Cheaply buying a derelict boat in French-Polynesia?

[Fore and Aft]

GlassBottle I like this great Dane 28 below. I think the price is a bit steep, but she has possibilities.
Cheers

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace...1-825673822772

[SomeGuyInaShirt]

There's a reason these old boats get to a bad state, it costs more than they are worth to fix them. I put a ton of money into my cheap boat that I'll never get back of I sold it, dont be like me. Also, not sure about French Polynesia specifically but I've read dealing with French authorities is very difficult so obtaining the required parts is likely to be a big hassle. You could look into it further but I highly recommend you buy a used boat in already good condition as you'll be paying pennies on the dollar and getting something somebody cared for rather than cleaning up someone else's mess. Not sure about your cruising plans but better deals can be had. I have a buddy who bought a 25 foot Pacific Seacraft for $4000 USD and after a paint job and new rigging is a great little cruiser. Last time I saw him he was out in a gale having a blast, be like him!

Just curious, why would you want a 20' boat? That's a tub toy, unless you're extremely short and hell-bent on being single...why?

[SomeGuyInaShirt]

Just realized you are in France. I think you are in the best region of the world for finding a quality, well-designed small cruising sailboat for a relatively low price. Have you searched locally? Have you sailed much? You might want to try sailing on several boat before you buy, get a feeling for what you like. :-)

[Marathon1150]

Originally Posted by TrentePieds

So what are you gonna do in FP? Are you just gonna hang out in Papeete? Or are you planning to visit sundry islands in the boat?

If you are gonna hang out, are you gonna get accommodation ashore, or are you gonna live aboard? In the latter case I take it from your comment about marinas that you are hoping to keep the boat on the hook. Are you certain that you have the knowledge to do that safely? And how are you gonna get from boat to shore and back again?

Strikes me that you have a whole lotta more thinking to do before you are anywhere near being able to realize your dream!

Bonne chance :-)!

TrentePieds

Related to the comment re hanging on a hook, the number of anchorages available to do this within the main island groups of FP are dwindling. We kept our boat in Marina Taina (Papeete) for several years and watched as the number of "anchoring" spots as opposed to mooring balls, dwindled precipitously. And the number of mooring balls is very, very limited in popular spots. Ditto on Moorea, Bora Bora, Huahine etc. There are numerous articles on this issue in cruising magazines and on the net.

And as noted by others, a derelict boat, even with some spit and polish, might not be suitable for a crossing between island groups to a spot that may or may not be more welcoming of foreign sailors and their boats.

[OneBoatman]

I'm not sure this forum was meant for anything hypothetical. Just realize in advance, you are not going to save any money by going to a remote island and attempting to restore what others have abandoned. While the people there would likely be pleased that you are willing to take trash off their beaches and out of their harbors, they no doubt will come after you if end up doing what the previous owners did. The decide if you are seeking any particular place with supply chain issues.

[quartersplash]

Many free in Ft Myers, Florida!

Originally Posted by GlassBottle

I'm not, could you give me a ballpark of what a floatable (unbroken hull and mast) backyard-sailboat would cost?

[GrowleyMonster]

let's do the hypothetical math. You buy a boat for USD$1k. You put $5k into the boat over the first year of ownership, along with about 1000 hours of your time. You end up with a boat that you can easily sell for $1 to $1k, somewhere in that range. Along the way you have a boat with undependable engine and rigging, spongy decks, leaks above and below, and boy isn't this just so much FUN? Or buy a boat for $5k, put $2k into it in the first year along with 500 hours of your time for maintenance and fit-out, and end up with a boat that you can maybe sell for $3k any day of the week. Maybe.

The very cheapest boat is one that someone pays you to haul away. Next cheapest is the one you get for free. Then there are the $1k class. These are going to cost you, relative to your initial investment, a huge sum of money to make safe and comfortable and efficient sailers. The rate of return should you decide to sell can be pretty bad.

It is POSSIBLE to find a true gem in the rough, for chimp change. You really have to know what you are looking at, though, and be capable of working on every system on the boat, including the engine, electrical, electronics, rigging, hull, all of that. The thing is, when a boat has depreciated a certain amount it usually ends up being owned by someone looking only for a cheap boat, and that person usually won't do normal stuff like change zincs, renew bottom paint, keep deck rot under control, or renew stainless steel rigging even when it looks like it is still good for ANOTHER 40 years. The more stuff gets deferred, the more more stuff gets deferred. It is a slippery slope to derelict-hood. I can only imagine how the process can accelerate in a place with supply and shipping issues.

Now I am not saying your plan is terrible. There is actually some logic in it, mostly if you plan to remain in FP for several months to a few years or more. Don't be hasty about whipping out the checkbook on the first $500 boat you see that still floats and has a mast and a sail or two. Get familiar with the local yaching scene, Become known. Crew for others, and learn stuff. Offer your labor for free. Keep your ear to the ground and be ready with funds when someone puts you onto a deal that actually IS a good deal, that you know to be so, from your new knowledge and experience.

