Advice re boat -sports cruiser

[BayView]

One of my best friends and one of his other friends bought a 38 footer together a few years ago. Cost them $80k from memory, had it berthed at Patterson Lakes....

Owned it for approx 3 years, used it approx 6 times, spent $5k on an engine rebuild of some kind after a breakdown one trip....

Sold it for $67k.

Best tip on boats - use money you don't need to worry about losing.

And; they tend to not get used and/or maintained enough from my experience with what comes through our workshop doors (we are near the Bay).

The little tinnies that all the local fisherman around here use get used a lot more than yer bigger boats, but they are typically never ever maintained well and they never want to spend a cent on them.

 

[spanna]

We had a 23 foot Bertram growing up... used just about every weekend! They are fantastic boats. the hulls are deep V and super stable in the rough stuff. to this day i have not been in a boat that is more stable than that old thing. Dont be put off buy the inboard motor they are very reliable.
http://www.boatpoint.com.au/used-boats/BERTRAM/make.htm
Another boat i like is the haines hunter
Cheers

 

[see_change]

We had a 23 foot Bertram growing up... used just about every weekend! They are fantastic boats. the hulls are deep V and super stable in the rough stuff. to this day i have not been in a boat that is more stable than that old thing. Dont be put off buy the inboard motor they are very reliable.
http://www.boatpoint.com.au/used-boats/BERTRAM/make.htm
Another boat i like is the haines hunter
Cheers

There seem to be a few Bertram fly bridges 28 foot and under from around 50 k and down . Obviously they're getting older , generally at least 30 years . Certainly cheaper than the riviera I mentioned before .

Obviously if a boat hasn't been well maintained the hull might be problematic , but is their an age at which fiber glass boats start deteriorating , however well their maintained . Would their be an age at which people wouldn't touch one ?

Some twin shafts around but ? Petrol

Cliff

 

[alicudi]

Hi

Age and boats is a very weird thing to measure. I know some boats that are over 30 years old an in perfect condition and I know others that are 12 years old and are horrid.

Sure it is easy to determine the year of manufacture but this wont always represent the condition the boat is in. A big problem for fibreglass boats that have been moored in water for many years is what is called "osmosis". Basically if your fibreglass hull gets it the news is bad.

If a boat has had a fussy owner and has been well maintained well it will show when you have a look at it. Nothing will be corroded on a well maintained boat, the engine(s) will look clean and tidy and the "clear" section of the canopies will be well very "clear"! and this might indicate a good hull.

Also some insurance companies have a clause that if the boat is over 15 years or 25 years in age the hull needs to be inspected before they might insure it. If it is a moored boat without a trailer it means it needs to come out on a slipway or crane at a marina for a boat inspection to done. This was the case with me using Club Marine boat insurance on a number of occasions.

I would find yourself someone that can inspect any boat before you put your hard earned dollars down. If you need someone to inspect a boat in Victoria for you I have a friend that does this for a living.

Bertram's may look a little dated but they are a wonderful multi purpose boat. One experienced boatie told me you can never go wrong with a Bertram.

Regards,

alicudi

 

[see_change]

To me they look like the SS Minnow .... But I have no problems with thinks that are going a little bit dated....

Riviera sound good but more upmarket . Are their any of the bigger brands that have a good rep and are there ones to avoid ?

Cliff

 

[alicudi]

Hi

There are many good boats on the market and I wouldn't know where to start by naming them as there are that many.

But in regards to bad boats, they was a period of time that "Mustang" boats had some big issues in terms of quality and especially the quality of the fibreglass hulls.

These issues were before 2008 and may even go as far back as the late 90's. I now think the brand Mustang is actually built by another company than the older models. I am sure that you can find other bad boats but that is one that sticks out in my memory.

The main thing with boats is finding one that is useful for the purpose you want it for. Around 12 years ago when I was about 27 years old I had small man syndrome so had to buy a 29 foot scarab and put a 496 HO Mercruiser big block in it for the sound of having a big V8 with no mufflers and to nudge on doing 60mph in a 29 foot boat.

Sure the boat was fun at speed but absolutely useless as tits on a bull for fishing and was probably the least roomy boat for a 29 foot in the world. It was great at sucking lots of fuel in a short amount of time but that was it. Oh and my small man syndrome didn't exist whilst owning this boat so maybe I should buy one again?

The best thing you can do is what you are doing now by getting onto forums, maybe speak to other boat owners as well that own boats similar to what you want to buy or have owned similar boats to what you want to buy and proceed from there.

I came to somersoft to stop wasting money on cars and boats and here I am talking about boats again...."BAD BAD BAD".

Regards,

alicudi

 

[see_change]

I came to somersoft to stop wasting money on cars and boats and here I am talking about boats again...."BAD BAD BAD".

Regards,

alicudi

Sorry ...

But is it a waste ...

Do what we did . The last IP we bought was in a trust fund call the " the jetty investment group " ... Maybe the next one will be in the " riviera investment fund " .....

Cliff

 

[alicudi]

Hi

Montana Realty Pty Ltd is a good one as that was used in the movie Scarface with Al Pacino...and yes it's taken...

But I like the "riviera investment fund".

Regards,

alicudi

 

[spanna]

The thing I have found with Riveria is they have very little deck space.... If its going to be used for fishing the Riviera probably isnt the write choice.... We stuck to a 23 because they have a sigle leg, and you can tow with a landcrusier... 25' can be towed but is a big boat on a trailer, and has duel legs.
All depends on how much money you want to spend i guess. As far as age goes i think you will know pretty quick if it been looked after. our was 20 years old and we never had any issues with it at all.
You just can not beat Bertrums!

