More on the boat that won't float

[Phoenixsea]

A few months ago we made a post on this forum about our Gulfstar 50 ketch that won't float. The keel had delimitated and was separating from the hull. We got an enthusiastic response from forum participants. Many suggestions were made to which we followed up. We talked with marine engineers and architects about possible solutions. After a good deal of help in researching solutions, the bottom line is that the cost of repair is more than we can put into this boat. We decided to sell it as salvage and move on. Can anyone suggest the best way to go about selling the boat? The masts seem like particularly valuable items. The boat is on Johns Island in South Carolina. We don't want to park ourselves to sell off the pieces. Our plan now is to replenish the boat fund, buy another boat and continue on our planned cruise. Any suggestions?

[robert sailor]

Feel bad for you, good attitude and good luck

[boatman61]

Draw up a list of all the equipment... Masts, winches, windlass etc etc.... then check out prices new and calculate a 'used' price depending on condition.. take photo's then post in the classifieds here on CF.. Craigs List, Sailing Anarchy and the other forums..
Happy selling hopefully..

[rgscpat]

If you can't stay in one place, that makes it harder; options maybe could include finding a couple of larger swap meets in the region, discounting the parts aggressively and making a "limited time offer", or maybe trying to find someone decent and trustworthy in the area who would be your agent for a moderate consideration.

If you were in a higher tax bracket, it might make some sort of sense to donate the boat or parts to a sailing or other charity. Or maybe the boat is worth something to someone who could use a tax deduction, dunno, just thinking out loud?

Also... e-bay, Sailing Texas, local yacht and sailing club websites, maybe some other regional web sites. Or if no one at the moment needs the masts for a boat, maybe market locally as flag poles -- again just brainstorming out loud, and more normally this would be a way to get rid of a damaged spar not worth repairing?

Disposing of a bare hull might be more costly than the value of a keel as material, but maybe it doesn't have to come to that. Just maybe there's someone hopeful who would take on the boat as a whole... there are optimists or some folks who just need big projects. Best of luck.

[minaret]

Originally Posted by Phoenixsea

A few months ago we made a post on this forum about our Gulfstar 50 ketch that won't float. The keel had delimitated and was separating from the hull. We got an enthusiastic response from forum participants. Many suggestions were made to which we followed up. We talked with marine engineers and architects about possible solutions. After a good deal of help in researching solutions, the bottom line is that the cost of repair is more than we can put into this boat. We decided to sell it as salvage and move on. Can anyone suggest the best way to go about selling the boat? The masts seem like particularly valuable items. The boat is on Johns Island in South Carolina. We don't want to park ourselves to sell off the pieces. Our plan now is to replenish the boat fund, buy another boat and continue on our planned cruise. Any suggestions?

The cost of repair is more than the cost of buying another boat? Must be one hell of a repair!

[zboss]

You could find a Gulfstar group and try and sell the pieces off that way.

[Horror Hotel]

Any pics of that damage?

[Morrissey]

How about remove and sell masts and winches, which are probably the easiest high-value items to strip out. Then remove the keel and repair the gash, ending up with a motor boat, of sorts.

If it floats and moves then someone wanting a liveaboard would fancy it - 50' is a quite a lot of space.

Stripping it to the point of needing to dispose of the hull could leave you with an expensive final act.

[Horror Hotel]

Could we hear move about the damage? Surely somebody would buy to fix. Do you do glass work yourself or we're you seeking to have it done at a yard? Normally what a yard would charge 30k for you could do yourself for 5k. A 55 gallon drum of epoxy and 25 gal hardener is $2800 last time I checked. Full rolls of cloth $850, you could fix almost anything with that. Any pics?

[Phoenixsea]

Here is the link to the previous forum post. A lot of ground was covered. As we said, we followed up on many of the suggestions. We have no experience with fiberglass and were warned that this would be a bigger and messier than usual job. We decided not to cut our teeth on this one. Picture don't show the delimitation in the keel, nor the separation from the hull (the boat is sitting on the keel so the cracks don't show). The boat has other problems - a very long list of unfortunate events described in our previous post. So we are set on our path, to sell this boat for salvage and move on. We appreciate all ideas so don't be shy about "crazy" ones.

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...at-113455.html

[goboatingnow]

Have you tried to sell it , set a very fair value , describe the issues. There will always be someone interested

Dave

[Horror Hotel]

If you strip it the value will drop drastically, and you'll be stuck paying yard fees on a junk hull. Not many do-it- yourselfers want to provide a mast and all the other bits (winches, ect ...) as well as doing a 5k fiber job. This may be painful but if your on the other coast, take the next 3 or 5k and get out. There is such a slim chance of making any money from it as the monthly yard fees roll on. The average boat takes 2 years to sell, yours is a nightmare. It could take 5 to find a guy who wants a year project. Just be done with it, and keep it whole. On my yearly migration south this year I looked at several totally junk basket cases. I am a rare breed though, I like to fixe stuff. I would also really like to see it in person on my May trip home. I bet it's worth way, way less than you think . If you lived on the east coast my might be able to part it out over a period of several years. The consignment shops will do just that, consign it for you as you wait for a guy like me to come in and make a lower offer than the posted price. Non floating, non running boats are worth zero, as the yard fees roll on.

[Phoenixsea]

Thanks Horror Hotel. That is the conclusion we have come to. We have had offers in the single digit thousands. That is about what it is worth. We thought we would try this forum one more time to see if anyone had other ideas.

[shorebird]

Is there any way you can take legal action for non-disclosure of previous damage? It may be good money after bad, but some lawyers offer a 15 minute initial consult for free.

[onestepcsy37]

i agree with the 'sell it whole for any price - even give it away for free' crowd. but if you decide to part it out, i'd be interested in the anchor windlass....