to keep her up. I had a 40 Year shipyard vet walk through it as well as a marine electrician. Got thumbs up, my friend said “you got nothing big to do for 10
Years, it’s been done”
Did hull and mechanical surveys in Port Townsend (Mecca for wood boats) All good…We are thrilled with our boat.

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Beautiful boat!
 
According to Wikipedia Kelvin engines are still made, in Glasgow Scotland.
If you can pursue your checking systematically with cool heart, do. That it gets annual servicing(good in itself!) same place annually suggests someone is confident it won`t die during haulout.
 
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