Buying a Sailboat

[Boracay]

Really nice looking boat. Excellent specs.

Hope the survey turns out well.

[SkiprJohn]

Congratulations and I hope the survey is great!
Kind regards,
JohnL

[Cowboy Sailer]

Wow, I checked on Yacht World and the boat was listed as in Seabrook. That was a surprise as the broker was in Kemah, my motel was in Kemah and I thought the boat was in Kemah too. I also see that the listed asking price was $54,900. I really liked a Yanmar with 315 hours on a cruise equiped boat that had just returned from Rio Dulce.

[SouthernComfort]

Seabrooke is right over the bridge from Kemah. North side of Clear lake is Seabrooke and south side is Kemah.

I know where that boat is located, it is just accross the hwy 146 bridge north of the Kemah Boardwalk. Maybe 1/4 mile or less.

The Yachtworld pictures looked great. Congratulations on the boat. I hope the deal turns out great.

[Ocean Girl]

Cowboy sailor,
Hope all is going well. The boat is beautiful, love the C&Cs, good sailboats.
Erika

[hellosailor]

1979 C&C Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com=

Looks like a really clean boat, nicely equipped, at a very reasonable price! With any luck it surveys clean and you've got a great deal.

[TaoJones]

Originally Posted by hellosailor

1979 C&C Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com=

Looks like a really clean boat, nicely equipped, at a very reasonable price! With any luck it surveys clean and you've got a great deal.

I agree with hellosailor on his assessment, Cowboy, but I'm not crazy about the placement of the artificial-reef-starter-kit (oops, sorry, microwave oven.)

TaoJones

[Southern Star]

Congrats Jerry and Denver - here's to hoping she does well on the survey. As has already been pointed out, C&C's were well-built boats which generally leaned towards the performance side of the equation. Make sure your surveyor pays particular attention to deck delaminaton (a problem with C&C's and many other boats of that vintage), especially if the previous owner/s added additional deck hardware. And if she comes through as expected, enjoy!

Yes, you will have additional money to spend. But the real issue, in my opinion, is in avoiding the temptation to overspend on 'upgrades'. I suspect that the electronics, sails, running rigging etc. are not the latest or greatest. But I would live with what you have for a good year before you decide to take the plunge on upgrading anything except that which absolutely must be replaced. It is all too easy to get taken up in the desire to have your new to you, but 'experienced' yacht perfect, and to then invest well beyond what you can ever hope to recover, should you choose to sell it in future. Trust me, I know.

Brad

[speedoo]

Originally Posted by Cowboy Sailer

Wow, I checked on Yacht World and the boat was listed as in Seabrook. That was a surprise as the broker was in Kemah, my motel was in Kemah and I thought the boat was in Kemah too. I also see that the listed asking price was $54,900. I really liked a Yanmar with 315 hours on a cruise equiped boat that had just returned from Rio Dulce.

A few things to consider before closing the deal...

No mention in the listing of a windlass. This boat should have a strong electric windlass.

No table in the salon, apparently. I see there is a cockpit table, but there should be one in the salon as well, and I am certain the boat was originally so equipped.

I'm very puzzled as to why a more powerful engine was not selected for the re-power. The Yanmar is a great engine for smaller boats and might be adequate for this boat but I definitely would have gone for a stronger engine. To give you an idea, I own a similar size and displacement Beneteau and she has a Perkins 4-108 which generates 50hp and I am very happy with that engine.

Otherwise as others have noted, she looks very clean and well equipped other than my comments above. My recommendation is to have your surveyor consider carefully whether this engine will be strong enough for your purposes taking into account the prop type and size, and to definitely negotiate hard for reduced pricing if there is no windlass and if the salon table is actually missing.

Good luck, and remember, this is a buyer's market.

[SkiprJohn]

Although Perkins 4-108 might advertise 50hp I think they are much nearer to 35 or less at the RPMs most folks cruise. I used to run mine at no more than 2400 and more typically at 2000.
In my opinion the Yanmar 29hp is more than enough for a 38 foot boat.
Kind regards,
JohnL

[Dune]

Originally Posted by Southern Star

...Yes, you will have additional money to spend. But the real issue, in my opinion, is in avoiding the temptation to overspend on 'upgrades'. I suspect that the electronics, sails, running rigging etc. are not the latest or greatest. But I would live with what you have for a good year before you decide to take the plunge on upgrading anything except that which absolutely must be replaced.
...Trust me, I know.

Brad

On that tack, what if there are no electronics when you purchase? What should you do in that case. I have been shopping around a lot lately. Lots of options to choose from.

[svquest2]

You have a nice boat there and well equipped. I agree with SkiprJohn about the size of your engine. I too had a Perkins 4-108 replaced with a Yanmar 3HM 35F which is rated at 30 HP, and it pushes my 37 ' 22,000# Irwin just fine.

I also expect that with the equipment you have, like a 3000 W Inverter, Auto pilot, SSB, Radar, etc., that the previous owner did not bottom line his equipment, so your electronics should be fine. Congradulations, I think you got a good boat at a very good price.

Have fun

Joe S

[Cheechako]

I think the Perkins develops 51 hp at max rpm of about 2800 doesnt it? A 4-108 pushed my heavy Taiwan 44 footer great at max hull speed...... Yanmar HP is rated way up at 3600-3800 rpm.. Run that C&C at top speed a good long time to make sure the engine doesnt overheat... I used to charter skipper Catalina 42's with the Yanmar... is it 42hp or 46?.... It needed all that in the currents etc up here in the Pac NW...

[speedoo]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

I think the Perkins develops 51 hp at max rpm of about 2800 doesnt it? A 4-108 pushed my heavy Taiwan 44 footer great at max hull speed...... Yanmar HP is rated way up at 3600-3800 rpm.. Run that C&C at top speed a good long time to make sure the engine doesnt overheat... I used to charter skipper Catalina 42's with the Yanmar... is it 42hp or 46?.... It needed all that in the currents etc up here in the Pac NW...

The Perkins 4-108 is rated at 42hp @ 2100 rpm and 50hp @ 3000 rpm. I run mine at about 2000-2200 to get the boat to about 6 knots.

At the Yanmar site, I found this rating for the 3YM30, which is the engine in the C&C being discussed here:

Maximum output: 29mhp @ 3200-3600 rpm.

I assume mhp is mean hp or some such thing.

I've never owned a Yanmar, so I don't know whether they are routinely run in excess of 3000 rpm, which might be what's necessary to cruise the C&C at a decent speed.

In any case, there does not seem to be much similarity in power between the Yanmar in the C&C and my Perkins 4-108. Unless I'm missing something.

[Curmudgeon]

My Yanmar 3JH2E is rated at 40 hp and moves my 7 ton boat 6.4 knots at 2300 rpm. The "redline" is at 3000 (7.3 knots); the "sweet spot" is between 2200 and 2300. My theoretical hull speed is 6.7 knots.

So far I'm very happy with this engine. Starts immediately, no smoke, no vibration, acceptable noise level. Fuel consumption is a little under a gallon per hour at 2300 rpm.