Scottish boat yard recommendations

[dylanwinter]

My current plan is to get the Centaur to the Scottish West Coast by the beginning of August.

I would like to find a yard where I could have her lifted out and dumped ashore for two months

The plan is to head home for a couple of months and then return to the west coast, varnish the brightwork, antifoul her, serice the engine and then spend another six weeks doing some autumn sailing.

I then want her ashore again - spend another few days deep cleaning her ready to sell in the spring

I am planning to put her in Boats and outboards at a silly high price (£10,000) which I will then reduce by £100 a week until some-one bites.

If that does not get her shifted I will bring her south to sell her in the solent.

I wondered if anyone had any suggestions about small yards where I could base myself and the boat

If you have been watching the films then I am very comfortable in a place that is full of character(s), often with grotty loos, with power in the yard and where I am allowed to sleep aboard while I am working on her

 

[smithy]

Try River Clyde Boatyard, close to transport links. Ok for working on boat but too far from open sea if you are looking for a sailing base.

 

[Beamishken]

Fairlie Quay marina near Largs good concrete yard help full staff train station within walking distance prices not too over the top

 

[JumbleDuck]

My current plan is to get the Centaur to the Scottish West Coast by the beginning of August.

That's an awful long coast. How far down it do you think you can get? If as far as the Clyde, then I'd warmly recommend Port Bannatyne boatyard, where my boat lives in the winter. Downside: it's on an island. Upside: it's on an island!

 

[ionbard]

DRB Marine, Roseneath. Allegedly cheapest on the clyde, but I've not checked. Great yard (if basic) and bus connection to trains to Glasgow (or Highland sleeper south from Garelochead only 20 mins).

We've been there for several years and very happy with it..

 

[JumbleDuck]

Another thought ... if you get even further south there's Kippford Slipway on the Solway. Very easy by car from the south.

 

[robmcg]

+1 for Port Bannatyne

 

[wully1]

Clyde or somewhere more civilised on the west side of the Mull??

( of Kintyre, AKA Cape McCartney)

 

[dylanwinter]

geography not that important

although the further south the better to reduce driving time so I assume the clyde is a good place and also a good place top get people to come and look at her

distance from the sea also not a prob as I will be coming to the boat for six weeks of sailing

D

 

[KenMcCulloch]

The first sensible place you would come to for the purposes you describe is probably Arisaig which has the enormous advantage of having a railway station . Then there are a number of yards in the Oban area, all pretty well ok but not equally accessible. Then there are loads of places, as already noted, around the Clyde. Just don't listen to anyone who tries to suggest Ardfern. Lovely spot but very expensive.

 

[Kelpie]

If you don't make it very far south, Lochinver is a good bet in terms of facilities/price, but a long drive.

 

[aquaplane]

Shorter end of the driving range and cheap end of price range is Sandpoint
@ Dumbarton.
West of Kintyre is nicer for sailing but harder to get to/show the boat.

Kilmelfort is welcoming.

Other places are available.

 

[penfold]

DRB Marine, Roseneath. Allegedly cheapest on the clyde, but I've not checked. Great yard (if basic) and bus connection to trains to Glasgow (or Highland sleeper south from Garelochead only 20 mins).

We've been there for several years and very happy with it..

Shorter end of the driving range and cheap end of price range is Sandpoint
@ Dumbarton.
West of Kintyre is nicer for sailing but harder to get to/show the boat.

Kilmelfort is welcoming.

Other places are available.

The other Clyde alternative is whatever the old McGruer yard is called these days; it was called DSC marine but I'm not sure if it's still called that now, next door to DRB and equally inexpensive. For selling the boat in Scotland I can't see anywhere other than a Clyde yard being a success, purely for accessibility reasons.

For your mid-season refit I'd second Kilmelfort as it's a really nice place to pass the time, although it is a long drive to get there even from the Clyde; the chaps that work there are fairly characterful, although you may find the lavvies disappointingly palatial. There's even a laundry!

 

[YachtAllegro]

Head of Loch Kishorn (opposite Plockton) too far north for you? Basic boatyard, tidal lift-out, but very cheap, laid back west coast attitude, and Rory, who runs it, is a very helpful and competent engineer if you need anything doing. 01520733261 is their number if you're interested. Don't know what your plans are in detail, but might be a reasonable option for your initial stop, then you could spend the 6 weeks you talk about heading further south to leave her somewhere a bit more accessible and expensive for sale. The Inner Sound is a great cruising ground. You'd get to Kishorn via Inverness, which is 3.5 hours driving from the central belt, plus another 1.5 hours to Kishorn itself.

Arisaig would be another option in that general area, though I haven't used their boatyard facilities, and it might not actually be that much quicker to drive to (via Fort William - actually probably about 3.5 hours from the central belt)! Kimelford probably your best bet in the Oban area, though Barcaldine (Loch Creran "Marine Resource Centre") is cheap and cheerful, and also has cheap undercover storage if you need to do paintwork etc. Either of those would be around 2.5 hours from the central belt.

 

[bikedaft]

Shorter end of the driving range and cheap end of price range is Sandpoint.

+1

On the train, handy for viewers. Not that expensive. They know what they are doing

 

[prv]

I am planning to put her in Boats and outboards at a silly high price (£10,000) which I will then reduce by £100 a week until some-one bites.

You're relying on no potential buyers reading this, then?

It reminds me of a certain nameless outfit's pricing policy, where they started off high but absolutely invariably reduced to £99 a week or two before to try to fill the berths. Once word got around, they found they were selling most of their berths at £99 as everybody was waiting for the drop. Really shot themselves in the foot by making it so obvious.

Pete

 

[dylanwinter]

You're relying on no potential buyers reading this, then?

It reminds me of a certain nameless outfit's pricing policy, where they started off high but absolutely invariably reduced to £99 a week or two before to try to fill the berths. Once word got around, they found they were selling most of their berths at £99 as everybody was waiting for the drop. Really shot themselves in the foot by making it so obvious.

Pete

on the contrary

it is an advantage if people know and the advert will make it quite clear that the price will drop each week

done it a few times with dinghies and dayboats

reckon it will work with Harmony

D

had a cracking sail today from Lerwick to Symbister

beam reach 20mph winds - lots of waves on the quarter, rocks all around, sunny all day

best sail of my life so far I think

 

[alan_d]

on the contrary

it is an advantage if people know and the advert will make it quite clear that the price will drop each week

done it a few times with dinghies and dayboats

reckon it will work with Harmony

D

Dutch Auction - a relatively common and well-understood way of selling things. A prospective purchaser has to weigh up the potential benefit of holding out in the hope of securing the item for a lower price against the risk that that they will lose out to someone else who bids first.

 

[AngusMcDoon]

Don't know if anyone else agrees, but from my observations there seems to be fewer tatty old Centaur type boats on the west coast of Scotland outside of the Clyde than other parts of the UK. The boats seem mostly to be bigger and often posher. There may not be much of a market for that type of boat.

I expect I'll be disproved by lots of replies now.

 

[Deleted member 36384]

I assume a 40 lb CQR will not be part of the sale ? It would certainly increase the offer price, if it was not .