Unrealistic Expectations?

[Diep]

Plenty of good comment above. I agree that truly cruise-ready and cosmetically perfect is pretty much a unicorn. Unless a boat has paid captain and crew all over it full-time, a big boat like that will very rarely be 10/10 in all categories. The amount of effort that entails is massive if the boat is getting any use at all.

Stepping back, and only since you asked: yes; I do think you need to adjust your expectations.

55-65 footers of the makes you mention list for what, $3m-$6m new? Then consider that in the first 5 years they don't seem to decline from list. (owing to the fact a buyer doesn't have to wait for a new build and gets the benefit of the extra 30% the original buyer sunk into outfitting)

You are trying to find a boat on the next rung down but expecting the price to have declined by 2/3. It does decline pretty dramatically from 5-20 years age but if you find a 2010 Flemming for $750k there are going to be mechanical AND cosmetic issues!

It doesn't hurt to keep looking but if you want a realistic shot at getting out on the water I think you would do well to adjust something of the the budget, age, size, condition expectation, or make/model.

Budget usually is a semi-fixed point. From there you have to decide how to balance the rest. Some people go smaller to stay newer and top condition. Some people look away from the top-tier makes. This board trends toward the active maintainer type and a lot of the boats are older. If you can DIY, you can keep the maintenance and improvement costs of an older boat better in hand.

Shopping for boats is fun so I recommend tempering your expectations and then get back at it with joy and enthusiasm! I hope you stick around and share your journey.

 

[psneeld]

Boats like many things in life...there are that upper and lower percent that you are either very lucky to get or you got had.

Not all, but way too many boats look great and may run great, but they are stock boats with few real cruising upgrades because the owner doesn't cruise and mostly sits at the dock. It gets polished nearly every weekend and rarely sees salt spray. They are probably mechanically sound too. But ten to one, you'll be looking at a premium asking price with a stubborn owner, plus have to add a bunch of $$$ to make it "cruise ready".

If you have the money and time to buy the pristine boat you love and make the wanted upgrades before you head out cruising you are a lucky soul.

I certainly have never been and don't know many that have. I have spent a lot of life on the water, had great boats, but never was in that enviable position to get nearly perfect boats.

 

[SteveK]

A boat like anything else is worth what a willing buyer is prepared to pay.
If you are selling then you hope that buyer wants to pay close to what you think it is worth.

 

[Delta Riverat]

Just get a good boat that you like and go from there. Don't sign up for the loop until you have some good hours on it and some good time. Gonna take you a couple weeks just to look through all the nooks and crannies and even longer if you find stuff there that needs (or wants) your attention.

Most of all, get a boat you like first. Working on something you like and want to make better is a lot easier than fixing stuff on a boat you don't like.

 

[long-cours.62]

"Never have seen a used boat that was cosmetically lacking but mechanically excellent"
I really hope your affirmation is not right ...Because if she is right we could be "little" scary when we see that ...full of nuclear weapons !
Le sous-marin nucléaire de classe Vanguard transportant des missiles balistiques intercontinentaux Trident II (D5) a pris l'allure d'un monstre marin après une mission prolongée.

 

[mydacha]

i bought my 2022 swift trawler 48 for 500k last year. 400h on engines, 800h on generator
48000btu air conditioners (in every cabin), two wc, two showers, watermaker, 11kW generators + solar, two windlass, Highfield 310 RIB, 4x 12inch raymarin axioms, radar, AR-cameras, 3d echosounder/fishfinder, Coppercoat, pair of cummins qsb 425hp, bow and stern thrusters. Everything is in mint conditions. For last 9 month NOTHING broken, nothing fails. 2500miles, 350 engine hours since purchase. I like my st48 much more that any similar size boat and it have absolutely no alternative per same price

 

[slowgoesit]

i bought my 2022 swift trawler 48 for 500k last year. 400h on engines, 800h on generator
48000btu air conditioners (in every cabin), two wc, two showers, watermaker, 11kW generators + solar, two windlass, Highfield 310 RIB, 4x 12inch raymarin axioms, radar, AR-cameras, 3d echosounder/fishfinder, Coppercoat, pair of cummins qsb 425hp, bow and stern thrusters. Everything is in mint conditions. For last 9 month NOTHING broken, nothing fails. 2500miles, 350 engine hours since purchase. I like my st48 much more that any similar size boat and it have absolutely no alternative per same price

NOW you went and done it . . . .

