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geoleo

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is a crazy one ----in Florida at least--latest theme is "Hide the Hurricane Irma damage" second theme is "Liveaboard cheaply" it does not matter if its rotting and rusting away and is filthy--its floating now. Third is ":banghead::flowers::angel::thumb:Oh those pics are 10 years old "
 
geoleo said:
is a crazy one ----in Florida at least--latest theme is "Hide the Hurricane Irma damage" second theme is "Liveaboard cheaply" it does not matter if its rotting and rusting away and is filthy--its floating now. Third is ":banghead::flowers::angel::thumb:Oh those pics are 10 years old "
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It’s not just Florida. We learned to avoid boat listings that use ‘Save on rent!’ as the ad headline...which roughly translates in ‘Lots of deferred maintenance’.

Looked at one that literally had a rotted hole in the wall of the day head. What?!
 
Defever is in the top ten of fine yachts in the US and still made in Taiwan.
 
Wanted to explore that area myself. Kind of concluded best approach there would be an outboard type trawler. A Rosborough or a C-dory would probably do the trick but they are just too small for me. The Great Harbour TT35 is ideal for this. The issue is it is a new boat with a $300K sticker fully outfitted and only 1 has been delivered. And don't forget the area is loaded with crabpots.
 
geoleo said:
Thanks! But I need a single engine protected prop as my plans are to explore the shallow Forgotten Coast of the Gulf north from Clearwater to Carrabee next few years and will run aground a lot.
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All the vintage Hatts I am familiar with, including mine, have a keel that extends down well below the props. So I suppose when you mean"protected" you mean some sort of soe or skeg below the prop itself? Not all singles have that feature.
 
geoleo said:
Thanks! But I need a single engine protected prop as my plans are to explore the shallow Forgotten Coast of the Gulf north from Clearwater to Carrabee next few years and will run aground a lot.
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I have a friend with a Island Gypsy who ran into the sandy shoulder of a channel when he wandered a little. It was sandy and a soft landing, and he was able to back off of it on his own. With the full keel and protected prop he thought nothing of it until he hauled in the fall. There was a rock in there and it did enough damage to allow water to wick into the keel.

Fairly pricey repair. sitting on the bottom on anchor or mooring at low tide is one thing. running aground is another.
 
geoleo said:
Thanks! But I need a single engine protected prop as my plans are to explore the shallow Forgotten Coast of the Gulf north from Clearwater to Carrabee next few years and will run aground a lot.
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An honest man:)

My last boat was able to do some real dodgy stuff, but eventually did bend a couple props at once. I'm looking forward to get something that either can slide across sand ok, or at least protect the running gear when it does hit.
 
geoleo said:
is a crazy one ----in Florida at least--latest theme is "Hide the Hurricane Irma damage" second theme is "Liveaboard cheaply" it does not matter if its rotting and rusting away and is filthy--its floating now. Third is ":banghead::flowers::angel::thumb:Oh those pics are 10 years old "
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I am not sure that any of what you noted has to do with where the boat was originally made. Seems like you have a thing against boats built in Taiwan. If so, look for different boats. There are a LOT of boats out there that were not made in Asia. And there are a lot of boats that were made in Asia that are great vessels.

No matter what you look at, if you are looking at a used boat, the previous owners have a lot more to do with how the boat is now as opposed to where it was made... "Dreaded Previous Owner" is a common term for a reason :blush:
 
S41 said:
No matter what you look at, if you are looking at a used boat, the previous owners have a lot more to do with how the boat is now as opposed to where it was made... "Dreaded Previous Owner" is a common term for a reason :blush:
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:iagree:
 
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I agree that it all about how the boat was maintained.
 
Some boats suffer neglect worse than others....
 
geoleo said:
is a crazy one ----in Florida at least--latest theme is "Hide the Hurricane Irma damage" second theme is "Liveaboard cheaply" it does not matter if its rotting and rusting away and is filthy--its floating now. Third is ":banghead::flowers::angel::thumb:Oh those pics are 10 years old "
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The amount of junk on the market is huge, and yes, the ways to attempt to hide the discrepancies has become amusing.

Be patient. Each time you view one of these "gems" you are learning what to look for and what to avoid. I cannot stress enough of being patient and take your time. With enough time you will find a decent boat.

The old boat market is on it's ass. It's a buyers market but you must remain firm and don't get tempted or fall in love with a certain boat.
 
geoleo said:
Thanks! But I need a single engine protected prop as my plans are to explore the shallow Forgotten Coast of the Gulf north from Clearwater to Carrabee next few years and will run aground a lot.
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That's part of our boating area. We sailed it for years in a five foot draft sailboat, where I considered a minimum of seven feet of water was necessary to feel comfortable.

We now have a four foot draft and twin props, and we still use the seven foot rule!

We keep a spare set of props on board, but if they never leave their storage spot, that 'd be just great!
 
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As someone else mentioned,before going to see a boat in theis size and price range, ask them to take some pictures for you of some area not shown in the listing, and while they are at it, some that are. A good long phone call with the broker while you are making that request sometimes helps too.

