Buy an old boat or an X Charter boat in the BVI

[Guest2013a]

What do you think of buying an old boat? I am in Portland Oregon and some boats for sale go back into the sixties. Some boat ads don't even show the year it was built and you have to dig into it to find out.

Unless the boat has had a complete upgrade all the wiring and plumbing will be thirty or forty years old. I know how it is on old houses and old cars where every bolt and every screw is a major problem just to get it out.

I am looking at buying an X charter boat in the British Virgin Islands. A 2007 50 foot Beneteau Oceanis M500 asking price is $119k. In Oregon you can get a 30 or 40 year old boat for that money.

The charter boats have 3 or 4 cabins each with a head but thats not a problem with me. There is the cost of flying to the BVI and sailing home but I might as well stay down there in the Islands and play for a while.

It just doesn't make sense to pay the same money for a 40 or even 50 year old boat.

[Auzzee]

Hi. It is a truism that you get what you pay for. A Beneteau Oceanis, from 2007, at $119k is indeed a tempting buy and would appear to be under priced by a huge margin if the boat is in fair condition.

The only boat which comes close that I can find on the web is coincidentally also for sale in the BVI and is the same price. I guess it may be the same craft. It is however 24 years old. Even so, the price is reasonable for such a boat as long as it is in fair condition.

A 50' Benny is a lot of boat. The usual checks on rig and sails, hull and deck integrity, deck hardware, engine, water, electrical systems, hydraulics and nav gear need to be carried out bearing in mind that this particular boat has not been subject to a charter fleet maintenance regime for 20 years.

Either way it seems you are on the path toward a future afloat. Best of luck and please keep us posted on your progress.

[duckwheat]

What do you want to do with the boat? Is it 50' or nothing?

There is not a 40 year old boat afloat in Portland that has not had continuous maintenance and upgrades. It would not a be afloat. If it was still afloat, you would not want to step onboard.

I have chartered in the BVI's twice. You could not give me some of those boats. Auzee, looks death in the eye and laughs, that is why he sails a Beneteau. That is a joke Auzee, just so you know and don't get your hackles up.

We were recently In the PNW market for a boat to cruise with. I subscribe to the theory that the cost to keep a larger boat is exponential, not linear. We looked at a nice Pretorian 35 for $76,000. There are a lot of them going around the world. WE ended up with 1990 35' Island Packet out of Anacortes, for less than what you are talking about. It came with all the gear, 2 dingys, $2,800 worth of Yanmar spare parts, Offshore harness and lines, galley gear, and a new bow thruster, all for less what you are talking about. The boat was owned by people who could afford to maintain it, and they did.

If you are going to stay on the Columbia River and away from the Bar, buy a Mac 25 and go sail. If you are going to go somewhere, get a decent boat. They are out there.

DW, Ballard, WA

[Guest2013a]

I want to cruise the Bahamas and the Virgin Islands so a boat on the east coast is worth about $4000 dollars more to me because that's about what it costs to go through the Panama canal.

Rio Dulce looks like fun.

[duckwheat]

Are you going to live aboard in the Caribbean? If not how many weeks a year on the Boat?

DW

[Guest2013a]

Originally Posted by duckwheat

Are you going to live aboard in the Caribbean? If not how many weeks a year on the Boat?

DW

I plan on living aboard starting in the Caribbean and then after that gets boring go south. I would like to go to the Falkland Islands and then go around the horn. That's like the Mount Everest of sailing. I don't have a job.

[duckwheat]

When do you think you will wake up?

If the $4,000 for the Panama canal has you perplexed, you have not even considered the equation.

DW

[Guest2013a]

Originally Posted by duckwheat

When do you think you will wake up?

If the $4,000 for the Panama canal has you perplexed, you have not even considered the equation.

DW

Touche ouch you are starting to get nasty have you been taking all your meds?

[redbopeep]

Hi there.

If you're in the PNW, you're in a great place to find a good boat and start your trip from there. If not working, you can go anywhere for your boat purchase. Consider the nearby places where cruising boats have been stored and cruising dreams have died.

Are you already a sailor? If not, going the "wrong way" around Cape Horn seems a bit much. You could vacate the Caribbean once bored, via the Panama Canal and explore the Pacific before deciding you need to round Cape Horn you know. All winds blow from the Caribbean islands TO the Panama Canal. Good reason to go E to W there.

Fair winds,

[Guest2013a]

Originally Posted by redbopeep

Hi there.

If you're in the PNW, you're in a great place to find a good boat and start your trip from there. If not working, you can go anywhere for your boat purchase. Consider the nearby places where cruising boats have been stored and cruising dreams have died.

Are you already a sailor? If not, going the "wrong way" around Cape Horn seems a bit much. You could vacate the Caribbean once bored, via the Panama Canal and explore the Pacific before deciding you need to round Cape Horn you know. All winds blow from the Caribbean islands TO the Panama Canal. Good reason to go E to W there.

