Dazed, confused and a tad upset.. Advice please.

[hlb]

Apart from the cracked sea cocks, I see nothing unusual there. Odd bits of oil leaks are quite normal and hardly worth bothering about.

The surveyer has to protect himself, so makes a meal out of everything.

Water in the keel. Does he mean bilge?? Thought that was what a bilge was for??

 

[fireball]

Water in the keel. Does he mean bilge?? Thought that was what a bilge was for??

Yer - but where has it come from? The cracked seacock?

TBH I wouldn't worry about 1/2 of what is in that report ... most of it could be resolved personally - as long as the mech's are in serviceable condition then it's going to be ok ... on the whole ...

All that's left is the consideration for the bits that are 'wrong' - no you don't expect a tip top boat - but neither do you expect one that is squirting out diesel into the bilge or hydrollic steering that you have to top up every 500m.
Ok - so it's probably not that bad - but how much is a new steering ram or replacement fuel pipework that were not expected and would be expected to be done on a reasonably maintained vessel ??

 

[Elza_Skip]

Good luck with this- as you say boat buying is a learning experience.

When we bought our latest boat this was 18 years old and the contract stipulated only items over 5% of the sale price could be considered for refusal as we had agreed a reasonable discount from the seller. We made sure then we went for a boat under budget so we would have a fund to make repairs and upgrades.

It is pretty inevitable that with an older boat there will be a constant snagging list so my advise is make sure you have a budget for ongoing repairs and tackle them gradually starting with the priorities.

In my case I recon it will take me 3 years to get my boat how I want it and by then something else will have broken but I am a bit of a perfectionist.

 

[BobMod]

All

Thanks again.. I think the old girl will see me right and the broker and I have made up.. The engine survey is on Monday. The engineer doing it has a small list of extras to quote for inc the hydraulic leaks and the fuel leak.

The props are the originals and I might treat myself to new ones or recondition the old ones at a later date but for now they seem to push and pull ok..

The wiring from the windlass I will do myself and it is easy.. Just very lazy and shoddy workmanship in the first place..

Flush was a second button around the back of the unit that needed directions from the owner to find.. Daft design...

Wiring through the bilge just needs clipping and securing.. Even if it needs heat wrapping to protect it.. It is a couple of hours of yoga around the engine space, a few choice words with uncooperative tools/parts etc..

I am far more manana about the smaller stuff having over-reacted in the first place and then phoned the surveyer who then said.. Yup it could be bulbs.... Etc...

 

[oldgit]

...to refurbish both props about £150-200 but to replace new £1000.
Steel Developments are the place to go for getting those old props fettled,you WILL need them sooner or later.

 

[gjgm]

JFM

LMAO...

Right.. All thank you for setting a little perspective.. I am calmer now although GJGM I hardly think concern over hydraulic leaks, Diesel leaks and a siezed open seacock are personal levels of satisfaction but I do see your point on the others...

Which is what I said in my first response.
Good luck.

 

[Kipper]

My only observation on reading this thread is that the boat does not seem to have had a lot of TLC lavished on it in recent years.This is not an issue if you buy at a price you are both happy with and you have a good idea how much you need to spend to get her to the condition you will be happy with.

If you are not happy with the deal say so and look elswhere or buy knowing what it is going to cost.

 

[Andrew_Fanner]

...to refurbish both props about £150-200 but to replace new £1000.
Steel Developments are the place to go for getting those old props fettled,you WILL need them sooner or later.

On the river I'd consider Norris because they are nearer. When I've had a prop needing doing I've used them, also very good and quick turnaround.
http://www.tnorrismarine.co.uk/

 

[CX54WEK]

For a boat of that vintage it doesnt seem like too bad a list of "faults". You need to bear in mind that she will have had 27 years of previous owners "improvements" and modifications so may well end up undoing someone elses handy work to make things as you want them.

No boat is ever perfect and if a surveryor didnt find faults with any boat then he isnt doing his job right. Our boat was 5 years old when we bought her and the survey found a list of items to be put right, luckily we bought a stock boat so they were all fixed before we took delivery of the boat.

It is a never ending cycle of maintenance and fixing things though, even on a relatively young boat. Ous is now 8 years old yet it still seems like a never ending job to keep everything working. The trick is to try and fix things as you go to prevent a back log of jobs that never get finished/started. You will have 27 years of other peoples put off jobs to contend with unfortunately.

 

[Alpha22]

All

It is a couple of hours of yoga around the engine space, a few choice words with uncooperative tools/parts etc..

And at the end of it, you will know far more about your new boat than you could imagine. All of which will help you in the future.

You can play hardball and get a better deal, even with bargin basement priced boats. We were looking at one and it was obvious the licence was due, the broker let slip that his insurance was due, also if he didn't shift it that month the seller would have to pay towards mooring costs. If we didn't buy that week, the seller would be in for quite a few hundreds of pounds just to keep it forsale. We were still getting the price lowered on the actual day of sale!! Result!!!

 

[gjgm]

And at the end of it, you will know far more about your new boat than you could imagine. All of which will help you in the future.

You can play hardball and get a better deal, even with bargin basement priced boats. We were looking at one and it was obvious the licence was due, the broker let slip that his insurance was due, also if he didn't shift it that month the seller would have to pay towards mooring costs. If we didn't buy that week, the seller would be in for quite a few hundreds of pounds just to keep it forsale. We were still getting the price lowered on the actual day of sale!! Result!!!

Or maybe you play hardball and spend the entire summer trying to find another boat.
Its a two way negotiation. As a buyer you hold no more cards than a seller.