I like having a buyer's broker to do a lot of this vetting and screening. A good one is invaluable.
 
You can do just fine in the northern gulf with twins. I live in St Marks and kept my boats in Carrabelle for years. The whole no water thing is greatly overblown.

I've found it to be considerably shallower around fort Myers which is considered to be a prime cruising area.
 
caltexflanc said:
As someone else mentioned,before going to see a boat in theis size and price range, ask them to take some pictures for you of some area not shown in the listing, and while they are at it, some that are. A good long phone call with the broker while you are making that request sometimes helps too.
.
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I've asked for additional pics with varying responses. I've gotten the "Sure, no problem" and then never heard from them again. I've also had them try to argue with me "Oh, don't worry, it's really bristol".

Of course, those are signs to walk away. I've also had them insist I come see the boat, even after I've explained I'm a thousand miles away and would like to make the determination if the trip would even be worth it.

The last local boat I went to see had beautiful pics and the writeup was very well done. Made the call, set the appointment and showed up. While we were walking the dock to the boat I was told "Now you may see a few things that need taken care of, but the boat has "good bones". Uh oh....

The boat was a complete disaster. Neglected and filthy. He then admits the pictures were 8 years old. After 15 minutes I wanted off of the boat in fear it would sink while we were on it (yes, it was that bad).

Be prepared to kiss a bunch of toads out there.
 
CaptRonn said:
I've asked for additional pics with varying responses. I've gotten the "Sure, no problem" and then never heard from them again. I've also had them try to argue with me "Oh, don't worry, it's really bristol".

Of course, those are signs to walk away. I've also had them insist I come see the boat, even after I've explained I'm a thousand miles away and would like to make the determination if the trip would even be worth it.

The last local boat I went to see had beautiful pics and the writeup was very well done. Made the call, set the appointment and showed up. While we were walking the dock to the boat I was told "Now you may see a few things that need taken care of, but the boat has "good bones". Uh oh....

The boat was a complete disaster. Neglected and filthy. He then admits the pictures were 8 years old. After 15 minutes I wanted off of the boat in fear it would sink while we were on it (yes, it was that bad).

Be prepared to kiss a bunch of toads out there.
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Yep, you got to honor those yellow and red flags. When we were shopping for our old Hatteras, we lived in Dallas. We wanted to get a boat on the east coast or maybe the Great Lakes. By doing some due diligence, I found a couple of buyer's brokers to cover northern and southern geographies. I was very clear with them upfront that I was doing that, and if I ever went to see a boat on their recommendation and it was a mess (in many aspects) that didn't look like the pics they were responsible for (either getting new ones or validating those online), they were fired. What our "must haves" and standards were, was also made very clear.

I also bought them lunch and dinner and did the driving when we toured... also to send a message that I wasn't going to waste their time and money or shop recreationally. These were the kind of guys that knew someone to go look at the boat if it wasn't near them, or cajole the listing broker to get valid pics. (Both retired now, one fully and the other just does $2 milion plus boats).

We looked at a bunch of old 15-25+ year old Hatteras and not one was a waste of time.
 
Just a thought, with technology today, suggest to the broker to do FaceTime on the boat so that you can see real-time those things that are important to you, then decide if you make the trip . . . Their time or yours!
 
JimW said:
Just a thought, with technology today, suggest to the broker to do FaceTime on the boat so that you can see real-time those things that are important to you, then decide if you make the trip . . . Their time or yours!
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Good luck. I've found that many brokers won't answer text or emails, and when you call them you get a generic voice mail and no returns when leaving a message. So expecting a modern technology like FaceTime will be a real stretch.
 
IN my experience, brokers are like bankers, only open Mon thru Fri and only between 9am and 3pm. Saturday and Sunday is spent at the golf course, not the bank.......
 
It’s amazing to see folks that look at 40 year old boats and expect good condition and low prices. Boats made in Taiwan flooded the US market in the 70s and 80s. They sold at a lower price point. Many are still around. Guess what they need work!
 
Just finished another trawler looking trip 430 miles---- 2 days --- 3 boats--- same old ---same old. Seems a kind of perpetual rule that Trawlers are tough so let everything go to hell and its somehow OK Also -its a workboat so we don't need to keep it tidy and clean and ........"Lets load it up with stupid cutesy Kitsch so we dont even know where we are" get some curtains with lighthouse prints to match the stupid lamps with fake lighthouse bases....etc etc oh yes get some shower cutains with anchors printed on the plastic--------and some sheets with sea shells all over..........
 
geoleo said:
Just finished another trawler looking trip 430 miles---- 2 days --- 3 boats--- same old ---same old. Seems a kind of perpetual rule that Trawlers are tough so let everything go to hell and its somehow OK Also -its a workboat so we don't need to keep it tidy and clean and ........"Lets load it up with stupid cutesy Kitsch so we dont even know where we are" get some curtains with lighthouse prints to match the stupid lamps with fake lighthouse bases....etc etc oh yes get some shower cutains with anchors printed on the plastic--------and some sheets with sea shells all over..........
Click to expand...

But it has "good bones"..........:rolleyes:
 
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