Wood Boats...SCARY???

RT Firefly said:

Greetings,
Ms, GG. Far be it from me to suggest you just go out and buy something. You're doing good thus far. Research, research, research. Keep VERY MUCH in mind, even with you doing your homework and getting the BEST vessel you THINK will fulfill your needs, wants and desires, at this time, you're going to be disappointed with some things on "the" boat. I'm sure you have come to the conclusion that pretty well everything on a boat is a compromise and that your initial "list" has and will change over time. Keep askin'. Hey, you never answered my question regarding the Swedish boats and what renovations you felt were necessary. Accommodations? Fit and finish?

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westwinds said:

Google this: converted trawlers for sale
There are a considerable number of hits

trawlers expedition yachts conversion for sale | Expeditionyacht.org
Mega Yachts here, but consider locations he mentions for conversion work. Maybe he would do a small job
Fishing Boats - Used Commercial Vessels
78 to 87+ fishing trawlers for sale.

One example of a boat that could be converted.
Desco 75 Trawler- Fishing Boat Market

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Pineapple Girl said:

one element I don't know if has been explored, GG and MeMe, have you selected your captain? This is a very important piece to your puzzle and not to be taken lightly. You are going to be spending a lot of 24/7 time with this person....

We knew someone who bought a brand new high end 55 foot "trawler" type boat and hired a captain to help him fit it out and deliver it several hundred ocean miles. The captain was then to train the owner on handling the boat as it was a huge step up form the owner's prior experience. They did NOT get along and it got quite ugly. The captain packed up and left the owner in a rather bad situation. The boat is (and has been for about two years) for sale. Not to say he could not have found another captain, but he was so disgusted with the situation he chose not to and instead gave up on boating and moved on to other interests.

On the other hand, I have a friend who is a captain and he has helped one of his clients buy, fit out and deliver two large "Offshore" (I believe is the brand) boats. They are now working together on a third. My friend is on call to come to whichever boat the owner wants to use (they are in different places the owner likes to cruise) and run the boat for the owner while he is on board. They have a great relationship and have been working together for many years. Not sure if the removal of the "training" element helps the relationship but perhaps??? Trying to teach someone something adds an element of potential frustration on both sides.

On another note, our slip neighbors have been living on a big hatteras with "grandpa" and their young adult son. They are in the master stateroom, gramps is in the v berth and the son bunks in saloon on the fold out couch. I am not sure where he keeps his stuff but the boat is always put together and presentable. Don't limit your self to thinking the number of cabins or even number of "bunks" must equal the number of people. There is a lot of flexibility in sleeping spaces on most boats.

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GalaxyGirl said:

. Plus, I'd rather purchase the boat that some other guy dumped a bunch of money into

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CPseudonym said:

I can relate to that completely. We did exactly that on a much smaller scale than you propose. I scoured listings and looked at boats for over 1 year before stumbling upon our boat by accident.

You can find what you seek but finding it intentionally by seeking broker sites is near impossible IMO. They usually sell quickly.

Ours was a private party sale.

Sent from my iPhone using Trawler

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meatsea said:

Hi Art, I think we looked at this one, she is pretty. Do ya think in this price range, ya get what you pay for. I mean, for this price this would need a bit of work even if maintained. Or is my thinking way off here?
We know we'll be buying someone else's problems, but just how deep will
they be at this price?
I guess hard to tell.
You wouldn't happen to know how long it's been posted for?
Thing we seen it on yachtworld, or another same make.
Thanks!
Meme

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Hendo78 said:

Build one :-D easy peasy

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Art said:

OMG - It's Matt!! Abandon ship - He's gonna tear it down and rebuild it! - LOL

Hi Matt, how's it goen?? good I hope!

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meatsea said:

@Art, thanks, I think I was looking at another Vic Franck on YW.

@Hendo, Is it at easy as building a house???

@Portager, love that area, had a friend who ran ferries to the San Juan Islands for years. We'll prob just do Maine or the east coast though.

Thanks,
Meme

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meatsea said:

@Portager, love that area, had a friend who ran ferries to the San Juan Islands for years. We'll prob just do Maine or the east coast though.

Thanks,
Meme

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portager said:

Sounds like a coastal bias to me!

Also, don't overlook aluminum boats. Aluminum costs a little more to build, but is the easiest to maintain and typically has higher resale value, so if you happen to find a good deal on an aluminum ...

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meatsea said:

Westwinds, thanks for the recommend, I'm an avid reader so I'm gonna order this one. There was another one they were recommending over on CF, about circumnavigation, I think they said part 4???
Are you familiar??
Thanks
Meme
...

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portager said:

Sounds like a coastal bias to me!

