What are Sun Runner Boats like?

[ExcaliburII]

I've got the opportunity to buy an old (1987 model according to its HIN) Sun Runner.

I don't know what actual model it is but it's about 28 feet long with an absolutely HUGE anchor platform and about 8' 6" beam. It's got twin Volvo AQ131s on 290SP legs. (Or rather it did have - there's only one lump in it, the other one has been taken out to be rebuilt and is somewhere nearby, apparently, although I haven't actually seen it.) I'm assuming the engines and legs are original, as there is only the one set of holes in the bearers where the missing one has come from. It's a four berth layout: dinette/V-berths forward with a separate small twin mid cabin beneath the forward end of the 'sunbridge' style split level cockpit. There is a shower/toilet compartment with a sea toilet and washbasin. The galley has an alcohol stove and microwave which I assume runs off shorepower.

The whole thing is a complete basket case and has been stored in a workshop for the last 11 years, when the present owner lost interest in renovating it after importing it from USA. It needs a complete rewire, all machinery overhauled or replaced, and refurnishing and trimming from stem to stern, all of which is obviously reflected in the price I will be prepared to pay if I decide to go for it.

The question is, does any forumite have any knowledge or experience of a Sun Runner, performance-wise? I had never heard of them until I looked at this one today but I now gather the company went bust in the early 90s. (I'm talking about the company that was in Washington, USA, not the Aussie outfit of the same name.) Obviously, I can't do a sea trial on this one and I don't want to invest a lot of time money and effort if the finished result is going to swim like a bloated hippo.

Any help/advice would be much appreciated. If this goes ahead I will obviously have to learn how to post photos on the forum /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[AndieMac]

Not familiar with the (USA) name, but sounds similar to old Formula 26, long, high and narrow with a slight reverse sheer.
When you described the bowsprit, the yanks at that time insisted on putting 'diving-boards' under their anchors.
Has the boat got moulded GRP decks, cockpit and cabin soles?
Is the outdrive transom assembly removed as well, to check for transom rot?

 

[oldgit]

No experience of this particular boat,but loads of bitter experience on actually squandering perfectly good money on stuff like this. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Have no idea of your track record on long term restoration but getting this thing back to health will be a very expensive and long operation.
You will first need somewhere probably undercover to keep it as working on boats on December mornings is no fun and there will also a minor mountain of hidden "stuff" that needs fixing which will ooze to the surface as you go along.
The present owner also certainly thinks he is giving this away at a bargain price. However please do not pay good money in order to buy somebody elses heap of trouble,the thing was certainly taken out of service due to mechcanical trouble which somebody could not afford to fix and the whole shebang has been lying around quietly falling to bits ever since.Rebuilding those legs is going to cost a minium of £1000 + vat each and assuming that it has petrol engines IF you get them going reliably it could cost you 20 gallons an hour to run.....Yup..... thats nearly a Hundred pounds an hour.
We have a small boatyard opposite us and it is full of "restoration" projects that have been abandoned and have been passed from owner to owner,each time less and less gets done.Yard owner loves it at £20.00 per week per wreck. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Sorry to be so negative but unless you get this for the price of a pint.......
Ps.You can spend a fortune and hours of work on the thing and it may well be worth nought when it come to sell!
My advice try to buy something that is a least capable of movement.

 

[AndieMac]

Have to agree with a lot of what you are saying.
I'd rekon that Excaliber, by the looks, is wanting a challenge. Of course not knowing the situation or the boat, its a hard call.

By putting out a call on the forum first, finding out if there is any resale on the finished project, is sound thinking.
There is no doubt, taking on major reno project is not for the faint hearted, or those with a light wallet. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[Firefly625]

to help others make informed comments, I think this is a Sun Runner around the same vintage and size as you are looking at. Reminds me a bit of an early Regal 255..

All I would say, whatever the asking price, if a complete basket case you will end up spending more than its restored worth... but that is half the fun!

Sun Runner 27

 

[ExcaliburII]

Thanks for the responses to date folks, and for the link, Firefly.

That boat looks very similar. The hull, superstructure and cockpit layout look identical, although the dash is a different shape and some details of the layout below are slightly different.

The current owner is actually my brother-in-law, and I knew he has had this thing squirrelled away for a long time, although I had not examined it close up before. At least I have a litlle bit more confidence in its history than would have been the case otherwise. My bil imported it from the states in 1997, but only used it for one season. Then he (or maybe his SWMBO?) decided it needed an image makeover and he moved it into one of his workshops where after a brief flurry of activity it has been quietly forgotten about ever since.

Now he has accepted he will never have the time or inclination to finish the job, and needs the space. Whilst the agreed price is a bit more than the price of a pint, it is low enough to tempt me as my next retirement project, so here we are.

My initial inclination would be to sell off the AQ131s and drives and replace them with something a bit more up to date - probably diesel. However, I will reserve the final judgement on this until I have had a good look at the existing units.

What I am really after is some idea of how these things perform and how much power would be ideal. In other words, would it have been under/over powered with the old AQ131s, or about right? I don't know the displacement, but I get the impression it's quite solid and heavy - built like the proverbial brick outhouse, in fact. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

To be continued . . .

 

[longjohnsilver]

You will probably have more joy asking about this on some of the American boaty forums.

I have to agree with most of what Oldgit says, seen too many people start of all enthusiastic and then let it all fade away. Why did you bil give up?

 

[ExcaliburII]

Yes, I have been having a bit of a browse on some American fora, thanks. Will have to sign up and get in there, methinks.

My bil (and his SWMBO more so!) are a bit more image-conscious than me and mine, and having launched into the refurb he quickly ended up a long way out of his comfort zone and didn't want to buy in the necessary skills and expertise to turn it into what they wanted.

He did mention the project to me several years ago, but I was still working then and didn't have the time to tackle it on a family favour basis. So it sort of lapsed again. He has since gone over to the dark side, and they now spend a lot of time in the Med on his mate's boat with big sticky-up flappy bits /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

Now I am retired and given that I don't charge myself for my own time /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif, it looks like a viable proposition if we do all the work in house. My SWMBO is good with upholstery and fabrics etc, so all that will be down to her, while I do the engineering and all the rest.

 

[hlb]

From experience. If you buy the best boat you can, in perfect condition, and profesionally maintained. You will still spend most of your life, doing all those little jobs that you really cant call a mechanic out for.

When you have done all of this, you will still be going backwards at a rate of knots.