Cheoy Lee Offshore 33' Ketch

[rb1685]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

You might want to read the current thread called "Peeling a hull" or something like that. It concerns a CFer who is, as we speak, doing a major peel job on his CL. It isn't pretty...

Another weak spot in many CLs is the wiring. It was inadequate from the factory, and how the many previous owners have dealt with this is important... ranges from big improvements down to perpetuating disasters.

The fact that the owner is willing to let her go so cheaply is a mild red flag to me as well, so do be careful... these boats, pretty as they are, can be a bottomless money pit and break your heart and your back.

Jim

Thank you Jim. I'm looking at a Westsail 32 on Saturday, and the Cheoy Lee is about half the price. I had to at least go see the CL before flying out to Cali.

[kellyp08]

Yes, Jim is right.

I forgot to mention the electrical problems. In my CL the wiring was not tinned and definitely not marine grade. Had one small electrical fire before extensive, expensive and tedious re-wiring job. And connection to shore power ended up eating my prop - which I replaced.

But she sure was a pretty boat.

[Steve1944]

I'm told to get under the sole yourself even if you have a surveyor. Prowl around in the bilge with a screwdriver and poke the wood to see if it's soft and moldy. See if there's any mold. Just see!


If you can't get around it yourself, what are you going to do out in the ocean without a surveyor? Later, you can inquire when they're with you regarding the specs for the keel bolts, the spars, etc. But, just to look, you should accept that what you see is what it is.

A pro boat maintenance captain guy sailed a schooner from Turkey to California with, what he described as '80% hull rot.' And, the owner enjoys that boat today. Sure, no insurance; and some fixing, little by little it's now 100% but the point was "Brig rum and don't sweat the little stuff. Like potentially sinking."


Kidding on the level,
S

[anacapaisland42]

I had a boat that was hurricane damaged, lost chainplates, mast overboard etc.
The wooden mast/boom survived with scratches despite having been bent and twisted. An aluminum mast would have been trashed.

[Krogensailor]

I had a 1971 33 CL. First one I saw belonged to a guy named Fred Oster. Good guy. His boat was immaculate. I fell in love on the spot. The teak deck's the varnished trim, the spars. Beautiful. We where hanging out at the base of Florida, National Park resort, Flamingo. We spent a season working there. As soon as I saw her come into the marina, I had to get one. First boat love was the H28. The 33 was like the 28 only more livable. That's the initial reaction. We found one the following year in the Annapolis area, Talisman II. Spent most of it's life int he carib, St John. So it was a seaworthy enough design to get there. We bought it and lived on it for a year+ Up and down the ICW 4 times. Kept it for 15 years. Had the soft fore deck. Kept my eye on it to see if it got worse. It never did. I was told that they used plywood on most , but some had mahogany planks, 1/2 x 3" fore and aft. Only electrical problems I had where in the engine room. Mine had the panel buried deep in the quarter berth. Well out of the wetness. Pain in the ass to get to. Went up the mast twice a year, more if in Fl. Sand my way down, go back up and apply the varnish. I liked it. I had the Volvo. Indestructible! It's only failing was that it had the goofey Dynastart system. A generator belted to the massive flywheel, that was a starter when you hit it with 12v, once the thing was running it turns in to a generator. That lasted 4 months. I repaired it half a dozen times, then threw it overboard. The volvo had a crank that I used for 10 years. I got good at it. Sort of like the morning meditation, think Zen. . Breath, settle, take the position, lift decompression levers. Get her rolling over at a good clip, hit the front lever, it would catch, hit the second, and away we'd go. Took me all of a minute if it was still warm. I put a Perkins Perama 30 in it. Pretty good engine. Weak link was the under sized tranny.. Sailed well too, if you had 15 knots of wind. Great keys and Bahamas boat. Would not take her too far offshore for too many consecutive days. Almost went down off cape Fear once. The whole packing gland spun the bolts off. Only time I let someone work on the boat and they almost killed us. 1/4" packing in a 3/16" space. If I had no intention of ever crossing an ocean, all else being well found, I'd buy her. Otherwise I'd do the Wetsnail. Allways wondered who has her and how the boat was these day's. We renamed her Esperance. Not regrets. Sold her for just about what I paid . Good luck. HMB if you want more thoughts.