The important thing is to find representative boats like you think you intend to buy and take an extended test drive somewhere representative. I choose the San Juan's to start because my wife at the time was nervous about rough sea's. The San Juan's were a great place to get her hooked.

Also, don't overlook aluminum boats. Aluminum costs a little more to build, but is the easiest to maintain and typically has higher resale value, so if you happen to find a good deal on an aluminum ...

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westwinds said:

I must have missed it. I did try Google with the word circumnavigation, then clicked on the little gear icon in the upper right, (the one for Google below the one for Internet Explorer) which took me to advanced search, click on that and fill out last update (I did one month) and site or domain name of www.cruisersforum.com. This gives all instances of this word that showed up in the last month, unfortunately, that word gets used an awful lot in crusersforum and I could not find anything in all the clutter. If you can remember more about the name of the book, you can narrow the search and maybe find it.

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GalaxyGirl said:

I think it was "Voyaging Under Power"

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Hendo78 said:

Hey mate! Hahaha yeah step aside and let me in there haha Yeah I'm all good thanks. Still building the woodie. How are you old mate? You and your family well?

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westwinds said:

I have that book and thought it was very well written. It covers a lot of different subjects. Here is the Amazon link
Amazon.com: Voyaging Under Power, 4th Edition (9780071767330): Robert P. Beebe, Denis Umstot: Books

and here are the customer's reviews:
Amazon.com: Customer Reviews: Voyaging Under Power, 4th Edition

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westwinds said:

I have Lin and Larry Pardey’s book, Cost Conscious Cruiser that has information on hull material choices.

Fiberglass is the most popular material by far, but be able to discern between the well built boat and one that has poor reinforcing and bonding for floors, bulkheads, with cracking and structural failure. Osmosis blisters occur on about a third of the boats, but hull can be sealed. Rotting core materials like end grain balsa, plywood, or foam for stiffening on decks and coach roof can be repaired. Avoid hulls with core materials as hard sailing can cause separation and breakdown of material. Fiberglass can be neglected longer than steel and wood.

Steel is said to be good if the boat hits a reef; however, may a boat has been left on a reef because the damage was extensive enough that re-floating the boat was not worth it. Considerable maintenance is required for steel boats. Eric and Susan Hiscock, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Hiscock, who have owned both wood and steel state that it takes two or three times the work to keep a steel boat in good condition than it does a wood boat. Regular inspections for scratches must be done and paint applied. There is also the problem of compass deviation from the steel hull. A remotely mounted electronic compass up the mast helps, but using a hand-bearing compass is not possible for taking sights on landmarks for navigation. Steel rusts from the inside out so damp areas like a marine toilet, refrigerators, chain lockers have to be inspected and repaired. Most marine brokers consider a steel boat more than ten years old as having really low resale value. If you are willing to remove the interior completely and refinish hidden corners, replacing steel plate in some areas, a steel boat could be affordable.

The French have well-built boats of aluminum that are long lasting and low maintenance by not painting the aluminum. The aluminum takes on a battleship gray color. However, dissimilar metals can cause electrolysis. Also electrical system leakage can cause a severe kind corrosion. These boats are custom designed so are more expensive and hold their value. Good deals are hard to find.

Wood has fallen out of favor because it is cheaper to build a production boat using fiberglass. Wood is a good hull material, but most production wood boats are now old and a survey is very important. Also, softwoods such as fir and pine where iron fasteners were used are only good for twenty to thirty years. Wood and epoxy construction in more recent times are sold at low prices because many were home built, and some were done to questionable craftsmanship as were some production boats where boats were not done to a an acceptable design. Also the epoxies that were used were not really waterproof and were also susceptible to weakening when heated to temperatures as low as 120 degrees Fahrenheit. Look for a traditional boat laminated with rot resistant woods like cedar or teak using resorcinol glue that is completely water proof, heat, and fatigue resistant. This glue leaves brownish red joints. For any wood boat, bronze or copper fastenings must be used and three coatings of creosote to any bare wood that will be underwater is needed to control teredo worms. Paint is then applied to the creosote treated wood.

Ferrocement hulls are mostly built by amateurs and are difficult to ensure. Poor quality cement and questionable placement of rebar are issues. Maintenance is as difficult as steel and puncture resistance is low. Resale value is very low; however, some have gone cruising for little money. Some are commercially built and are usually of better quality.

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Max Simmons said:

I like steel for a world cruiser. Most places will have someone that can work steel, if need be. Maybe not to yachtie standards, but good enought to patch up if needed.

Here's a project

Used 1990 Terrebonne 75 Long Range Cruiser, Coos Bay, Or - 97420 - BoatTrader.com

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