 

[Taras]

If you want a brand new boat, then buy a brand new boat and spend the millions to get it. There will always be maintenance required on a boat and there will always be a number of things that come up in a survey. This is boating....

 

[DDW]

A brand new boat will not be "cruise ready". You are better off with a slightly used one, from which the bugs have been shaken. Taking off with a brand new boat for Alaska, or anyplace where service yards are not readily at hand, is going to result in tears. A year later, a few months on board, and a few thousand miles, you are ready to go.

A cosmetically poor boat (but mechanically sound) is in my opinion a worse deal than vice versa. Cosmetics are very labor intensive and costly to restore. Mechanical faults easier and less costly to address. A proper repaint on a 40' is going to be pushing $80,000, a repower considerably less.

 

[PierreR]

Many older boats are painted with marine paint using the roll and tip method that blends/ feathers well. I sand, prep and prime the hull, the hired two guy to roll and tip the top coat the hull. One week my time and one day for the two guys, cost less then $3,000.00 out of pocket.

Like to know where you can do that for that price. I doubt I could buy the paint for $3,000. And I would be more like 4-5 weeks prep plus yard fees.

 

[PierreR]

A cosmetically poor boat (but mechanically sound) is in my opinion a worse deal than vice versa. Cosmetics are very labor intensive and costly to restore. Mechanical faults easier and less costly to address. A proper repaint on a 40' is going to be pushing $80,000, a repower considerably less.

I don't agree with this but cosmetic might be a different idea for you than me. Mechanical would include rotted structural hull components. Cosmetics is exterior paint and interior furnishings. Give me cosmetics over leaky fuel tanks, rotted stringers and a spaghetti wiring nightmares any day of the week.

 

[DDW]

Well, rotting structural hull components implies rot prone materials in the hull, and yes I would avoid that boat, in good or bad condition. Leaky fuel tanks it depends on access - not particularly hard, or scrap the boat - but pretty easy to see and make that decision. I'd rather rewire a boat than repaint it. But here you are talking mostly about design and original construction deficiencies which would be disqualifying, good or bad condition, for me. I'm talking about exterior paint and interior finish, vs repairing or replacing systems. Systems are localized, probably needed updating anyway, can be dealt with one at a time as budget and time allow.

 

[PierreR]

To me, wiring is an expensive labor intensive pain I would rather avoid. Part of the problem is I am no longer a spring chicken and I have extremely large hands. I have grown more fond of paint and cosmetics. Things easy to access.

 

[long-cours.62]

To me, wiring is an expensive labor intensive pain I would rather avoid. Part of the problem is I am no longer a spring chicken and I have extremely large hands. I have grown more fond of paint and cosmetics. Things easy to access.

You are right and by far !!
I can't imagine do a rewiring in our actual boat with hundred meter ( may be kilometer ?!) of wire. and to do that you must remove ALL inside compared to that do an external paint job will be a piece of cake.
Or remove one engine , only the engine will cost more than a paint job...

 

[Phil Fill]

Like to know where you can do that for that price. I doubt I could buy the paint for $3,000. And I would be more like 4-5 weeks prep plus yard fees.

I use Brightside at most marine stores. Every year I roll and tip areas tied to the dock. The coats are very thin so not much top coat paint is used. The primer is what covers and protects and the top coat is to make pretty. 90% of the work is preparing and prime.

 

[PierreR]

I use Brightside at most marine stores. Every year I roll and tip areas tied to the dock. The coats are very thin so not much top coat paint is used. The primer is what covers and protects and the top coat is to make pretty. 90% of the work is preparing and prime.

I use Sherwin Williams Industrial Marine Coatings Hi Solids two part Polyurethane. With a big discount I can get if for under $200 per gallon. I get 15-20 years
Brightside is a one part Alkyd Polyurethane and will lose gloss within two years. You can double that with adding a polyisocyanate cross linker like Magic Enamel Hardener available at TSC. Adding hardener to Brightside will also allow you to just sand instead of remove it if you want to go two part.