Choice of 3 ex-charter boats in Greece - which one?

The stainless steel strip screwed down the port side of the Moodys stern and the asymmetric application of grey paint/gel coat suggests a rather slap-dash approach to repair and maintenance.

I bought an ex-charter boat and looked at loads. They all had issues of one sort or another, and bodges were apparent on all.

I wouldn't worry about a sail drive, and I'd go for the newest boat. IMHO.
 
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I cant speak for the other companys but I have chartered with Sailing Holidays three times and my daughter worked for them two years ago, the boats are a bit basic but they keep a few spare engines in stock and just swop a duff engine with the spare one which is then reconditioned and put in stock. The biggest problem related to engines seems to be diesel bug so if you buy one out of a charter fleet budget for a fuel tank clean. All the Sailing Holladay boats have the engines governed to about two thirds throttle to reduce the amount of abuse customers can give them.
 
2002 saw me accompanying friends on a Sunsail Dufour 30. Seemed pretty good but very under-propped when I had to park it for them.

That aside, I'd have swopped it for our First 30 in a heartbeat. Although I suspect that our ballast ratio was better.

So that's the one I would choose.
 
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Certainly wouldn't buy an ex-Sun (Scum) sail boat since all their boats are dedicated and much modified derrivatives of production boats with their own easily identified and irremoveable graphics and they usually have their own interiors which can include nasty plastic cushion covers. Sailing Hoidays don't have their own versions but the evidence of their graphics is also difficult to remove. Nielson operate in a similar fashion, their retired boats are often ancient and their gawdy dayglow sails and trim are not attractive at all.

There are several greek owned charter companies who look after their boats very well, keep them in absolutely "standard" trim and are very sympathetic to the interests of the on-going owners of their retired boats which are normally at worst only six years old and if I were purchasing such a craft, I would look at what they have to offer in preference to the companies you have mentioned.Their maintenance standards are at least on a par too and more often superior.
 
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Not really talking about the same thing. 6 year old ex charter boats will be much bigger and many times the price of these little old boats. If you are paying 80k+ euros for a 36'+ boat you expect it to be better than a cheap old boat. Both types can be good buys depending on your budget and expectations.
 
Just noticed thew Sunsail Dufours price doesn't include VAT. With that they're just over £20k. Neither do they have a cooker, which is a bit odd. My instinct at the moment is that the Sailing Holidays Feeling 960 might be the better one to go for...
 
jordanbasset said:
jordanbasset said:
Hi, what makes you think it does not have a cooker, it says

COOKER TYPE: Eno
NO OF BURNERS: 2
OVEN: Yes[/Q
Click to expand...

Uh, the picture of the galley ( 12 of 16 ) shows a big hole where the cooker was. And all I did was ask the op who now has said that it doesn't in spite of the ad saying '2 burner cooker'. So the 2001 boat is getting more expensive by a good margin, likely to be a Greek 25% unless the sale can be made in the uk.

5000 hours on a boat engine that old on the ionian is not excessive. One spends a lot of time motoring about with no wind in summer in order to get to anchorages before they fill up and the wind starts. :)
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V1701 said:
Given the choice which one would you go for & why, taking into account comfort, build quality, sailing qualities, etc. Which might have had the hardest life, which will have been better maintained?

All available for around £16k...

1987 Feeling 960 from Sailing Holidays
http://www.sailingholidays.com/content/Feeling960-for-sale.pdf

2001 Dufour 30 Classic from Sunsail
http://www.yachtworld.co.uk/boats/2001/Dufour-30-Classic-2542736/Greece

1986 Moody 31 from Nielson
http://www.yachtworld.co.uk/boats/1986/Moody-31-2422577/Greece
Click to expand...

I know the peeps who maintain sailing holiday boats and they do a damn good job, so I would not be worried about the maintenace on those boats. I dont know the other two.
 
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