83 Monk 36

[MOTIF 1]

New member, David, of MOTIF 1. I hope everyone is having Happy Holidays. We are preparing to sign the papers on the purchase of our first trawler. A 83 Monk 36. The boat appears to be in good shape overall. The owner has addressed many issues in his survey. I have one concern that I have posted in this thread. The issue at the top of the page, concerning moisture readings and poor soundings, indicating possible delamination. Can anyone lend some explanation on this issue. I know we will have things to repair and issues to deal with, I would like to minimize the extent. Thank you for any assistance

 

[Bmarler]

I don’t know if this is the best place toget traffic on this subject, but I would say to be very careful with this.
Wet core and rotten core are two different things, but wet leads to rot. If the core is already flexing, you have issues.
This repair is properly done by cutting the top layer of the deck off, and replacing the core material, then replacing the top layer and blending the non skid. If there are teak decks on top it’s an even bigger problem.
A serious diy person can handle this, but hiring it done will cost big money.
Many experienced buyers would pass on this boat due to the moisture intrusion problems. As the very least, get a second opinion from an experienced local.

 

[mmullins]

I would pass. There are plenty of Monk 36's out there. The money you've invested so far (survey, haul out) is nothing compared to what you might face in repairs. Look at the money already spent as tuition and keep looking, armed with what you've learned. FYI, Monks construction moved from Taiwan to Nova Scotia in 1991. While I'm not a Monk expert but, I would look at the Canadian built boats over the Taiwanese boats.

 

[Shrew]

I don't think you're going to find an early 80's Taiwan Trawler WITHOUT soft decks, unless the PO has already had all the core repaired already.

Wire nuts and electrical tape. You are going to be chasing DIY gremlins on that boat for quite a while. If that is the level of DIY things that were found in the open, then suspect everything else that you can't see as well.

I would use this survey as a learning experience and try to eliminate this type of stuff yourself on the walkthrough before you have the next boat surveyed.

 

[PhilPB]

You have "done" notated next to some of the concerning items. Were those corrected after the findings? If so, either ask for proof of repair or possibly get the surveyor to come back and reassess. If fixed correctly it may not be a bad purchase.

 

[mmullins]

I don't know what the final agreed upon price was, but the Facebook asking price was 110k. Playing devil's advocate, there's a 2001 Monk 36 in Annapolis, MD for 129k. You could buy that boat at asking price and have a captain deliver it to NC (if you didn't want to do the trip yourself) for less than the purchase and repair costs of the 1983.

 

[Comodave]

I don't know what the final agreed upon price was, but the Facebook asking price was 110k. Playing devil's advocate, there's a 2001 Monk 36 in Annapolis, MD for 129k. You could buy that boat at asking price and have a captain deliver it to NC (if you didn't want to do the trip yourself) for less than the purchase and repair costs of the 1983.

That may be really good advice. Repairing a wet core will be very expensive, like $20K plus if you have it done. You could probably do it yourself for about 4 to $5K in materials. But it is hard physical work, not to difficult technically.