Boats - any experience?

[Raque Thomas]

I'm thinking of making a drastic change in my life and buying a boat to live on. I have wanted to do it several times in the past & have talked myself out of it. However, now I've found my dream boat - a 1992 64' Blue Water Coastal. It's a steal - because it partially sank in Bermuda in a hurricane. Engines fried, generator fried, wiring questionable, etc. Was under water for less than two days. Interior looks OK, but has no furniture or upholstry. It is not "gutted", the carpet is still in place and serviceable, wood flooring needs to be refinished but is not warped, headliner OK, cabinets in galley OK, bed platforms in place, bathrooms OK, etc. No hull damage - was blown onto it's side and into a piling, which puntured 2 windows and let the water in to partially sink it.

My question is - anyone here have any experience with anything like this? Am I getting in over my head? I am a VERY handy person when it comes to home improvement, wiring, etc - but I know nothing about rebuilding engines (2-502's) or generators. I think I can buy it for around $35,000. When complete, it would have a value of around $200,000. Any educated thoughts here? Am I crazy??

[Ldub]

RT,

As you probably already know...a boat is just a mostly dry spot in the water into which one throws money. That being said, I'm envious, living on the water is great!
I have a cuzzin in Louisiana that lives on a houseboat on the bayou(sp?) that I've stayed with in the past.
Only problem there was coming home in the wee hours & forgetting that the tide went out.(ouch)

Good Luck,

Ldub

[Joe_Black]

Ye 'ave a case of salvor's eye matey! ;Dr; There's a lot of hulls sitting rotting in backyards all over the country that started like this. I don't know what your marine background is, but that's a lot of work. And $35K could get you into a lot of boat that's already seaworthy. If this is just for you, 64' is a bunch o' boat. And maintenance.

After spending many years teaching myself to sail I lived on a Hunter 30 for about a year and learned a lot about the hidden costs of life at sea. Turns out most of it is spent giving money to the marina you call home. Don't get me wrong, it's romantic and awe inspiring. But not for the inexperienced to jump right into something an experienced sailor would steer clear of.

Find a couple of reputable marine surveyors and get their opinions. Even 2 days of submersion will wreak all sorts of havoc on a vessel. You'll pretty much end up gutting it down to the skin and building it back up, which is years of work on a boat that size. You'll end up putting far more than the estimated end value into it before it ever sees more than a set of jacks beneath its hull.

[Maugan_VX]

If a boat sank, its what destiny had in store for it.

My eventual goal in life is to live on a boat and just leave civilization behind.

In the meantime, I'll be doing the Tybee 500 this year.

http://www.tybee500.com

back to the topic though.

I know it sounds tempting, but what you would be buying is what we like to call "a project." Here is how we distinguish between a "project" and a "boat." You enjoy your "boat." You use it, you clean it, you get chicks drunk on the bow and then show them the stateroom. Your "project" sits at the dock. Its never complete, never quite where you want it to be, Your "project" never sets sail, it never cranks up with the women are watching, and the smell of mildew that's crept into the core of the laminate will NEVER go away no matter how much you rip out and replace.

In the end, You pay lots of money on your "boat" to keep it from breaking. On your "project" you just spend money undoing someone elses' f-up. Now heres the plot twist kids. If you enjoy working on boats (this invariably means that you're like me and immune to the effects of inhaled fiberglass dust) then a project is a worth-while investment. I've restored a couple of smaller boats when I was a kid and resold them for more than 4x what I paid for them. However, I don't think a project like this would be a one-man adventure. Were you planning on having a professional crew work on it or are you a DIY kind of guy?

This is my kind of a 60'er:
http://newimages.yachtworld.com/1/1/8/9/4/1189471_1.jpg

[Joe_Black]

You call this "immune to the effects of inhaled fiberglass dust"?!?!
http://www.ncsailing.org/albums/tadproject/aai.sized.jpg

Eeewww! Now I know why you post the way you do! :laughg: :laughg: :laughg:

[thedutchguy]

If it's been submerged you need to replace or recondition EVERYTHING!!!