[rb1685]

Originally Posted by Krogensailor

I had a 1971 33 CL. First one I saw belonged to a guy named Fred Oster. Good guy. His boat was immaculate. I fell in love on the spot. The teak deck's the varnished trim, the spars. Beautiful. We where hanging out at the base of Florida, National Park resort, Flamingo. We spent a season working there. As soon as I saw her come into the marina, I had to get one. First boat love was the H28. The 33 was like the 28 only more livable. That's the initial reaction. We found one the following year in the Annapolis area, Talisman II. Spent most of it's life int he carib, St John. So it was a seaworthy enough design to get there. We bought it and lived on it for a year+ Up and down the ICW 4 times. Kept it for 15 years. Had the soft fore deck. Kept my eye on it to see if it got worse. It never did. I was told that they used plywood on most , but some had mahogany planks, 1/2 x 3" fore and aft. Only electrical problems I had where in the engine room. Mine had the panel buried deep in the quarter berth. Well out of the wetness. Pain in the ass to get to. Went up the mast twice a year, more if in Fl. Sand my way down, go back up and apply the varnish. I liked it. I had the Volvo. Indestructible! It's only failing was that it had the goofey Dynastart system. A generator belted to the massive flywheel, that was a starter when you hit it with 12v, once the thing was running it turns in to a generator. That lasted 4 months. I repaired it half a dozen times, then threw it overboard. The volvo had a crank that I used for 10 years. I got good at it. Sort of like the morning meditation, think Zen. . Breath, settle, take the position, lift decompression levers. Get her rolling over at a good clip, hit the front lever, it would catch, hit the second, and away we'd go. Took me all of a minute if it was still warm. I put a Perkins Perama 30 in it. Pretty good engine. Weak link was the under sized tranny.. Sailed well too, if you had 15 knots of wind. Great keys and Bahamas boat. Would not take her too far offshore for too many consecutive days. Almost went down off cape Fear once. The whole packing gland spun the bolts off. Only time I let someone work on the boat and they almost killed us. 1/4" packing in a 3/16" space. If I had no intention of ever crossing an ocean, all else being well found, I'd buy her. Otherwise I'd do the Wetsnail. Allways wondered who has her and how the boat was these day's. We renamed her Esperance. Not regrets. Sold her for just about what I paid . Good luck. HMB if you want more thoughts.

Thanks for the great input! I guess with any boat, there are good ones and bad. They are very pretty boats. I can't wait to at least get a close look at this one. I'll post pictures if I get a chance.

[SBren754]

I've had a '71 Cheoy Lee Clipper 36' since 1998, and done a complete refit on her including stripping the wooden masts. The wood for the main/mizzen is usually spruce, of a very good grade. My mizzen had a little rot at the base and the main needed the spreader supports rebuilt. Both are deck-stepped spars. With the teak deck removed, you should check the plywood coring of the deck for leaks around the stays and the corners of the cabin top. Cheoy Lee wiring (if this is the original wire) is terrible. I re-wired and re-plumbed the entire boat. The hull is solid FRP, and should be cored with foam only at the gunwale. At a recent haul out,(after a lengthy period in the water), there were only a few superficial blisters. The survey should address the S/S chain plates, the bronze thru-hulls, and the wiring. I love my Cheoy Lee - she has given me few challenges and lots of great times. Good source of info on Cheoy Lee is the association website run by James McGarvey. Good Luck with your selection.

[rafikii]

Originally Posted by FSMike

Beware of teak decks with leaks.

I have an older Taiwan boat and had to replace all the tanks. Water ant fuel . The metal was poor quality. Major expense!

[rb1685]

Originally Posted by rafikii

I have an older Taiwan boat and had to replace all the tanks. Water ant fuel . The metal was poor quality. Major expense!