Fair winds,

Have you crossed the cape horn?

[redbopeep]

Nope.

[Guest2013a]

Originally Posted by redbopeep

Nope.

Are you still sailing the pre-war wood boat that you wrote about? To sail what you call the wrong way around the cape you need a boat that points good to the wind. Does your boat sail good windward?

[Guest2013a]

Here is a wood boat that will make you smile.
Classic Sailboat - Kettenburg 38


It almost looks like a toy.

This boat will turn heads at any dock.

[Auzzee]

Love the classics. The Kettenburg looks as though it could have come from the same mould as mine. Although mine is dutch built in steel.
Cruiser Log World Cruising & Sailing Forums - Auzzee's Album: Sandettie - Picture

[Guest2013a]

Originally Posted by Auzzee

Love the classics. The Kettenburg looks as though it could have come from the same mould as mine. Although mine is dutch built in steel.
Cruiser Log World Cruising & Sailing Forums - Auzzee's Album: Sandettie - Picture

Sandettie is beautiful the Dutch really know how to work steel. The wood boat is nice and that Kettenburg is supposed to be sheathed in epoxy but you just can't beat a properly made steel hull.

Whats the specs on your boat it looks like a wider beam than the eight foot wide Kettenburg?

[redbopeep]

Originally Posted by DWhylton

Are you still sailing the pre-war wood boat that you wrote about? To sail what you call the wrong way around the cape you need a boat that points good to the wind. Does your boat sail good windward?

Yes, and yes she sails wonderfully to windward. Fine entry, cutaway forekeel, and much less windage than today's cruising boats. The particular boat was built for cruising, btw.

PS--the Kettenburg boats are lightly built and wonderful for racing. Not the best in terms of space/weight capacity for cruising but certainly a pretty boat. They were built in San Diego and there's a very experienced boatwright there at Koeler Kraft with experience restoring or modifying them for additional racing.

[Auzzee]

Originally Posted by DWhylton

Sandettie is beautiful the Dutch really know how to work steel. The wood boat is nice and that Kettenburg is supposed to be sheathed in epoxy but you just can't beat a properly made steel hull.

Whats the specs on your boat it looks like a wider beam than the eight foot wide Kettenburg?

37'6" LOD, 11'6" across the beam and with a moulded depth amidships of 9'6". Built in 1963, she sailed in several Fastnet races before the owner was transferred to Malta by the UK Government. There, he devised the Middle Sea Challenge. She won one, placed in a further five out of a total 14 starts.

She flies with one rail awash and that make me grin like an idiot.

[Guest2013a]

[QUOTE=Auzzee;39622]37'6" LOD, 11'6" across the beam and with a moulded depth amidships of 9'6". Built in 1963, she sailed in several Fastnet races before the owner was transferred to Malta by the UK Government. There, he devised the Middle Sea Challenge. She won one, placed in a further five out of a total 14 starts.

She flies with one rail awash and that make me grin like an idiot.[/QUOTE

The info I am reading says a racing boat like yours should point between 30 to 40 degrees from the wind direction. A cruising boat might only get between 40 and 50 degrees from the wind direction.

Along the Oregon coast the wind is dominate blowing south along the coast so sailing north you need to go west first and then take a right.

[Auzzee]

After I spend some time in the Sea of Cortez and south along the coast of the isthmus to some of the South American countries, I will once again sally forth across the big blue. The likelihood of sailing in the Pacific Northwest is remote indeed.

However, as a lifelong lover of the motorcycling lifestyle, it is my firm intention to ride from Seattle to San Diego within the next 12 months. So many friends and aquaintances, have given me to believe it is a wonderful trip.

I often wonder what I would do if the god of having a load of fun, presented me with a choice between riding and sailing. I honestly don't know which I would ultimately choose. Thankfully, for the moment I am able to indulge myself in both pursuits.

[capta]

An ex-bareboat can be a very bad purchase. There are innumerable things which could be wrong that even the best surveyor cannot detect. Bareboat fleet operators may have mediocre mechanics, electricians and riggers, but their cosmetic glass repair people are some of the best in the industry. I have seen and heard of people who have gotten into ex-bareboats only to end up with a vessel that is absolutely worthless after serious faults were found.
There are, on the other hand numerous cruising boats here in the Caribbean, that for one reason or another, are for sale at an extremely reasonable price that have never been bareboats. Perhaps the owner ran out of money, couldn't afford a new motor, had a death in the family, became ill themselves or their partner just didn't like sailing.
However, if it is your intention to use the boat in the PNW, the voyage from the Caribbean to the PNW is not for the faint of heart. I would not do that delivery for less than 20 or 25 grand, ALL expenses on top of that figure.
Many of us are cruising 20 to 30 year old quality boats. Of course there are maintenance issues, but that will not necessarily be untrue of a more modern, lower quality vessel.
I suggest you look through a Caribbean Compass, our local monthly newspaper, and check out what's available here.
Good luck with whatever path you choose.