When is it too old?

[Woodland Hills]

The last Hatteras I surveyed was a 1982 53'. It had 12vdc, 24vdc, 32vdc, 120vac and 240vac systems along with two alternators on each engine, three battery chargers, two inverters, two generators and seven battery switches.

No one but a certified marine electrician or someone with a very fat cheque book should own a boat like this.

Oh dear! My Hatteras has all of that and more and I’m neither wealthy nor a certified marine electrician: should I sell her at a loss or just walk away?

BTW, you forgot the two isolation transformers, the two thrusters with their batteries and chargers and the 5 aircon units. Plus around a dozen pumps.....

 

[tiltrider1]

When you get to 53’ you will have at a minimum 12v, 120v, & 240v. Adding 24v and 32v at that point is pretty minor. My guess is the 24v is for the engine starters and/or the thrusters while the 36v is for lights. As to costs, at 53’ electrical work is cheap, engines, shafts, props, air conditioners, this is were things get truly expensive.

 

[READY]

The last Hatteras I surveyed was a 1982 53'. It had 12vdc, 24vdc, 32vdc, 120vac and 240vac systems along with two alternators on each engine, three battery chargers, two inverters, two generators and seven battery switches.

No one but a certified marine electrician or someone with a very fat cheque book should own a boat like this.

I used to own a 1977 Hatteras 58. I now realize I should have added a second alternator to each engine to avoid feeling inadequate. But the I did have some 5volt devices wired in. I had an open account with a good DC to DC converter supplier!

 

[dennismenace111]

I would not be afraid of of a glass boat from the 70s or even the 60s if it surveyed well. The possible problems are insurance and financing if needed. Many financial institutions will not finance something that old and insurance may be more difficult to get. Check on both before you make an offer.

Agree 100%. Years ago I owned a 1962 Hatteras sport fish! It was really overbuilt and was a wonderful boat. Never had blisters or any delamination ANYWHERE! 1960s fiberglass boats were really overbuilt...some to a fault where they became unnecessarily heavy!

 

[R lucky]

Much good info already but here are some bullet points (sorry for any repetition). Can you finance it if necessary? Can you insure it? If a wood hull, are there yards near you that will haul and competently service it? Can you find a slip for it? (many marinas have instituted age limits for vessels). These questions need to be answered BEFORE you go shopping. Also, I've found that vessels that have had long production runs seem to have service / repair issues that are brand specific. Once you zero in on a particular boat, each of the brands you mentioned in your post have owners groups / forums of their own where you can get info on specific issues that you're likely to encounter and decide whether or not you want to deal with them (or at least alert your surveyor to). As mentioned, having mfr's who are still available to help is a big plus. (The parts manager at Grand Banks has probably been there since I was a kid and knows my '82 inside and out). Good luck!

 

[FF]

"Also, I've found that vessels that have had long production runs seem to have service / repair issues that are brand specific."


Yes, so if you are going to use a buyers broker quiz him on his knowledge of bad years & bad boats frequently at bankrupcy time.

 

[Allen Arin]

When the repair cost increases its value

when internal parts are not available in the market

 

[Mermaid]

The last Hatteras I surveyed was a 1982 53'. It had 12vdc, 24vdc, 32vdc, 120vac and 240vac systems along with two alternators on each engine, three battery chargers, two inverters, two generators and seven battery switches.

No one but a certified marine electrician or someone with a very fat cheque book should own a boat like this.

Awe...don’t be intimidated by an old Hatt!!! I had a 1980 58’ motoryacht with all those systems and then some. 7 air conditioning systems, 4 heads, 4 showers, lots of batteries... but I didn’t have a fat checkbook. I learned the boat. I took care of her for 12-13 years....and did some serious refitting along the way. I kept all the different systems, for the most part. Redundancy everywhere - never had a trip-ending failure. They are complex boats, but heck...even a girl can keep one up. . What I do like about these old Hatts is that everything on them is fixable by a knowledgeable owner - there are no fancy electronic systems that require a technician with a laptop and a phone cable.

 

[Group9]

The good news is, that most of the boats built in the 60's or 70's, that are survivors, were very expensive boats relatively, when they were new. That means they had owners who could afford to keep them up, and most probably did.

The thing that is important, is what kind of owner they had the last ten or twenty years. Some could afford to keep them up, and some had no idea what they were getting into, and didn't (or couldn't). That's why the rare one owner survivors are such great finds. You know they were probably kept up their entire lives.

 

[tiltrider1]

The good news is, that most of the boats built in the 60's or 70's, that are survivors, were very expensive boats relatively, when they were new. That means they had owners who could afford to keep them up, and most probably did.

The thing that is important, is what kind of owner they had the last ten or twenty years. Some could afford to keep them up, and some had no idea what they were getting into, and didn't (or couldn't). That's why the rare one owner survivors are such great finds. You know they were probably kept up their entire lives.

I find a lot of truth here.

Once a boat is 30 years of age, it only takes one bad owner to wreck a nice boat.

 

[Bob Cofer]

I find a lot of truth here.



Once a boat is 30 years of age, it only takes one bad owner to wreck a nice boat.

Or one good owner to bring it back.