Be mindful of the fact that you, as the owner of record, will be responsible for any derelict boat you leave behind. You will have to be able to at least pay someone to take it off your hands, if you should ever leave FP for good.

In crewing for others, you might find that you enjoy the sailing, without the responsibility of ownership, enough to forego buying a boat or even accepting a free one. If you will ever be returning to France, I would wait and buy something there, either a trailerable boat that will keep you from having to pay for slip or mooring, or something of meaningful size that you could live aboard comfortably with maybe one other person, should you decide that you don't really need a house or apartment. Boats cost so much that you really need to do what you can to reduce their negative economic impact on your life.

[spiritsailor]

I agree that you should come to the usa. In Florida we have many boat for sale due to Hurrican IAN with some damage for a 2-3 thousand dollars. Or, you can buy my friends 27 C & C which is in excellent condition for $10,000. The C & C boats are very well bilt. then you could sail south from Punta Gorda along coast to key west, from there you can island hop to the French West Indies where it is really very expensive. So you sail to a less expensive British or Dutch island.

[WERABLE2]

Just picking up on this idea, intriguing for sure, better read rest of posts first , but it's intriguing enough already.

[doog]

I spent half my life building a 37 foot live-aboard boat with self sufficient systems and a good reliable engine counting on moorage to allow parking and work in the local area, wherever it may be. And Moorage (slips, not anchor out) has in the last few years more than doubled in cost going from 20K for purchase of a 40 foot space now to 50K plus and my little marina just evicted the handful of law abiding live-aboards who are viewed as white trash by the multi-millionaire owners. First they abused us with accusations of derelict vessels and then offered a small move out payment, while doubling the rates in violation of rent control laws. And we called the lawyers and they ask, who is your case against? And when we tell them they all say, "Cant help you." (these guys already own the lawyers and likely the judges as well) So I continue to be thankful that I own a boat and am 90% self sufficient and Im not convinced that the waterways of the pacific northwest have noplace to accommodate me...And dock sharing among private waterfront owners may become the answer. This option could upset the monopoly game and reverse the abusive trend in marina exploitation just the way Uber and Lyft have put the taxi outfits out of business with ride-sharing. And this is my future. I beat the bushes and found a waterfront homeowner who wants my tenancy in his private dock and its just the beginning of what could be the greatest shift since the ADU allowing campers and RVs to be parked in private residential neighborhoods, and the legalization of the tiny house.

[CdS2 Roland]

Hello,
Foget it. If you could get one, you can be sure they will ask you to quit.
In French Polinesia they claim about all these abandoned boats. But if you go around the islands you will se thousands, perhaps thousands, of wrecked cars sitting in their gardens...
Sesrch the error.

[jipcho]

I sailed to Tahiti from Galapagos via the Marquesas and Tuamotus. I was solo, and when I spotted Pointe Venus, I breathed a sigh of relief. I was tipped off by other cruising sailors as to the existence of the Yacht Club de Tahiti, in Arue. I anchored there near a handful of other sailboats, none of which were derelict. Checking into the yacht club was a simple procedure, and the cost was much less than the Marina Taina or the Papeete Marina. I stayed a couple of weeks, moving to anchor off the Taina Marina for a couple of nights before sailing on to Moorea and beyond. I didn't see any derelict boats. I think you may have more luck finding abandoned and derelict vessels in either Hiva Oa in the Marquesas or Raiatea in the Society Islands.

[off-piste]

Originally Posted by GlassBottle

I hear French-Polynesia and Tahiti in particular is struggling with abandoned boats litterling the coast and marinas. While this sucks, do you expect I could take advantage of this and buy a cheap old 20 footer for a few hundred bucks?
Apparently keeping them in the marinas costs more than theyre worth.
And what kind of paperwork would one need? Assuming theyre registered, is there anything more someone needs than hard cash and a handshake from the owner? Thanks

Gear is hard to come by in the south pacific. and it's more expensive. where do you plan to refit a "derelict" boat?

[SpiritofGlenans]

Originally Posted by GlassBottle

I am in fact very willing to live on anchor, self-reliance is my jam.
Think my best bet to find something would be to simply ask around marinas, anchorings etc if they got something they want to get rid off?
Finding something filthy but in decent shape for cheap sounds a lot better and safer than dragging something out of the water haha, thanks for replies.

Sailing a boat, or even just being on one can potentially put your life i danger. You should take two or three sailing courses with Les Glenans, at one of their five bases in Brittainy, so as to learn how to sail safely :


https://www.glenans.asso.fr/


https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2...ailingholidays


while also doing some volunteering with them, so that you might learn something about the techniques of boat maintenance.

[cody1000]

Against all advice and experience, i have found a "derelict" 42' and would like help when i get to Moorea, to get oriented with phone, transport, etc AND to help repair the floating wonder. advance work has guaranteed a slip in a marina until she is sailable. anybody like to restore old classics? or just to check rigging and sails while others clean, repair and do woodwork.