Transportation from pacific coast Mexico- East coast US/Europe?

[Norsken]

Hello!
My first thread on this forum, even though ive been lurkling and googling has often turned me to this forum when ive had questions. Since i couldnt find an answer to this very question, ive come to ask it.

Im thinking of buying a sailboat down in Mazatlan, Mexico, and since the boat is a fixer upper with old rod rigging it needs some work before it can cross oceans and so on.
My plan is to get the boat to Norway/Europe for me to live on while i fix it and so on.

Is there anyone here who have any experience with transporting sailboats from Mexico to either Europe or to East Coast US?
Sailing it from Mexico to Norway is not an option unless i get some professionals to do it. I'd rather have the boat shipped to ECUS for me to fix the boat there and sail it back to Norway or, have it shipped all the way.

Any answers that might help me to accomplish this is greatly appreciated.

[CarstenWL]

... contact for instance Seven Seas Yacht Transport | Shipping Yachts Worldwide for a quote.

For me 'fixer upper' and transportation on a transport vessel sounds not compatible thinking about $$$ ...

But call them and you will have an idea ...

Good luck!

Carsten

[john61ct]

What weight, LOA and beam?

[Norsken]

I should have included that ive been in contact with the major shipping companies, and they charged between 60.000-85.000 usd from Mexico to Belgium in Europe. And about 25.000-35.000 usd from Mexico to Florida/ECUS.

I also got an estimate on about 5000-6000 usd for transportation on a truck from Mazatlan to Tucson, AZ. But yet to find someone to take it from there. Maybe some of you have an idea how much that would cost me? From Tucson - Florida/South Carolina?

Ive also been in contact with a Professional delivery skipper company, which estimated around 8000-16.000 english pound, depending on from where, first one from Florida, and the other one from Mazatlan through Panama, delivered to Oslo, Norway. Estimated 2 pounds per NM.

From what i can tell out of the pictures the boat isnt that bad, it need some new equipment and so on but doable. I would think its sailable over a short distance after some basic maintenance.

The boat is an Centurion 47, so 47 feet and 4.6 beam, about 15 tonnes i believe.

[john61ct]

Make sure dealing with Americans you avoid confusion with metric

Also commas go after thousands, period is only used as a decimal point.

[john61ct]

Try posting here https://www.uship.com/

Maybe for the intra-US leg only, that $6,000 sounds very cheap to me!

[john61ct]

You know, it might be nice to live in Mexico for a while

Not to mention labor costs, lack of red tape.

Then maybe pay a skipper to sail it back with you as passenger?

[JPA Cate]

Norsken, I'm hoping you've actually seen this boat, because sometimes the pictures posted are from years prior to *now*, and may not accurately reflect its condition.

Imo, what you are trying to do is difficult, if you're not going to be there to manage and structure the situation, you'll be depending on others, and this introduces possibilities of delays (or incompetence) on every hand; and of course, delays = $$.

If you have a bad case of "Centurion lust", it may lead you into a great deal more expense than you are at this point considering, depending on the condition of the boat.

If possible, have someone knowledgeable about boats--a friend, a licensed surveyor-- have a look at it for you, to help get the stardust out of your eyes, if it is there. It is a very long way from Mazatlan to Oslo, whether by shipping or on her own bottom. There will be breakage and wear and tear, either way. The cradle design is really important, for land and sea transport. Who will see all that is done properly?

The problem with the plan is that you will have to count on numerous strangers to do everything correctly, for the whole deal. You must be a very trusting soul, and i hope it works out okay for you.

Ann

[CarstenWL]

... seems to be the boat in this listing:

1988 Wauquiez Centurion 47 Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

Carsten

[Norsken]

Originally Posted by john61ct

You know, it might be nice to live in Mexico for a while

Not to mention labor costs, lack of red tape.

Then maybe pay a skipper to sail it back with you as passenger?

Ive been thinking about that, but im kind of sceptical to cruising and living in Central America. That and i have a dog here in Norway which i would not like to stick on a plane for 20-40 hours, and i dont want my family to take care of it for such a long time.
Refitting and sailing home will probably take a year or so if im gonna wait for the right season and weather.