I have a Brig Eagle 600

http://www.pneuboat.com/membres/pages_perso/3423.jpg

But even this almost sank in Lake Geneva last summer during horendous weather.:mbrasd:

[Reg Hinnant]

Hi Raq,
Keep it a dream!
I built a 25" sailboat and then lived aboard a 38' sailboat for 12 years.
At 64' you would be in WAY over your head for a 1 man project.
Not counting the ongoing costs for a boat that size.
I have known many that got into those types of projects that were never finished.
If you keep looking, there will be a better opportunity.

[transio]

I'm not familiar with the Blue Water brand, but I've been around boats my whole life (Miami). Sunken boat is not a fresh water flood car. Years from now you 'll have problems from the salt water. 2 days is not a long time, but it's enough for the water to saturate every part of the boat. Not sure what your budget is, but if you think this is a bargain that you'll spend maybe 50k on and flip for 200, you're taking a big risk. A boat is a depreciating asset, not an investment opportunity. A formerly sunken boat is more than likely going to be a money pit.

I think you should get it if you don't care about the money and just want to play with it as a project... that is, if you're willing to lose your investment into it. If you're hoping to make a profit off it, maybe you should look into other things.

[Maugan_VX]

hahah Joe, funny you found that pic of me...

Thats almost all sanded gelcoat in that pic. We were refinishing some hulls and had to fill in several deep gouges in the bottoms from 20 knot beach landings.

While its probably not the best for you, gelcoat aint nearly as nasty as fiberglass dust. The glass dust can cause your lungs to bleed if you aren't careful.

[PeteVX]

looks more like snortin white candy to me :)

[Maugan_VX]

Yea I got that accusation at work today. After work on Friday I went and faired down a centerboard. Dust settled on my work shoes and my boss asked me this morning if I had a good time with the cocaine this weekend.

[Heraclid]

I've inhaled fiberglass dust before. Not cool.

[driven]

he asked about real boats. Not blowboats, or blowup boats;puke: .

My main concern would be with ethe wiring. Even good copper wire would be destroyed in 2 days under salt water. Rewiring a 60' boat with properly tinned wire would cost$$$, not to mention, you'd probably have to lots of work to even get to the wiring. new motors, unless those 502's were pickled, new fuel tanks$$$, generator, electronics...

sounds like a great project, but my guess is you would spend over 100K to do it right, and you'll still have a salvage title following you around.

however, living on the water is like nothing else in the world, and i love my two boats docked out in the back yard, and would give up almost anything to stay.

[PBR]

I have been in the business for 25 years and build liveaboard catamarans both sail and power. The Bluewater is basically a houseboat that can be taken offshore in mild conditions. Frankly if you can get it for 35k it's probably not a bad deal based on your description, if you do most of the work yourself. Boats are not investments when you buy them just for recreation, but when you liveaboard it's a whole different thing. Have you been aboard and personally inspected, is it being sold by the insurance company or owner?

[Raque Thomas]

I've been on the boat a few times. Something I forgot to mention - the guy who bought it from the insuance company (he hauls Blue Waters for a living), has not touched it in 2 years - it's been sitting in a boat yard here (that hasn't helped matters!). I had not thought about the fuel tank - better find out if it is accessible! The motors are toast, the genererator is missing - and the switches/relays/contacts I've been able to see are history also. It appears to have 3 separate HVAC systems - I assume those would need to be replaced as well. By doing most of the work myself, I would think I could come in considerably under the $100k mark - if not, it wouldn't be worth my while. The boat is probably worth $195k - $225k standing tall, so if I spent $35k + $100k, still had a salvage title and other questionable items, plus used my time - it wouldn't be worth it. Still trying to decide what to do - getting a parts list together to price out the things I know need to be replaced and see where that comes in.

[Joe_Black]

Now that you've shared that additional info I think you should just scrap that idea. The systems needing outright replacement are going to be excessively expensive as they're not easily "scrounged" and are specialized marine items.

Best thing to do to get closer to your dream is to start touching it. Either join up with a cruising club or grab some friends to rent a boat and put some blue water under your keel for a week. Find out what it's like by living it as much as you can, even if only for a few days. The knowledge will start flowing to you and a wealth of human experience will be at hand through the friendships you'll forge in that environment. That'll help set your compass for the true path you need to follow.

I know I'll be looking forward to your posted photos of where that path takes you. ;Do;