Pending offer on 1985 Bayfield 29C

[windshadowthree]

Originally Posted by RossD

Blisters, another item for me to look closely for, I had not heard about them re the Bayfield. Whatever I find will come in to play should I decide to renegotiate the selling price. The wiring part is a bit scary, for such a good builder I'm a bit surprised at this. I've owned scores of boats over the years, some high end, some mid tier, none had household wiring. Do you recall how much A/C wiring is in that boat? Thank you for all this information!

There were four AC outlets. Two in the galley, and two in the setee area. I installed a Smartplug receptacle to replace the older style plug in.
I like the AC wiring for charging the batteries. Keeps them ready to go, keeps them charged if the sump pumps keep going, which they don't, but I don't take chances. The receptacles must have GFI protection. If you dont know what this means, best to hire an electrician. Solar power is an option.

[RossD]

Originally Posted by hamburking

Check the through hulls...they should all have ball valve shutoffs. In the 70's they often installed cheaper gate valves, which are not suitable for boats. I guess the gate valves went nicely with the household wiring...LOL.

In Ontario where Bayfields were built (I think in Goderich?) they only have fresh water, so it wasn't such a big deal at the time.

A ball valve has a long handle that turns 90 degrees.
A gate valve has a round handle that turns many rotations.

I like that, the gate valves and household wiring go together

As a matter of fact, I had a 29' power boat which had come factory equipped with gate valves. I replaced them before it ever went into the water. Thanks for the chuckle!

[RossD]

Originally Posted by windshadowthree

There were four AC outlets. Two in the galley, and two in the setee area. I installed a Smartplug receptacle to replace the older style plug in.
I like the AC wiring for charging the batteries. Keeps them ready to go, keeps them charged if the sump pumps keep going, which they don't, but I don't take chances. The receptacles must have GFI protection. If you dont know what this means, best to hire an electrician. Solar power is an option.

Hopefully I can pull cable using the existing solid copper. I'm well versed with electrical components and installation but your recommendation is good advise for those whom are not. Particularly on a boat or RV where two electrical systems are utilized. Not to mention the bonding which hopefully is in place. I have similar uses for the electric as you mentioned, plus a CPAP machine to deal with.

[hamburking]

For the sake of comparison, here are some local listings for Bayfield 29s in Ontario Canada. These would be fresh water boats, generally considered to be in better condition than salt water boats.

1988 in Kingston (east end of Lake Ontario) asking $22,900 (cdn):
https://www.kijiji.ca/v-sailboat/kin...ationFlag=true

1986 near Toronto Canada, asking $18,500 (cdn):
https://www.kijiji.ca/v-sailboat/kaw...ationFlag=true

1980 near Ottawa Canada, asking $12,000 (cdn):
https://www.kijiji.ca/v-sailboat/pem...ationFlag=true

This last one for $12k is pretty interesting because its located on a river where there really isn't much sailing or cruising to be done by sailboat. Its also an area of particularly long and brutal winters, so like many great lakes area boats, gets used maybe 2 months of the year. $12k is NOT a lot of money for a boat of this pedigree...so I'm quite curious about this boat. Perhaps the price is due to its slightly more remote location?

For my american and international friends:

$22,900 cdn = $17,320 USD
$18,500 cdn = $14,000 USD
$12,000 cdn = $ 9,080 USD

These boats are accessible from NE USA/East coast and are connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the St Lawrence river, or the the Erie Canal to NY city. Also, I would think a Bayfield 29 would be easy to move by truck given its shallow draft, full keel and solid construction.

[RossD]

Originally Posted by hamburking

For the sake of comparison, here are some local listings for Bayfield 29s in Ontario Canada. These would be fresh water boats, generally considered to be in better condition than salt water boats.

1988 in Kingston (east end of Lake Ontario) asking $22,900 (cdn):
https://www.kijiji.ca/v-sailboat/kin...ationFlag=true

1986 near Toronto Canada, asking $18,500 (cdn):
https://www.kijiji.ca/v-sailboat/kaw...ationFlag=true

1980 near Ottawa Canada, asking $12,000 (cdn):
https://www.kijiji.ca/v-sailboat/pem...ationFlag=true

This last one for $12k is pretty interesting because its located on a river where there really isn't much sailing or cruising to be done by sailboat. Its also an area of particularly long and brutal winters, so like many great lakes area boats, gets used maybe 2 months of the year. $12k is NOT a lot of money for a boat of this pedigree...so I'm quite curious about this boat. Perhaps the price is due to its slightly more remote location?

For my american and international friends:

$22,900 cdn = $17,320 USD
$18,500 cdn = $14,000 USD
$12,000 cdn = $ 9,080 USD

These boats are accessible from NE USA/East coast and are connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the St Lawrence river, or the the Erie Canal to NY city. Also, I would think a Bayfield 29 would be easy to move by truck given its shallow draft, full keel and solid construction.

Two out of three appear to be in much better condition than the one I looked at today, the third, for $9080 USD is as good or better.

[windshadowthree]

Originally Posted by RossD

Blisters, another item for me to look closely for, I had not heard about them re the Bayfield. Whatever I find will come in to play should I decide to renegotiate the selling price. The wiring part is a bit scary, for such a good builder I'm a bit surprised at this. I've owned scores of boats over the years, some high end, some mid tier, none had household wiring. Do you recall how much A/C wiring is in that boat? Thank you for all this information!

There are four AC outlets on my boat with GFI.

