Old Boats Dangerous?

[KetoNomad]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

Ketonomad,

Age is not the problem: condition is. If the elderly boat is in good nick, measure the berths.


At 6'8", finding sufficient length may be a problem. You might take a look at Columbia 50's, with their 7' head room, and see if there is a reasonable way of extending any of the berths.

Good luck with it, sir.

Ann

Turns out I can fit in the V-berth of a Vega with my feet hanging off the end so that'll be fine until I can modify one of the settee berths, if I even bother. I doubt I'd buy a 50' vessel even if I were much wealthier, minimalism and simplicity are too important to me.

Thanks for the good luck wishes, I have my fingers crossed for a Vega in Sint Maarten at the moment.

[KetoNomad]

Originally Posted by Land Cruiser

You would be hard pressed in the Old Columbia 50's even, the headroom is around 6'5" in the upper salon, and around 6'4" in the lower. The lee berths are only 6'2", so you would have to do a little interior remodel, I would suggest removing the storage cabinet to the port side of the navigation table, that would get you an additional 18". The v-berth is of pretty good size, and might be able to accommodate your 6'8" frame. There were around 20 different layouts, before they changed to a standardized fiberglass interior insert. Prior to and including 1968, they were all custom built interiors.

I do love my headroom, and so far everything has been fairly easy to access on mine. That may change as I dig deeper into it during the restoration.

Like a few have mentioned, fiberglass will be around for a long time, the initial build quality, and ongoing care and maintenance will be the determining factors for any boat you look at regardless of age. Mine was built in '68, and it is built like a tank, if I hit a dock, it will give before the hull..heaven forbid that were to occur..again.

Good luck to you on your search.

No matter, as a lazy guy, I'm quite fond of sitting down Much as I envy the increased speed of a longer boat it's also more expensive to own and maintain so for now I'll stick with a pocket cruiser as I'd rather spend my money on cruising costs.

The kind of boat you have sure sounds like what I'd choose if I ever decided to move up in size though, love things that can take a beating, especially in my log-filled local waters, haha.

[psk125]

One of the "bits and pieces" to look carefully at in the Vega may be the floors that connect the keel to the hull. IIRC they may be made of galvanized steel -- look for possible rust and deterioration there. We looked at a bigger Albin which had that problem.

[danielamartindm]

Hey Keto,

Have a competent surveyor look her over, and as long as you know her issues and deem her worth the price, go for it.

[Steadman Uhlich]

KETONOMAD,

To help you, please remind me of:

Name your Maximum Asking Price and your locations you would consider for boat buying.

Tell me that and I will look.

I came across a boat recently that has a berth 7' 10" long, and thought of you, since you are so tall.

I would not want to stoop or cut holes in bulkheads if not necessary. I am only 6' so not a problem for me.

[Suijin]

Originally Posted by Stumble

There is absolutly nothing wrong with a 60 year old hull. The functional lifespan of most fiberglass hulls is just shy of forever.

I'm sorry I have to take issue with the broadness and generality of this statement, just for the record.

I worked in the Seafarer factory, on Long Island, as teenager. The boats were basically chopper gun boats. You don't see many of them around anymore, as most of them are in landfills. Now maybe they are in the "those that are not in the most category", but it points to the fact that the longevity of a fiberglass boat is directly related to it's construction method and...the stress cycles it's been subjected to.

Fiberglass laminate and resin do not have an indefinite lifespan. Like any fibre composite, it degrades gradually over time as a result of the stresses imposed on it. You might be able to argue that a seriously overbuilt boat, where the stress cycles never impart significant flexing and stress on the laminate does have an indefinite lifespan, but the jury is certainly out on the longevity of fiberglass boats built in the 60's, 70's, 80's, and beyond.

My Valiant is considered one of the most stoutly constructed semi-custom fiberglass cruising boats ever produced. Mine when I acquired it was lightly used. Yet, when I painted the topsides, I discovered checked cracking, very subtle, in the gelcoat along the sides, below and aft of the chainplates. I've also seen this on venerated brands like Alden, Hinckley, Hylas, etc. It's from stress, period, and there is a 90% chance it goes down into the glass. It's smoke before the proverbial fire.

If I were in the market for a fiberglass boat and came across a spotless example that had circumnavigated 8 times and been everywhere on the planet, I certainly would not buy it. That's a zillion stress cycles. Could it be repaired if an issue arose? Probably, at galactic cost. This is an exaggerated example, but it serves my point; the lifespan of a production fiberglass boat hull is directly related to how many stress cycles it has on it.

To be clear, I'm sure the Albin Vega is fine, and that most boats from the 60's-80's have a long life in front of them. But to boldly state that fiberglass boats last "almost forever" is a bit misleading. Like any other structure, stress cycles matter.

[Don C L]

I'd have to check but I don't think the chopper gun came in to use until the 70s, along with resin issues. My particular boat, as the majority of the 60s boats, is all hand laid up, no keel bolts and has no flexing in the hull anywhere. Now I'd agree that with fin keels, spade rudders and chopper gun/resin issues that came largely in the 70s, that decade is suspect in general... more chances for stress and poor construction based problems. So when folks say "old," I usually ask which decade.

[Stumble]

Suijen,

Yes fiberglass can die from being over stressed but I have never seen a boat that needed to be condemned because of the fiberglass itself. I haven't even heard of one. The reason that boats are scrapped is that the systems fail, and the cost to replace them is far higher than the boat is worth.

Few people love a specific hull enough to drop $10k on a new engine when the boat with a working engine is worth $6k. Or god forbit you break a mast, on most boats replacing a rig is far more costly than the boat is worth. Which is why after a snapped mast on a boat more than 20 years old most insurance companies will total the boat almost without an inspection.

Chopper built boats are also notorious for second rate systems, meaning much higher failure rates, higher maintenance costs and general low build quality from the get go. These boats tended to get junked for repairs not the hull.

Even a soft deck due to fiberglass fracturing is reparable if you really want to fix it. The fracturing is generally just in the surface glass, and you can strip the top layer, put down new glass, and paint it. It just will cost more than the boat is worth in most cases.

[thomm225]

If things don't work out with the Vega, there are lots of good old boats out there under 32'

Atom Voyages - Good Old Boats List

[steinbuoyg]

Keto
At 6'5" I almost can empathize. One thing that helps me is to develope small habits to deal. Like standing on one bent leg while washing dishes or brushing teeth rather than slouching all the time. I'm 60 so this helps my posture, balance and maybe strength and though it may look a little strange, I don't even notice doing it anymore. Also if you can get your hair to stand up a little higher it works as an early warning system to duck.