Definitive Guide to Boats?

[anjou]

Thanks to Joli and James S for their links to boats for sale, ive hit a rich seam of possibles.
A motley bunch of variety, some good, some bad and some ugly.

How do I begin to sort wheat from chaff when they are on the US (east coast) and Carib side of the pond? One is on Lake Texoma, Texas One is even in Venezuela.

I have noticed that the Carib ones are cheaper than mainland US and ive compiled a shortlist based on size, condition and price.

Unfortunately, one of the broker sites isnt as informative as it should be and I have no experience in these boats.

Is there a definative guide to different types of boats and my list includes

Gulfstar 41 CC
http://www.boats.com/boat-details/Gulfstar-Center-Cockpit/10855881
Feeling 1040 BREIZHKISS
Newport 30 mk2 1982 Capital Yachts 30 sloop - Tremendous Value!
Bruce Roberts 43 steel Sailyacht Bruce Roberts 43 ft Steel
Hunter 33
1980 Hunter 33 - Needs a little TLC - Good Price!


plus one or two more possibles


The Gulfstar is on Lake Texoma but she looks like a lot of boat for the money and some sweat equity but shes miles inland. How do I go about finding out if she can be moved to sea by river?

[sailvayu]

I would recommend you hire a surveyor or someone to help you with this. Your boat selections are all over the place. It is clear you do not really know what you want or why? If your this scattered in your search I get the feeling you need to have some better definition of what you are looking for. About all these boats have in common is the are sailboats. I am not trying to be critical here but I would hate to see you spend your money and then find it was not the boat really wanted. Get some unbiased help A professional who can answer your questions and help you figure out what you really want and why.

Good Luck

[James S]

Can't help with the "definitive guide" but as far as the Gulfstar....can you inquire to the ad?
As for the others...perhaps someone in the area will offer to have a look for you or, given the breadth of this forum, may have some first hand knowledge.

[Ocean Girl]

Anjou, before taking the big plane ride over I will be glad to check out any Clear Lake to Texoma boats you may find. Is it the downeaster?
You may already have this but the boat calc will give you some stats to compare production boats. Also, you can purchase a boat review from practical sailor which can be fairly accurate.
So glad to hear you are searching for a boat, so many great ones out there. Let me know what design you decide to buy and I will keep an eye out for it.
Happy boat hunting!
Erika

[Ocean Girl]

Sorry missed the list of boats! The gulfstar would need to be shipped, no river to the gulf that could handle that boat. I like gulfstars, very nice live aboard and strong. The big question on that boat is rot, those ports tend to be prone to leaking. The newport and hunter...well I wouldn't fly that far for those two. There is a Downeaster in the next marina that has sat for a while, IMO it hasn't sold because it is a schooner rig .
Cheers,
Erika

[anjou]

Originally Posted by sailvayu

I would recommend you hire a surveyor or someone to help you with this. Your boat selections are all over the place. It is clear you do not really know what you want or why? If your this scattered in your search I get the feeling you need to have some better definition of what you are looking for. About all these boats have in common is the are sailboats. I am not trying to be critical here but I would hate to see you spend your money and then find it was not the boat really wanted. Get some unbiased help A professional who can answer your questions and help you figure out what you really want and why.

Good Luck

Critical is good, its common sense as I do sometimes have a scattergun way but only because im starting from scratch. Once I get the scent, Im on the trail.

Thanks for your kind offer Erica. I was looking at these in the early hours and my eyes didnt see on my map that Texoma isnt available by river.
Do you have a link to the Downeaster?


Having looked again and done more research im not sure the Hunter and Newport are that special.
The only other one thats realy impresed me is the Feeling 1040.
Its a bit more than I wanted to pay but in the medium term, the maintenence should be less.

[bloodhunter]

Anjou,
My wife and I would be happy to look at any boats you come up with in our area. My wife is particularly good on liveability. As for a definitive guide, I suspect you would get almost as many different opinions as theer are members in the forums.
It also depends on what you plan to do with the boat. For example, if you plan blue-water cruising you could do far worse than a Bruce Roberts steel hull ketch. Never even heard of Feeling boats until seeing it on your posting.
In any case, you might do a search for owners groups for those boats or a search of this and other sailing forums to get a better idea of the good and bad points of what you're looking at.
Actually we went through a similar process before buying our British-registered boat lying in Antigua. We took a trip down to look at the boat and do preliminary inspection and talk to local folks about it before having a survey done. You can eliminate a lot of boats just by looking at them.
We were fortunate in that we didn't have any oceans to cross so we could sail her back. Two things we found -- if you need parts they are far more expensive in the islands than in the states and they take forever to arrive. Labor is much cheaper though.
Also the process of re-documenting Enchantress in the U.S. was extremely complicated involving an enormous amount of paperwork. We were going to do it ourselves but after one look we hired a company to do it. Cost a few hundred dollars but to us it was worth it (I don't do well with paperwork).
Anyway good luck on your search

