Guy Couach Boats?

Medskipper

Medskipper

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Just looking at ybw.com boats for sale and there are a number of these boats up for sale, some around 14-15m size at what appear to be very reasonable prices. For instance 14m 1989 boat in France for only 90k.

Anybody know what the build quality is like?

Regards Barry
 
hee haw hee haw

Gi Coo-Ash - eez French.

They are loafy,meddish and cheap - the brit styling became more "all of a piece" far sooner that than french/eyetie boats. EXpect grp to have had a beating from the sun, and the metawork to be aluminium which doesn't need cleaning so much but never gets shiny. They seem to trundle around okay. Not owned one myself. Offer 62 and see what happenes.
 
Re: hee haw hee haw

Thanks TCM,

I knew they were French, but never seen one in the flesh so to speak! Looks a lot of boat so I thought it might be a cheap build, typical french!

Barry
 
Re: hee haw hee haw

well, they seem ok really, but you have to be okay about the older /classic styling. Good med features like decent cockpit, aircon i wd guess, sturdier than equiv brit in terms of rails i would say. Less outright flash tho, more cottage than penthouse flat if you see what i mean. Lot of boat for the money. But no headturner.
 
[ QUOTE ]

Just looking at ybw.com boats for sale and there are a number of these boats up for sale, some around 14-15m size at what appear to be very reasonable prices. For instance 14m 1989 boat in France for only 90k.

Anybody know what the build quality is like?

Regards Barry

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These boats are the Birchwood/Princess of France. Cannot speak for later craft but early ones from the 1970s-1980s were quite acceptable but not to 'Broom' quality.
 
They are building a fair ammount of commercial boats on the same hulls as the leisure ones, so expect solid build. Also most of them seemed to be delivered with SS tanks with high capacity (have seen 2500L on a 1401). lots of boat for the money and also seem to remember that the 14 M & 1401 came with a side deck entrance from helm position. Some delivered with side deck entrance on both sides (1401's). and a mixture of 2 and 3 cabins pending on galley position (up or down).
Early ones delivered with Renault and Mercedes Diesels, later ones with Volvo's 60 series. 15, 1501, 16 & 1601's were also delivered with Cummins and Detroits.

A fair ammount of 14 & 1401's around and should be relatively easy to find a good sample even in the price range you're looking at.

Good luck.
 
Thanks Alf,

There are certainly a lot of then around for sale around 100k. From the pics they look incredible for the money, Wife and I want to do a couple of years in the Med in a year or two, so I was just looking around to see what med boats I could find! if you look around Croatia or Turkey the prices seem really low in comparison to UK.

Thanks for your help, very interesting

Barry
 
If you're looking for "cheap" boats within the EU, you could do worse than looking in South Italy (where we bought ours). They are still suffering a bit more than North Italy in respect of the economic climate in the country, so you may want to study some of the Italian builders as well.... Easily 30% cheaper than UK and some cracking deals around if you haggle a bit.... We ended up with a bigger boat for less than we anticipated having to pay.
How about a Laver 40 with 2 x 425 CAT's for less than 80K Euro?? ... or another one for about 55K ??

1147.jpg
 
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.....are they good on suppling the info or is it best to get down there and have a look?
How did you bring your boat back?

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If you get hold of Giovanni I am sure that you will get first class treatment! Very willing to provide any information, so that should not be a problem with respect to pictures, and other boat information, inclusive service and a honest statement of condition of the boats. Giovanni is not the best English speaker, but makes up for it in effort and is very keen to help... Loves mucking around in boats and cleaned up the one we bought, ilcluding sanding and varnishing before I took the boat over .. (above and beyond comittments). He also took it upon himself to negotiate a Euro 4K reduction in price without speaking with me when he saw the engine service estimates I had asked for.

If you find a boat or two of interest, they will help with finding accommodation, pick you up from Napels and be your host for the duration... no pressure put on you for buying the boat.

Got loads more information and got contact for solicitors etc., if you get down to that level.... may find the story about my purchase in here somewhere ... Late summer 2004 "My Italian Job" I think I called it.

Got crew to help with the boat from Salerno (French Crew and very professional that gave condition report pre and post delivery) to La Grand Motte, then truck to UK... own keel to NE Scotland. Got contact details for crew and truck as well if you need this.

Bottom line is that I would do it all over again and also use the same people again without hesitation. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
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........How would you compare the build of the boat to stuff we are used to?
Tom

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There are a couple of ways to look at this, and perhaps TCM and others can answer better for the newer stuff.
First of all, the Italians and boatbuilding is serious stuff... they take much pride in what they do. Ferretti, AZ, Piantoni, Italcraft, Mocchi etc. In the 70's and 80's most builders looked towards Italy as being state of the art and wanting to "be there". the best comparison I guss you can do is to look at a comparable boat of the era you are looking at and make an eye to eye comparison that way. We bought a 20 something year old boat, which had been very well looked after mechanically, but the interior needed some TLC, which was easy to work with. All areas of the boat is easily accessible and I can get to all items very easily. But this is a boat that was made before fixed mouldings were introduced in volume production boats in Italy. Wooden frames and dismantable panels, which is great for access to all areas. Engine room is bigger than on a newer 56 footer .... ref mechanic at Peters in CHI..., so easy access to all stuff in the engine room. All electrics in Cable runs, good switchgear and hull built like a ....... brick house ... registered at 45 ft and with 21 tonnes displacement. Large Detroits onboard which would sink smaller boats with 1490 Kg each!!
At any time feel free to PM, or contact me on these details... or if you head towards the NE Scotland some time, you'll be welcome onboard to inspect our 23 year old Italian built boat.
 
viareggio

...is the place. Dozens of boatbuilders and dependent industries, unlike anything in the uk.

There is indeed a step up in skills and materials for italian boat building. Doesn't mean the boats are faster of course nor always better-looking. But the quality of parts used is way above those specified by french and uk builders. The brand of appliances in a boat, for example, are rarely specified. Ours turned out to be Miele throughout - I never specified it and the boat was the same price as uk stuff with candy/zanussi. The microwave on a sunseeker 105 is pathetic for someone trying to cook for 10-12 guests but the salesman says "oh, our clients eat out." hm, but there's a galley and a big dining room and crew quarters so praps they might like to eat on board. In a sunseeker it would have to be a salad.

Same with generators - at a certain size say above 70 feet or mebbe less the eyties tend to fit two generators, not just one, so you always have some means of power generation. Not so on most brit powerboats. And so on.

If the general spec is apprently the same, you can expect more from an italain boat in terms of quality and "hidden" spec in everything from bilge pump systems, fire protection and so on. Ours even inlcuded towels, lifejackets, liferafts, dinghy - enough to just drive off. Yep, pans and coffee maker and cutlery and plates and crystal glasses and so on.
 
Re: viareggio

[ QUOTE ]

If the general spec is apprently the same, you can expect more from an italain boat in terms of quality and "hidden" spec in everything from bilge pump systems, fire protection and so on....

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Would tend to agree ... ours have a Rule 3000 (9000 GPH), a Rule 2000 in the main engine / lazarette and an diaphram pump with a battery of ball valves for taking water out of the other four compartments. Also engines are fitted with switch crane for using raw water pump on engines as a pump, should the electrical pumps fail or not manage... admittedly the boat is old, but quality of fittings are very good indeed...
 
Thanks Alf, great tip and as we would love to do the greek ionion islands, buying in italy would be perfect! did you have any problems with paperwork on the purchase or surveyor problems? PM me?

Many Thanks

Barry
 
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