Yes most boats of this age will have tank problems. It'll be one thing that I look for this afternoon.

Any idea of what the tanks on this boat are made of?

[Randyonr3]

My only suggestion is that you take the boat out for a sail, My son had a 31 offshore and it wasnt the most impressive for its performance issues.

[appick]

From what I've heard you describe so far of the boat I think it'd be a no go if it were me. I'm the kind of guy that likes project boats and I get alot of enjoyment out of taking an ugly boat with good bones and bringing her back. If it hasn't been taken care of and the decks leaked bad enough to where they replaced them be sure and look at the bulkheads and stringers. Depending how long it's gone un-maintained the rig might be junk too. A year with no varnish in TX it might be able to be brought back. However I doubt its just been a year, and I doubt its the first time it's been let go too.

I think your far ahead of the game looking for something a over twice the cost of this boat that is sail ready, or at least needs cleaning paint varnish ect. Who knows though I could be way off on my guesstimation of the whole thing.

My back story is a friend's uncle had a Formosa 34 center cockpit teak deck Bob Perry design. They weren't a production boat but 20-30 were made. It'd been sitting for some years on the hard. I bought the boat for a great price knowing there were deck issues with it and the engine didn't run. A few summers and falls of trying to make the damned decks quit leaking and trying to keep the water out were a huge PIA. Once I was done gutting the interior because it was all wrecked I found the bulkheads were rotten along with the mast step. Blister issues all over the bottom too. I attempted fixes to the decks and mast step but kept seeing more and more gelcoat cracks appearing. After close inspection there were cracks all the way through the chopper gun fiberglass decks... That was the final nail in the coffin for me and that boat. I signed it over to the yard. They put it inside their shop awlgripped it, put in new bulkheads, removed teak decks, and sold here for a fair amount. Sure she looks good now but I know what condition the floor timbers were in, and I've seen the poor quality fiberglass work, that I'm sure they superficially patched.

It would've been ok for sunny day sailing, but no way I'd go cruising in it risking getting caught in some rough weather and getting the crap beat out of the boat for hours or days on end and trust it. With that at least the mast was aluminum.

[appick]

... Since my above experience I've vowed to only love an old boat that deserves my love. It's easy to find a boat with pretty lines that makes your heart and head swoon. Just make sure it was of a good build quality to start with, and that it can reward you with a good sailing experience when done (whatever that might be for you).

[rb1685]

Originally Posted by appick

... Since my above experience I've vowed to only love an old boat that deserves my love. It's easy to find a boat with pretty lines that makes your heart and head swoon. Just make sure it was of a good build quality to start with, and that it can reward you with a good sailing experience when done (whatever that might be for you).

Thanks for the advice! I think the teak decks were removed for less maintenance, not so much that there were issues. I could be wrong though. The upside is that this boat is loaded with goodies: Roller furling, manson supreme anchor on 5/16 chain, Lofrans windlass, and all other manner of cruising gear. It even comes with a new speargun!

But you're right - I cannot allow my heart to overcome the depths of my wallet.

[Scout 30]

Just because the boat could have significant problems doesn't mean it does have significant problems. Any boat of any age could have significant problems. Older boats where the problems have been addressed can be better deals than newer boats where the problems remain. And seriously, if the tanks need to be replaced after 40+ years how bad could they have been to start with? What builder these days guarantees anything for 40 years?

[Meriah2]

A friend of mine had a Choy Lee (about 1978 vintage) 33 Offshore Ketch and he had wooden masts. Other than keeping them Varnished/ Urethane or Sikkens Ctoled he had no problems with the Masts. But check them well. It had a Volvo 3 cyl, 33 hp engine and full keel. Due to the long keel it tracked well, but did not point as well as my Catalina 34 (1990) with a fin keel. He did have blister issues when he purchased it, but did the repairs himself and had no further problems. (This was probably the hull "moisture problem you referred to.) Having less beam than my C-34 it handled the seas well. The only short side is the accommodations are tight, but for two people and the occasional visitor, they are fine.