Need Professional Opinions, Please . . .

[kenny chaos]

The little woman & I (25 years married) are looking for something to cruise the Great Loop, Bahamas, maybe even down towards the Carribean. This boat seems to have an awful lot of room and ammenties for such a small boat. What concerns should I have?
Thanks-
Kenny
La Conner Yacht Sales (La Conner, WA)&

[skipmac]

1. It's made of wood.

2. Fairly small and not fast so will take a bit of planning and weather watching to get far down island.

[S/V Illusion]

Kenny
I would suggest you do just what the title implies - get a professional survey of the boat. There are far too many pseudo-experts here on the internet to mislead you.

[boatman61]

Hi Kenny...
Sweet looking little boat mate... nice one... if I've got it right 'The Great Loop' involves mainly inland waterways and the ICW.... if so I see no reason why it cannot be done....
Ok your not gonna plane but slow n steady wins the race..
As for it being wood.... you'll love it, good insulation.. hot or cold... sounds so much nicer when the water chuckles instead of bangs against the hull... you could even manage the Bahamas if you go sensibley...
Just don't load up on clothes you'll never wear.... its amazing how little you actually use
As suggested... get a good buyers surveyor... not the brokers recommendation

[kenny chaos]

Thanks for the replys.
I know some of the sayings about boats and money but does anyone seeing this particular boat being more of a money pit or too high maintenence?
I believe it's epoxy over wood if that means anything to ya's.
Thanks alot-
Kenny

[skipmac]

The ONLY way to know the condition and what to expect with a wood boat is to be an expert or pay one to survey it. Even if it's in perfect shape now a wood boat will require regular TLC to stay that way. Just a little neglect and you can end up with a pile of scrap. That's one reason why wood boats are usually much cheaper that glass.

[boatman61]

The bright side is there are 30+ yr old Wharram cats out there made of marine ply with a coupla layers of glass and epoxy still going strong... and a sailboats liable to a lot more varied stresses than a M/boat....
If its quaility ply or wood and epoxy and a pro B/yard build you should be ok... woods easier to fix in an emergency than glass.. hammer, ply and nails... bang bang bang.... been there done that...lol

[foggysail]

My comments are:

* I doubt they will even get $25K for it.......wood

* Maintenance nightmare....................wood

* SMALL!!!, NARROW BEAM!!!.................wood

* Little or no resale value......................wood

* Insurable???.............................wood

Is it a safe boat? Sure, maybe but so is my Avon 10RIB. My point on this is only that you will soon regret being in a small boat. Wifey and I endured years sailing weekends and sometimes weeks in a 30' Hunter with a 10'beam. I regret having kept that boat for 25 years only because it was too small and uncomfortable. We now own a 40' Silverton aftcabin.

I believe that you can do much better finding something larger that will provide greater comfort with far less mantenance requirements. Just my thoughts

Foggy

[kenny chaos]

I've already heard from several on that coast that it's a great boat. They all seem pretty tight out there. How do I find an unbiased surveyor?
Thanks-
Kenny

[Mike Vogdes]

Big fan of Devlin and his designs, I have built two of his boats over the years, the last one an 18' Garvey with a small removable cabin, has seen lots of cruising in the last 8 years along the Jersey shore and Chesapeake. Both of my boats are on his website if you are interested. The boat you are looking at I believe was build at Devlins yard and I'm sure its top notch, in any event as was already mentioned, a survey would be a good idea. Devlin uses top quality material and their workmanship is superior I would expect it will survey well. Would be a great loop boat for two.

[David M]

I think by definition you have to pay for a professional opinion...but we will let it slide.

[zeehag]

is BEAUTIFUL BOAT-- yes, is wood, but is epoxied??? there is a hogged colin archer of wood that was epoxied, here next to me-- never takes on any water-- so that takes care of that problem .. the rest-- get a goood surveyor , find out his recommendations, and go from there---goood luck--i have seen many trawlers doing the great loop when i was in gulf coast..good thing about wood---is repair-able with minimal disruption..LOL..

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by foggysail

My comments are:

* I doubt they will even get $25K for it

Wow, I didn't even notice the asking price. $52k for a 23 year old, 26' wood boat? Unless this is some kind of super-duper, cult status boat that price is pretty unrealistic.

[boatman61]

Actually I did not notice the price either... bit heavy... nope very heavy.... ouch

[O.C.Diver]

Not sure what you could actually buy the boat for, but here is a comparison of what $50K can buy you.

1976 Marine Trader Sedan Fly Bridge-Europa Power Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

I looked long and hard at this one. Looks to be in good shape. Lot of boat for the money.

Ted