Crazy or worth a punt

markhomer said:
7 yrs in the water and 1980s boat , id be shocked if it didnt have osmosis ,

headlinings too are notorious and exspensive .

skin fittings , hull fittings , tail shaft and prop all need good check (if still there !.)

guess will need full rewire and batteries , equipment.

if it was free , i would think twice .
Click to expand...

Agreed - when was she surveyed last? The rig looks to have running backstays - not an easy proposition on a boat for cruising short-handed? What does new rigging coming this winter mean?

If you step onto her and really like her lines and feel then it may be worth it, but otherwise I'd look for a boat in Croatia and start from there.
 
garvellachs said:
Agreed - when was she surveyed last? The rig looks to have running backstays - not an easy proposition on a boat for cruising short-handed? What does new rigging coming this winter mean?
Click to expand...

the broker said they were thinking of renewing the rigging this winter, obviously need at least one selling point as opposed to just the price.

I can't understand why they would not have it on the hard as opposed to sitting in a berth, gathering weeds etc.
 
Hmm, Palermo ... When I had a project there for my Swiss company just getting there was a hassle - fly from Zürich to Rome then a domestic flight to Palermo with connections that got progressively out of sync with delays. Perhaps things are different these days but anything connected to Italy is complicated. I know, I keep my boat in the relatively normal, northern part. Even there yard work can try the patience of a saint.

Living in Prague the northern Adriatic or the Baltic are the logical choices for getting to sea - the road trip with a van-load of tools is do-able, where Sicily is another world both in distance and mentality. There are many, many project bargains in NE Italy, Slovenia or Croatia that never make it to the flashy brokers' internet sites. I would propose a little more research.
 
searj said:
low ball offer, bodge it and sail it.
Click to expand...

searj has a workable plan.

Buy it for little more than the cost of a charter holiday and you can write the money off over 5 years or so. Anything you get back is a bonus. Forget new sails and all that malarky. The only sticking point is the engine.
 
doug748 said:
searj has a workable plan.

Buy it for little more than the cost of a charter holiday and you can write the money off over 5 years or so. Anything you get back is a bonus. Forget new sails and all that malarky. The only sticking point is the engine.
Click to expand...

Engine work is very manageable DIY, treat it as a good opportunity to teach yourself marine diesel maintenance, get a manual and get stuck in. Post issues on a forum such as this when problems arise and then the value of knowing your way around a motor will save you a fortune in years to come. Plus you have a nice warm dry place to work on it! It'll probably start and be fine, they're not as delicate as you'd be had believe. If it doesn't run straight away, diagnose, fix and you'll have more confidence in it once you've seen the working of it and fixed it yourself than an engine that you let someone else work on.
 
Salty John said:
The deal breaker would be the deck for me. If the teak is screwed down and water has got into the core I wouldn't consider it at any price.
Click to expand...

+1.

However, if the deck's Ok (How would you know - maybe it's glued down rather than screwed), strip the manky wood off, make good and put non-slip paint over it and you've got a relatively cheap fix. You'll also know all the fittings that had to come off because there was wood between them and the deck are now properly sealed, 'cos you've done it yourself. Big, messy job though.
 
fitlike said:
I've done up boats in the past, but nothing quite this size. So I'd do most of the work myself, got me think maybe, if they accept 18000 to take it off their hands.
Click to expand...

Even at 18000, it's still crazy. The engine might need replacing, rather than repairing. Sorting the teak deck would take you months of work alone. There are lots of better alternatives on the market. Walk away from it.
 
You need to examine the keel mounting assembly for grounding damage. And the hull/rudder for osmosis. Before costing in all the other 30-60K worth of bits
(IMO)
If your labour costs you one cuppa an hour, well, factor that in too..

Dont forget headlinings, mattresses, undue play or stiffness in the winches, steering, gooseneck, windlass, those crazed perspex hatches, u/s water tanks, plumbing, calorifier...add all those one cuppa per hour costs too and well, you may be lucky and not need all that at once. But a boat is the sum total of all its 'bits', which each have a service life but which are interdependent too..

I assume you are a hands on guy with money time and skills, patience, temperament and foreign language skills and a goodly knowledge suffice to appraise and survey and negotiate on the 'what it is worth to me, as is, today' level?

Best of luck but far better to be dour up front, sorry 'bout that!
 
Last edited:
I would look at it from the point of view that it is a lot of boat for the money. Do not consider in terms of bringing it up to new standard of perfection but rather what you need.
Yes engine must be serviceable as must underwater gear and rigging. All the rest is niceness which you may be able to live with. Good luck olewill
 
The engine is not much of an issue, it is a 4108, so no fanciness at all, can be fettled by the fire over the winter or possibly get a recon for virtually no money? Why is there such a basic engine in such a posh boat btw?
 
Paddingtonbear said:
The engine is not much of an issue, it is a 4108, so no fanciness at all, can be fettled by the fire over the winter or possibly get a recon for virtually no money? Why is there such a basic engine in such a posh boat btw?
Click to expand...

Standard fit. Phoenix of Hamble had one in his Oceanis 400.... a Prima 50 (same thing)
 
Current thoughts, well my kind of sailing is along the lines of L and L Pardey, I like to have a boat that sails well, the First 42 seems to fit that, I'm an IT specialist so like having less IT systems on the boat, I look at a computer screen all day don't need to do that when I'm sailing too. So something that gives speed, depth and wind keeps me happy, hand held GPS, I know exactly where I am. So the fact the electronics on the boat will be nearly as old as myself doesn't bother me. Teak decks in the Med, think who needs them, why have a perfectly good sound hull and then drill 500 holes in it to stick some expensive wood down! So happy to remove it fill and sand then add non slip paint.

Engines not running, I was brought up with Massey Ferguson's, you only needed a hammer to fix them. No but simple engine, hopefully an overhaul would sort it, my uncles a ships engineer, retired, so just need to keep him fed with beer and he'd be happy to get his hands dirty (Czech beer 1 pound per litre, probably the best beer in the world).

Sails, are probably very tired but I'd guess OK for a run to Croatia and the get some new ones for the new season.

The fact the hulls been in the water for the last 7 years is probably what worries me most, that's what needs investigating, then it comes down to how much they want rid of her.
Like someone said earlier, I not one to want to restore a boat to new, just safe, nice clean hull, decent sails and an engine that starts and stops. All the rest is extra, well I do like camping so used to roughing it.

IM
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top