What to look for

[Moose]

Hello, I am going up to Windsor tomorrow to have a scout around, my (well not quite my boat yet!) I am trying to get a survey done on it before Christmas, but when I have a look tomorrow I am going to have a rumage through all the paperwork, What should I look for?
And also what should I look for on the sea(oops) River trial?
It is the F36!

 

[Guest]

River Trial

Are you trying to start another Phantom 42 thread?!

I'll get in quick before MattS starts. I'll say it quietly (check the HIN, don't say what the price is, ignore any postings from mattsshhh - you know who!).

Look back at the original P42 thread three or four weeks ago when I asked what to look for on a sea trial. Ask the obvious questions, ask to see the paperwork, ask that everything be started (get there early so that they don't have a chance to warm it up first), ask to see everything works. On the last point, just look at it as if you know what it's all about. So long as it lights up and/or bleeps, it's probably all right. We've now got a bit of a concern about leaks. By getting on the boat early, nobody will have had a chance to dry any leaks up. Look in the corners. Walk inside the boat without shoes on - you'll soon find any wet carpet. Look for water stains on carpet, curtains, bedding, wood. Check for any wet again after the river trial - the movement might make any water move inside the boat.

The P42 we looked at had very low hours. Unlike a car, low usage is bad for a boat, you actually want one that has been used on a regular basis. If you can also try another boat of the same model, you'll be able to compare one with another.

Employing a surveyor does cost but we reckoned it was well worth it. However, if you look the boat over first and decide against it, you might be able to save yourself that expense.

Finally, when matts asks you what the name of the boat is, either make one up or find out what he's going to call his boat and say it's the same!

 

[tripleace]

paperwork

Apart from the boat paperwork:

Original invoice from manufacturer to first owner and every bill of sale through the boats life. This will help prove the boat is not stolen and in many cases these invoices are held by the finance company (if on hp etc). If the owner has teh oroginals it will help prove ownership and the finance position.

 

[hlb]

Not easy to proper trial the boat on a river Mr Moose, unless river police and skulling boats look the other way. Mabe trial should be late at night or even 5 Am christmas day.
Like others have said. Have a good poke around and dont be rushed. Best to start from feeling that it's going to be crap and work from there or rose colourd specks quickly take over.
Good idea to take an engineer along if you can.
But problem still remains. Would you buy a car that you were only aloud to do 8mph in . Down a back street!
Having said that, engines dont usually cause to many problems, although running especially Volvos at river speeds is not a good idea.

Haydn

 

[petem]

It\'s like finding the right woman...

You'll just know. That's why RichardC could never have bought the Phantom.

P.S. Without getting all sentimental my wife knew that she was going to marry me within 10 minutes of meeting me. Bless!

 

[Guest]

Re: Ouch! and sorry AGAIN RichardC...

Moose, if the Hull Identification Numbers are ground off or smashed, walk away!

PLEASE DON'T.....
1 Ignore dodgy HIN's, proceed to hire a nice expensive surveyor, go on a river/sea trial, and worry about small water leaks and minor issues.

2 then, ask detailed questions on the BB that are in fact irrelevant - because you should have walked away immediately, as above, but didn't.

3 Flame BB posters for "wasting their time on the BB" when they were asking your questions whilst you dithering for 4 weeks.

4 Then, having never ever owned or bought a boat and having come close to making the largest possible hash of it, return to the BB to give out advice to others!

4a) Make sure it's totally sh*t advice such as "If it lights up or beeps, it's probably alright" regarding nav/electronics. Encourage them to bluff and "look as though you know what you're talking about" like you clearly did. Under no circumstances advise anyone to ask that features or functions are explained such they understand and then DO know what they're talking about....

4b) Also, give safely banal but similarly hopeless advice which would be of use only to very small children under the age of three: such as "if you see more than one example, it'll help compare one against another". Duh?! As if you can "compare" anything *without* seeing more than one of them? Nevertheless, this sounds like "wise advice", as does "hire a surveyor before buying a boat, but if you decide against buying the boat first of all...you'll save money by NOT hiring a surveyor"! or words to that effect.

5 When dishing out the advice, remember to flame others to whom you originally asked advice yourself, especially anyone who gave you correct advice re walking away, cos you really really wanted to buy the boat and they upset you by being rather negative about it, instead of gosh fawning over how lucky you are to be able to consider etc etc. Continue to flame them as often as poss, even if they apologised for somehow causing your sulkiness, and even if they expalined that use of the words "too cheap" was not a personal attack on you.

DO

1 Read the magazines. There's often really good "buying secondhand" advice. Oh, and there are lots of other good articles in the magazines too, 'specially Jan 2002 MBY. Now, those guys really *do* know what they're talking about in the magazines, eh? ..... ;-)

 

[Guest]

Re: engine tests on river trial

How do they test the engines tehn? tie it to concrete and run it up gently? Or just hope it'll be fine?

 

[paulineb]

Re: It\'s like finding the right woman...

uck ! pass the sick bucket !! ;-)

Pauline B

 

[miket]

Most brokers on the river have an area where they will briefly open up fast boats. Not ideal but better than 4.5 kts.
If they won't, suggest they might like to trailer to coast instead. (their cost). Highly unlikely.

Iam surprised that Byron hasn't woken up this morning yet. Must still be recovering from the Xmas party at UTMYC. A chum of his is, I believe, disposing of a recent F36 with lots of goodies. Based on the river, but certainly done quite a bit of sea work.

Wakey wakey, Byron.

 

[Guest]

IMHO you really do need to be able to open her up for a reasonable bit; if everything seems ok after a short trip, then make the longer sea trial a condition for final exchange. Oh, and specially with little usage (I recall there was a nice (but thinly specced) one with under 40 hrs up there) check that it has still had all the oil changes etc. Corrosion/lack of use could manifest itself big time later. Again if v. low hours take a close look for signs of corrosion on the underwater stuff - anodes may not have been changed. If little used, may not have kit you would expect - take into account in price.

John