31 prout good bad and ugly

[shane malone]

I was hoping to build but devorce has changed my $$$. Still not giving up on my dream of the Caribbean life. I have found a 1997 31 prout that is real cheep and close to home. The it was pulled and left on the hard for 8 years now, yanmar was in working order then, all the sails and rode where put in storage and apear to be in fare condition. The inside of the boat is a disaster!!!!!! all the windows have been leaking and the has basiclly sunk on the hard with ran water up to the floors. i know i have the skills to gut her out andd repare, BUT...... a refit to this magnitude would take me 2 years and my $25,000.00 budget.

My poblem I think it may be my only chance to have a catamaran. Or is it time to start looking at some monohulls insted.

If anyone had sailed on this 31 prout and could give me some insite on there exeriences i would appreciate some real world experience. Thanks!

[HappyMdRSailor]

Hey Shane,

Our resident comedian/degenerate/delivery skipper extraordinaire is a wealth of knowledge and has a Prout (35?) that went through some extensive refit procedures...

Cruisers & Sailing Forums - View Profile: atoll

[tybee22]

On a 1977 Prout that was full of water to floor boards and all compartments full of water. De-warered and dried out. Mold and mildew treatment then painted it. Lived on it while doing repairs for 2 1/2 yrs. Retired in May, sailed from Keys to Sarasota over a 3 wk period now getting ready to go back to Marathon. Not the fastest, won't point very well, but otherwise a comfortable safe ride. I really like mine and with the 2'7" draft a great shallow water crusier. Remember they were made for the English boating area so do well when the seas and winds get up. PM me if you have any questions.

[Sailorman Ed]

Shane - when I got my 34, both floors had already been glassed over but I still had to replace the port side. The plywood bottoms of 3 of 4 bulkheads were completely dry-rotted and a bit of a pain to remove the wood and reinsert new.

You said it has been on the hard for 8 years. Assuming dry rotted bulkheads, it is quite possible the hull has flexed some and the doors may not close properly (mine did not). Also check all the tabbing between the hull and the bulkheads. Original wiring was not tinned.

Like Tybee said, not the best sailing cat but they are rugged. Don't think twice about beaching one.

Not sure about the later 31 but most have water tanks in the keels. I cut an access port in the top and epoxied a PVC fitting in so I could check the water level. Also added a line to transfer from the port tank to the SB tank as you use most of the water in a galley.
Ed

[rbrentp]

My story is similar to Tybee. Replaced windows gotr her water tight and started on the rest. In last stages now of rebuild. Upgraded from an Iroquois 30 about to go on ebay.
If you have the mindset, the redo can be fun...mostly undoing crap from DPO. With bad trim, rigging, severe overloading and balance we got over 8 knots. Iroquois gets 14 before it starts to lift but drafts 18". It is all about trade offs. You cant get headroom on the bridgedeck with a 30 but with the right 30 ft cat you can get a lot more speed. Comfort is very personal. How do you want to spend your space dollars?

[svfraidknot]

i started out the same with my 42 solaris ,, my budget was 70,000 but i wanted a big boat to live on ,, you pay 25 and spend 25 ,, i paid 35 and spent 35 ,, i know what you mean by rough .. the guy i bought from had not done any maintenance in 2 years ,, i dont think he had carried out the trash in two years just what he could sink over rthe side ,, mine is for sale 25 wont get it today 45 would

[shane malone]

Thanks for the insite, ( all ). I made the plunge and got the Prout, it will offer the room and stable platform that i was looking for. The trade off of speed and not being able to point will have to be my trade off. Hoping to keep the refit under $25,000.00 in materials. With only $3750.00 purchase price and maby 2 years refit time on the hard im only all ready 5k over budget. After the holidays im going to start a new thread with pics of my project it should be a good time and rewarding too.

[onestepcsy37]

FWIW, our friends have a prout 39 that they had to do a couple of years of work on but it's so nice my wife lusts after it. twice the room of our very roomy 37' monohull. Also not the worlds greatest sailing boat but full time living aboard you spend 95% of your time at anchor anyway, so you should be happy at least 95% of your time...

[shane malone]

Correction on the year i made a typo 1989 but could not fix it after i mad the post.

[ZULU40]

Originally Posted by shane malone

Thanks for the insite, ( all ). I made the plunge and got the Prout, it will offer the room and stable platform that i was looking for. The trade off of speed and not being able to point will have to be my trade off. Hoping to keep the refit under $25,000.00 in materials. With only $3750.00 purchase price and maby 2 years refit time on the hard im only all ready 5k over budget. After the holidays im going to start a new thread with pics of my project it should be a good time and rewarding too.

hey good luck with this
its good to see that you have not left out the balance between what you get vs where you want to be.

with the depopulation of compact plastic cats from the market episodes like this will become more vital

[Sailorman Ed]

With only $3750.00 purchase price

Shane - did you buy this boat for only $3,750 ?? for an 89 model?

[shane malone]

The price yes, the year no it is a 1979. I that fat fingers with my phone lol. Thinking about moving it home to save on the yard fee, it is only about 8 miles from the house and I will not have truck tools back and forth.

[shane malone]

well first weekend at the yard to take all the stuff off the boat that was left behind. The yard foreman came out to tell me that the owner still owed for the last quarterwhich was $645.oo after arguing and showing receipts that the owner had paid through the first of the year. I decided to pay the bill and move the boat home. Having trouble posting the pics of the process, but she is home.

[Dulcesuenos]

Originally Posted by svfraidknot

i started out the same with my 42 solaris ,, my budget was 70,000 but i wanted a big boat to live on ,, you pay 25 and spend 25 ,, i paid 35 and spent 35 ,, i know what you mean by rough .. the guy i bought from had not done any maintenance in 2 years ,, i dont think he had carried out the trash in two years just what he could sink over rthe side ,, mine is for sale 25 wont get it today 45 would

You know several people, myself included reached out to you asking for some pictures and basic questions, and never heard back.

Sent from my LG-LS980 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[svfraidknot]

i actually ran an add here with pictures and more information on my boat in response to your inquiry ,, also have an add in the craigs list here in panama, if you are interested you can contact me direct at my yahoo address svfraidknot@ yahoo.com