Sanity check please. A boat has caught my eye…

It's a lot of boat for the money and apart from the sails and making sure there is no galvanic corrosion it's a very good buy especially if you can get a reduction in price.
 
fredrussell said:
I’ve always had a bit of a thing for Ovni boats. I like lifting keel boats - have a great love of sitting up a muddy east coast creek, and currently have a Parker 31, which I love. I also have an ancient dog and when he goes to the great kennel in the sky I would love to live on a boat, so looking for a bit more room. Lifting keel boats in the mid - 30ft and upwards bracket are not too common, mostly Southerlies or French aluminium types. These boats are generally out of reach for me financially, but…

There’s a ‘cheap’ Ovni 385 currently for sale on Apollo Duck. It’s a fixer-upper, or perhaps a project boat (the difference for me being that a fixer-upper can be put in the water and used whilst work commences, whereas a project boat ends up in a boatyard for months or years). Here’s a link to boat ad:

Alubat Ovni 385 for sale UK, Alubat boats for sale, Alubat used boat sales, Alubat Sailing Yachts For Sale Alubat Ovni 385 - 1999 - 12m 40ft - REDUCED - Apollo Duck

I’m only currently at stage one of boat madness, ie repeatedly looking at the ad and thinking “hmmm”. Your job is to help me avoid stage two which means going to look at the boat. Thankfully the boat is bloody miles away, if it were local I fear I’d be at stage two already.

What do you all reckon? Any experts on painting aluminium decks out there?
It’s been on the market a while and the price has been coming down and I suspect may be reduced more.
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Cosmetically these boats age badly but, provided the hull looks sound it should outlast you without breaking the bank. Having said that I too don't fancy the engine very much. Check out Alluring Arctic on YouTube they fettled an aluminium boat - not that I suggest you should ever consider doing that level of refit. Fixing old boats is an exercise in knowing when to stop and go sailing

If the engine has hassles, and knowing that you are in for a lot of tough work anyway, do you really need the trouble? I think this is a young man's game, sit tight.

.
 
Well it’s only money😎

What I like:
Aluminium
Deck etc is cosmetic
Nice autopilot
The components will still be readily available.
This is important when you try to replace a bent hatch frame or a leaking black water tank ( say, just examples).

There is a survey

And the standing rigging has been replaced

What I DO NOT like ( ie assume the worst ££)
The sails are old

That engine. Factor in a new one.


Moving forward:
I would want to see the survey, talk to the surveyor with a view to getting a look at that centreboard and rudder. Worst case get it lifted in slings and have a good old look and wriggle to make sure the underbody bits are not abraded , bent or dissolved away.

Locally, people will know what the story is and any untoward history.
It’s always worth putting the beer time in chatting to locals ..

So yes. I would buy that 😂👍

And figure that for £100k with new sails engine, paint, oops-didn’t-spot-that, etc, you will have a beautiful £95k boat to enjoy for many years .

Edit : Have you sailed an Ovni and have you access to other owners and their experience of the evolving designs and performance and maintenance schedules of the Ovni models ??
Is it advertised with Ovni owners as well ??

I think the ‘ manana’ attitude might see this one sold away under yer eyes before too long to someone who can see what’s there and do a realistic time/money assessment.
 
The engine wouldn't scare me, provided I could see it start from cold, preferably on a cold day. A bit of smoke as it warms up is OK, but it shouldn't smoke once warm. Plenty of water out of the exhaust, and it pushes the boat along nicely, and it'll likely be good for a few years. Bonus points if there's no oil in the bilges, just a good accumulation of general dust proving it hasn't been cleaned.
 
Sticky Fingers said:
I’d be taking a flight up to have a proper look. Impossible to tell from photos whether that’s a DIY fixer upper or a project, and you really need to know. Then provided you’ve not been put off, come up with an offer per Elessar’s suggestion; consider an as-is / where-is basis no survey. My bet is they want rid.

The question of how to paint aluminium is easily solved and imho is the laser the things I’d be worrying about, not least because a lot of these boats that I’ve seen have been left unpainted.
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Agree with the basis for offer. My last 3 boats have been on that basis. You buy some risk but if the price is right that’s fine.
I’m just selling boat no 5. But the first 4 I sold for more than I paid for them.
 
I'd 'offer' to visit - subject to sight of the surveyors report. If you were comfortable with the surveyors report I'd go and see her sooner rather then later. She needs some work, if you don't have lots of spare cash are you fit and healthy? If you do buy you will need to live in Scotland for a while :)

The engine might be fine - see the surveyors report.

There is an 30 year old unpainted aluminium yacht on a mooring in front of me, she was a neighbour to our cat - she is fine in her naked state. Most aluminium yachts I see are unpainted, though they are not common in Australia

The fact she has a water maker pickled since 2004 and the engine hours are not excessive suggests she has not gone very far.

Good Luck :)

Jonathan
 
Neeves said:
I'd 'offer' to visit - subject to sight of the surveyors report. If you were comfortable with the surveyors report I'd go and see her sooner rather then later. She needs some work, if you don't have lots of spare cash are you fit and healthy? If you do buy you will need to live in Scotland for a while :)

The engine might be fine - see the surveyors report.

There is an 30 year old unpainted aluminium yacht on a mooring in front of me, she was a neighbour to our cat - she is fine in her naked state. Most aluminium yachts I see are unpainted, though they are not common in Australia

The fact she has a water maker pickled since 2004 and the engine hours are not excessive suggests she has not gone very far.

Good Luck :)

Jonathan
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I would guess that after a couple of days she could sail away, ugly but serviceable.
 
Stemar said:
The engine wouldn't scare me, provided I could see it start from cold, preferably on a cold day. A bit of smoke as it warms up is OK, but it shouldn't smoke once warm. Plenty of water out of the exhaust, and it pushes the boat along nicely, and it'll likely be good for a few years. Bonus points if there's no oil in the bilges, just a good accumulation of general dust proving it hasn't been cleaned.
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fredrussell, don't send this guy to do your negotiations.
 
I made a new rode for this one. She was kitted with a 10mm rode, I think G30. It was replaced with a 100m of 8mm galvanised G100.

She is owned by a local (Brisbane) boat builder

Jonathan

IMG_0038.jpeg
 
Fr J Hackett said:
I would guess that after a couple of days she could sail away, ugly but serviceable.
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She seems lightly used and maybe little used recently. if the surveyor did his stuff he would have switched everything on to check - the report determines what essential work will keep you in Scotland. But for me its going home - so I would not mind too long a stay - and summer is coming

Jonathan
 
Another thought, on the peeling deck paint:

KM bead blast the decks of their Bestaever custom ali boats. To achieve a textured, non slip, finish. Don’t know if this technique could be used to also remove the peeling deck paint?

Hulls are left unpainted, as per current generation Ovni, Boreal & Allures…..
 
Certainly looks intriguing. But aluminium and a lifting keel and rudder both represent a degree of complication and risk compared to a simple fixed keel fibreglass boat. Do you need these features?

If you go ahead, let us know if the Spectra can be brought back to life. 21yrs is a long time to be sat pickled!
 
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