[denverd0n]

First the short answer to your question: No, there is no definitive guide. Mainly because there are too many different ways to use a boat, and too many different opinions about what makes a boat good.

I think the real question here is, what do you expect to do with this boat? Are you looking for something to sail around the world? Coastal sailing around the Caribbean or the Med? Maybe I missed it, but where are you currently located? What is your budget? How many people do you expect to be aboard regularly? Liveaboard? Have on-board occassionally?

Once you have the answers to questions like these firmly in mind, certain types of boats will be immediately eliminated from consideration, while others will immediately jump to the top of the list.

[anjou]

Originally Posted by bloodhunter

Anjou,
My wife and I would be happy to look at any boats you come up with in our area.

Thank you folks.

[anjou]

Originally Posted by denverd0n

First the short answer to your question: No, there is no definitive guide. Mainly because there are too many different ways to use a boat, and too many different opinions about what makes a boat good.

I think the real question here is, what do you expect to do with this boat? Are you looking for something to sail around the world? Coastal sailing around the Caribbean or the Med? Maybe I missed it, but where are you currently located? What is your budget? How many people do you expect to be aboard regularly? Liveaboard? Have on-board occassionally?

Once you have the answers to questions like these firmly in mind, certain types of boats will be immediately eliminated from consideration, while others will immediately jump to the top of the list.

Im not looking for a comparason of boats, but a buyers guide.
Something along the lines of a car buyers manual which tells you if the transmission fails prematurely or where the rust takes hold. All cars have their traits, im sure boats do too.
Example, ...Formosa 31, 41, 51 etc have steel tanks, rusty chainplate bolts and rotten decks

Im looking for a boat to live aboard and coastal sail. Not planning to have large parties aboard, just intimate social gatherings.
Important details include the obvious good seaworthy ability, enough room not to get cabin fever, hot and cold running water, a fully functioning but simple bathroom and kitchen.

[sandy daugherty]

Practical Sailor has published two telephone-boof sized collections of their reviews of a range of sailboats. These are cricial reviews by a magazine that does not accept advertising, but not everyone agrees with the authors. I find that the consistancy of their reviews are helpful in comparing brands of boats, and that after reading them for years I can compensate their biases with my own and feel pretty comfortable with the results. Yes, they do say when decks get soft or hatches leak. Thats why I like them. But there is no definitive gouge. Boats aren't built on production lines pumping out precise clones. With the possible exception of Beneteau, No two consecutive production boats are identical. Suppliers change, patterns change, and the weather changes. Once out the door, its anyone's guess what happens from then until the day you loook at it.

There may be some secret Marine Surveyor's web site that says look out for broken keel bolts on such and such, but its a closely held secret if there is.

The answer? If you want a Surveyor's knowlege about a particular boat, hire a particular Surveyor! That alone will give you bargaining power, and to some degree legal recourse if and when.

[anjou]

Thanks Sandy
The surveyor is the final line in the sand but Im not able to drive down the road and see for myself so I need a little more to go one before I involve the surveyor.

[hugosalt]

The Practical Sailor books are a good reference...at least they
will give you specs, tankage, years in production, motor info and
layout diagrams and then some...in the end you have to identify
what works for you...but especially if this boat is not going to be a long term boat for you...what the depreciation will be and ease
of sale when time comes.

[sailorboy1]

I wouldn't believe any of the magnazine type boat reviews. They tend to be just general stuff that for the most you could figure out just by looking at the photos of the ad. To me the ONLY real info on a model is owners. Once you find a model you like you need to start looking for owners associations and look for owner info. But the problem is that some boats you just can not find any real info on.

[MJWEENZ]

Anjou,
Boats that have spent their lives on the Great Lakes in fresh water can be an excellent purchase and there are quite a few for sale. If you find one on Lake Erie we would be happy to give it a once over for you.

Mike
s/v Fair Wind