[RossD]

The Bayfield is in need of some work, mostly cosmetic. No obvious cracks in the gelcoat indicating water in the deck core, however, it's so cold any water would be frozen solid in there now.

The factory installed teak flooring in the galley is delaminated, see picture. The flooring in the salon should be gelcoat with a removable carpet. BUT, some genius glued that cheap deck boat "wood" vinyl to it. Hopefully the fiberglass below is not trashed.


As mentioned, I checked the bulkhead which encloses the head and found that it was torn loose, top starboard and repaired. Additionally, the outside of the hull was repaired in that same location, it's an area approximately 16" wide and 3' from toe rail to below the boot stripe. It's a good looking repair, the only giveaway is the slightly different gelcoat shade.

It appears that the fitting on the upper front of the holding tank is broken and the owner has used a variety of things to stop leakage. Since it's PE, a fix on that welded fitting isn't likely to work. Been there.

No signs of brown stains from leaking deck core, however, there are some black stains inside the anchor locker that I traced back to the decorative wood scrolling on each side of the bow. It appears to have been fastened with SS screws, so water is seeping in there. One of the pieces is broken on the bottom, again, not a big deal.

There is standing water frozen in the bilge in the areas of the mast and over the keel in general.

Standing rigging appears to be in decent shape, sails appear newer than the boat in OK condition.

[RossD]

Sorry I don't know why the pictures posted 90 degrees off.

[hamburking]

Originally Posted by RossD

Two out of three appear to be in much better condition than the one I looked at today, the third, for $9080 USD is as good or better.

If you don't mind my asking...whats the asking price on the B29C you are looking at? considering the pictures you posted, I'm thinking its at the low end of the price range.

Also, a word about standing rigging. If the original standing rigging hasn't been replaced, it will definitely need new standing rigging. This is true for all the 40 year old sailboats out there. The good news is that standing rigging for a boat this size is not expensive. New sails on the other hand...

And keep in mind, its a real buyers market. There aren't many people (like me) who are interested in buying a 40 year old boat. Even the insurance guys will give you grief for anything over 25.

[RossD]

The boat has been for sale for a year. The price was 14.9K has been dropping now 9.9K

I don't have a clue how much standing rigging would cost, do you have some idea Hamburking?

[RossD]

The existing wiring for A/C is labeled as "Boat Wire". The only wire I've seen labeled as such is stranded cable. So this is a positive.

[windshadowthree]

Originally Posted by RossD

The Bayfield is in need of some work, mostly cosmetic. No obvious cracks in the gelcoat indicating water in the deck core, however, it's so cold any water would be frozen solid in there now.

The factory installed teak flooring in the galley is delaminated, see picture. The flooring in the salon should be gelcoat with a removable carpet. BUT, some genius glued that cheap deck boat "wood" vinyl to it. Hopefully the fiberglass below is not trashed.


As mentioned, I checked the bulkhead which encloses the head and found that it was torn loose, top starboard and repaired. Additionally, the outside of the hull was repaired in that same location, it's an area approximately 16" wide and 3' from toe rail to below the boot stripe. It's a good looking repair, the only giveaway is the slightly different gelcoat shade.

It appears that the fitting on the upper front of the holding tank is broken and the owner has used a variety of things to stop leakage. Since it's PE, a fix on that welded fitting isn't likely to work. Been there.

No signs of brown stains from leaking deck core, however, there are some black stains inside the anchor locker that I traced back to the decorative wood scrolling on each side of the bow. It appears to have been fastened with SS screws, so water is seeping in there. One of the pieces is broken on the bottom, again, not a big deal.

There is standing water frozen in the bilge in the areas of the mast and over the keel in general.

Standing rigging appears to be in decent shape, sails appear newer than the boat in OK condition.

I agree that vinyl flooring is not the way to go.
My boat has a low pile carpet in that area, fairly easy to remove or lift for inspection of the floor and bilge hatch.
It looks like the plastic liner was removed from the storage locker above the setee. Mine was getting some water intrusion from the leaky chain plates I think.
Has a professional survey shown any problems, or are you doing your own survey?

[RossD]

I'm doing my own survey under guidance of a pro. This is the frozen tundra now so checking the deck with a meter is impossible without drilling holes for a visual. As to the plastic liner, I did not notice any plastic liners in storage areas, but I'll check via the broker next time I speak with him. The locker in question is the one where the repair was made, correct? You can see the new glass that was laid in there. The repair is behind it,

[RossD]

I'm signing a new offer which contains a somewhat reduced price to account for the issues I did not know about previously. If they accept, OK, if not, I move on.

[windshadowthree]

Originally Posted by RossD

I'm doing my own survey under guidance of a pro. This is the frozen tundra now so checking the deck with a meter is impossible without drilling holes for a visual. As to the plastic liner, I did not notice any plastic liners in storage areas, but I'll check via the broker next time I speak with him. The locker in question is the one where the repair was made, correct? You can see the new glass that was laid in there. The repair is behind it,

Yes, I can see that now. If the boat had a liner in the locker before, you should see one in the locker on the other side.
Holding tank: I installed a macerator but couldnt figure how to do a fitting. I drilled a hole in the top, (that's when I found out the tank was overfilled!), then I installed the output hose in the hole. (After cleaning up the mess!) Then I molded sikaflex to cover the gap around the hose. This gap has held so far for about 3.5 years. I don't know if the would work on fixing a crack though.