Yea, i always forget using inches and feet. In Europe we use feet for boats lenght but not for beam and so on. Ive been more precise when sending quote requests.

[Norsken]

Before buying the boat, i will have an survey taken, aswell as personally going through it and seeing it for myself. The asking price is way above what i will be paying if i ever go for the boat.
The stardust is there, but im well aware of it and need to do this right if im going for it, hence me asking here for advice or knowledge about shipping and transportation.
And if the boat is so bad, that there is more work than anticipated i will look for another boat.

I have time and money to stay in both Mexico and US to fix things and arrange the transportation, but i need to estimate an price for boat, transport and refit to see if its doable. I just dont have the time to fix it and sail it home.

[Norsken]

Originally Posted by CarstenWL

... seems to be the boat in this listing:

1988 Wauquiez Centurion 47 Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

Carsten

Thats the boat

[hellosailor]

It could be a steal, if those pictures are current and if there is nothing being unsaid. You can assume it needs complete rerigging and when the age and condition of the sails are not mentioned, it probably needs new sails as well. Probably batteries and fuel polishing.

But if that's all it needs, it might be worth getting on a plan *now* and going down to be present for a survey with an immediate offer.

With that keel depth and beam, road transport becomes expensive. It becomes an oversize convoy, usually highly restricted in when and where it can travel, with a "follow me" car and a lead car in some places. And transferring the boat to a second trailer in Tucson (which doesn't seem like the right route to our east coast) is just two more expensive opportunities to drop the boat.

I'd say tell the dog you may be gone for a month, go down and see if the boat can be put in safe sailing condition without too many issues, and then look for a sailing crew to deliver it to the US east coast, or the US Gulf coast, for the longer refitting for the trip home. You have a narrow window right now. June begins hurricane season, and you could have problems sailing it to the US. (And insurance restrictions.)

But putting that boat on two, not just one but two, oversize trailer convoys....doesn't seem very economical. The logistics problems may be part of the reason why the owner has dropped the price. Or, more commonly, there are issues like a teak deck leaking badly but not seen because the photos of the interior are old. Or an engine in need of major repairs. An honest ad with nothing hidden is a treasure. If you are very lucky--the boat is too, and if so it won't be around for long.

[Steadman Uhlich]

Originally Posted by Norsken

Thats the boat

First, what follows is written in a friendly tone of voice, with the sole intent to help you.

Second, I like Wauquiez boats. Nice designs, finish and details.

Third, That is a LOT of Boat for the price.

But as I looked over the ad I noticed this key Red Flag statement posted by the broker:

"this boat needs work, how much work, I really don't know."

I say Red Flag as caution, because that kind of statement is very rare or odd for the selling broker to make public in an ad on yachtworld. Because of this, I suspect there may be some serious issues with the boat. The brokers want to sell, but that phrase sounds more like a big disclaimer of unidentified potential problems.

Caveat Emptor!

I looked at every photo.and read the ad listing of gear.

As I looked at the photos, my mind kept calculating cost to Refit, noticing the condition and size of gear, and the teak deck, etc

Given the unknown faults ("needs work") that need repair, the distance you are thinking of moving the boat, the age, the price, and the estimated cost of boat transport or delivery, this could prove to be an expensive boat.

My thoughts then turned to comparable boats already in Europe.

If I were in your boat shoes, I would look closer to home, perhaps France.

Good luck on your decision.

If you do purchase this and sail it or move it to Norway, please let us know with a follow up report on costs and experience doing so. I am curious and that info would help others in the future.

[Steadman Uhlich]

I did a quick calculation of the miles you would need to sail in order to sail it from Mazatlan to Norway. The following is an estimate based on sailing at 7 knots for 24 hours a day (nonstop). I picked 7 knots average, assuming you had a set of old sails and a shorthanded delivery crew who did not want to push the boat too much due to age of rig, etc.

Of course you cannot do that nonstop, because of weather delays, boat breakages, need to stop for provisions water or fuel, etc. But this can give you an idea of the minimum sailing time.

Distance 7112 nautical miles VIA Panama Canal
Vessel speed 7 knots
Time 42 days (plus more for delays due to weather, etc.)