 

[spanna]

Dont know hoe deep the pockets are!!!!!
http://www.caribbeanboats.com.au/caribbean-boats/

 

[see_change]

Not planning on buying new , harder to low ball , but second hand ...

Dumb question number 2 . Mercruiser engine .. Petrol ?

Is a petrol engine on a shaft a no no ?

Cliff

 

[VaSSagO]

Mercruiser do sell some small turbo diesel stern drives but most likely it will be petrol.

I wouldn't discount petrol sterndrives as long as it is EFI (MPI in Mercruiser language), more safer and fuel efficient than the old carby models. Still need to be diligent with the blower though.

I agree also that you either still to trailerable size (25ft max) or if you go to something that is permanently moored 32ft plus.

If trailer it is I would look an 23-25ft American walk around with a single outboard or single stern drive. Can pick these up cheap, are nice for an overnighter and pretty good for fishing. Also with this size ongoing costs around $3k per year for servicing, insurance and regos.

In regards to twin motors, for what you are doing I would recommend against it. Just twice the maintenance and generally they use more fuel than a single bigger motor. Where you are going to use it you can always call for help if the motor breaks down. Just makes sure you always have plenty of fuel (atleast 50% more than you will use in a worse case scenario, preferably 100% more) and your batteries are good (most common causes of calling sea rescue). Modern motors are very reliable. If you were going to really remote areas this would be different.

 

[see_change]

Vassago

Any reason why you'd go for bigger than 32 if moored ? Do they ride better on a mooring ?

If we had a 23 -25 trailer boat we'd need a bigger car and that has more cost involved , though my wife does like the lexus four wheel drive hybrids with the HUD , though I'm not sure if people would consider a lexus a REAL four wheel drive . The price difference between that and our forrester would pay for a nice boat ...

Cliff

 

[VaSSagO]

Vassago

Any reason why you'd go for bigger than 32 if moored ? Do they ride better on a mooring ?

Cliff

Mainly because you are no longer limited on having it on a trailer and are bearing all the costs of having a big boat, so why not have a bigger boat? I think you would end up getting a bigger boat if you got a 28ft. A 34ft wouldn't use much more fuel than a 28ft but the difference in room would be huge, and would also handle bad weather much better.

Can always pick up a Landrover Discovery to use as a tow vehicle, they have 3.5 ton towing capacity and can be picked up real cheap (sub $10k). Could leave the trailer hooked up to the car ready to go.

 

[Harro]

My only advice to you is that if you don't intend to use a boat at least 3 times a week, every week then save your money for something else.
I have recently purchased a Stessl 610 Coastrunner with a Honda 135 outboard (fishing boat) which I can fortunately use everyday.
Cannot imagine life without being on the water!

 

[see_change]

Mainly because you are no longer limited on having it on a trailer and are bearing all the costs of having a big boat, so why not have a bigger boat? I think you would end up getting a bigger boat if you got a 28ft. A 34ft wouldn't use much more fuel than a 28ft but the difference in room would be huge, and would also handle bad weather much better.

Can always pick up a Landrover Discovery to use as a tow vehicle, they have 3.5 ton towing capacity and can be picked up real cheap (sub $10k). Could leave the trailer hooked up to the car ready to go.

All sensible thoughts .

Discovery vs Landcruiser , any thoughts on that ? What sort of K's do they go up before they have problems . Actually that might work ok . Gives you more flexibility in terms of going to different places .

We could ditch the Forrester and I could buy a TT

If you have a Stern drive / Cuddy on a Trailer is that more manageable in terms of engine maintenance ?

Cliff

 

[see_change]

My only advice to you is that if you don't intend to use a boat at least 3 times a week, every week then save your money for something else.
I have recently purchased a Stessl 610 Coastrunner with a Honda 135 outboard (fishing boat) which I can fortunately use everyday.
Cannot imagine life without being on the water!

we have a weekender and a long weekend every second week

Cliff

 

[VaSSagO]

My only advice to you is that if you don't intend to use a boat at least 3 times a week, every week then save your money for something else.

I disagree, we use our boat (currently a 6.5m Jackman walkaround) normally once a week but have done ~220hrs on the motor in the 18months we have owned it. Have taken it on a couple of fishing trips which it would get used for 7 days straight. Considering it costs us ~$3k pa in regos, maintenance & insurance I think it is well worth it.

 

[VaSSagO]

All sensible thoughts .

Discovery vs Landcruiser , any thoughts on that ? What sort of K's do they go up before they have problems . Actually that might work ok . Gives you more flexibility in terms of going to different places .

Cliff

From a towing a large boat perspective go the Toyota. In my opinion for safe towing you want the heaviest biggest car possible. Imagine towing a 3 tonne boat/trailer with a 1.8 tonne car, if you need to brake in a hurry it is the boat/trailer that will be running the show.

The diesel landcruisers will get heaps of kms before having problems (if serviced regularly), my parents have a 1992 troopy with 340,000kms and no problems to date, still going strong. I had a 1998 petrol GXL with 280,000kms but the engine was on the way out. The GXL was a real pleasure to drive for a 4x4 but the 70 series is much more truck like to drive.

 

[Harro]

I disagree, we use our boat (currently a 6.5m Jackman walkaround) normally once a week but have done ~220hrs on the motor in the 18months we have owned it. Have taken it on a couple of fishing trips which it would get used for 7 days straight. Considering it costs us ~$3k pa in regos, maintenance & insurance I think it is well worth it.

Sorry VaSSagO, but for me I couldn't justify spending what I have on my boat to use it once a week. Once a week would not satisfy my Ocean Affinity.
I have seen many folk purchase boats of all descriptions sadly to see them either sit in garages or on front lawns, rarely seeing the water.
I feel it boils down to 2 things.
1. How much time you have to devote to your passion.
2. Your love of the Water.