Is it worth it?

[Simi 60]

Originally Posted by Juggles

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Hadn't considered the cost of getting rid of her...most people her just seem to abandon their junk boats. It's pretty sad but good point about the cost.

Do not become one of them.
Dirty filthy scummy lowlife act.

[Juggles]

Parking it at a marina down here to live for now at 2500 a year. No car, our respective works are 15 mins bus away. Or a $10 uber. Already got a 15m berth lined up incase I buy large. Then once it's ready to go and my partner quits his job it'll be sailed up to QLD to live again. Either buying a berth and using it or buying a berth renting it out and living on anchor because...were not really people persons anyway.

Reefmagnet
Yeah I've noticed the costs of all the nicer instruments certainly start to add up but that's coming from a seperate fund not repair fund. Because well I can take them when I go so they retain some value. I had factored around 10k for that expense but don't expect to be buying everything brand new. I also prefer steel because I know how to weld and work with it. I don't know fibreglass at all and I'm more than happy to learn if I have to but I just feel safer with steel. Rust takes time to set in and if you're on rust patrol constantly it's reassuring to know your solid and safe. Just how I feel. Dad buys fibreglass even though he's a boilermaker. Not sure why when he constantly complains about it moulding.... Also where my bias comes in I guess.

Fore and Aft
Good to know about home built steels. I didn't really think of it like those Ferro POS ones because I guess I expect everyone to know how to work steel decently if they're going to do it. I hear how stupid that sounds as I type it. People are...people I guess. If I go with it or another home built I'll be sure to scrutinize a lot closer!
As for dad knowing me, not so much he knows him, very little of his four children and he's a Gunna Gunna Gunna type. Don't get me wrong I love him but he's...distant usually unless it's something that interests him..like a new boat haha. Were very different people in the way we live. These last couple of days is the most we've talked in years. Also the first time we've had a major difference of opinion too!
Do you mean the one from Somerville Vic? It looks pretty but the engine has seized. Size wise I'm worried it wouldn't be a comfortable liveabaord? 2 medium sized people under 5"10 and a couple of tiny cats that won't grow haha. What do you think? It isn't steel but I'm not stubborn on steel. Just prefer it. Obviously I'll ask for more photos if interested before flying there....

[Juggles]

Originally Posted by Simi 60

Do not become one of them.
Dirty filthy scummy lowlife act.

omg! I would absolutely not! I think it's sad people do that. It's not fair on the ocean, the boat, or the person who built the boat. All three deserve better. Don't have to worry there. I just hadn't assumed dumping costs and now have those factored.

[Fore and Aft]

Juggles you sound like an engineering type guy. That’s one of the reasons I chose the Columbia 34. Putting a new motor in is a fairly straight forward project. I helped an engineer re engine a few yachts and he just welded up new engine mounts that just bolted onto the old fibreglass engine beds. It was technical working out the angles etc, but very interesting.
The second reason I like the Columbia is that they have tons of room inside, almost as much as that 40 footer your looking at! I am 5’ 10” and there must have been another 6” above my head if I remember rightly?
The ONE big issue with steel is sandblasting. That’s a job you cannot do yourself and can be very expensive. I know it does not need doing every year but I bet that 15 year old steely will have at least 10+ coats of antifoul on the bottom. Which means it will be starting to look like a golf ball and really needs blasting back and all new paint $y$tem. I surveyed a power boat this morning and when the yard was water blasting the antifoul, chunks of it were falling off. There was just to many coats of paint and they could not adhere to the hull anymore.
Simi60 MSQ is starting to make an effort to clean up Tin Can Bay. Way to many idiots have abandoned their boats here and it is really starting to look like an eyesore.
Cheers

[Juggles]

Actually good pick! I have a civil engineering degree that I used for a total of four weeks before deciding desk work sucked. thank god the guy I hired to replace me at my old job couldn't handle the workload and I barely skipped a beat getting back.
Is there a reason I can't sandblast myself? Happy to learn and get certified within budgetary reason. It also another sellable skill so that gets factored into cost.
Well if you reckon it's roomy enough I'll shoot them an email. You seem to be very knowledgeable and I appreciate any insight at all. Shouldn't cost much to get it here.
I'll have to start learning what goes into a GRP boat if I do go with it but hey just more to learn.
Ahh fair enough about Simi then that's a BS job that's gotta pull on the heartstrings as you do it.

[Sailmonkey]

Heh heheh hehheehh......repair the rust with a needle gun......hahahahah!!

[Juggles]

Originally Posted by Sailmonkey

Heh heheh hehheehh......repair the rust with a needle gun......hahahahah!!

Very helpful. Very insightful. Just as useful as every other comment here. \s
Can you explain why this wouldn't be an adequate solution and what you would recommend instead? Happy to hear any and all points of view on the matter because I only have so much knowledge myself and am very wary of making incorrect decisions especially with the dad issue added haha!

[Sailmonkey]

Originally Posted by Juggles

Very helpful. Very insightful. Just as useful as every other comment here. \s

Can you explain why this wouldn't be an adequate solution and what you would recommend instead? Happy to hear any and all points of view on the matter because I only have so much knowledge myself and am very wary of making incorrect decisions especially with the dad issue added haha!

A needle gun will remove (violently) rust from the surface of otherwise sound material. However if the rust is in the frames and/or the hull area are already thin the needle gun can and will clean all the way through to the other side of the metal plate. Now you’re left replati g. Don’t get me wrong, a needle gun is a great tool, but not a solution on badly corroded or thin plates.

[Juggles]

Okay that absolutely makes sense but if the rust were so bad it had gotten Futher than just the anchor winch area a needle gun would be needed and that was my navy mates concern that is not a simple sand job it might be deeper down. If it weren't that deep down what would you recommend as he's only given me worst case scenario to work from(I think he expects it to be bad and that's why he's braced me)

[Juggles]

Also a second thought? If the plate were that thin a needle gun could puncture it would it not be safer to just replace anyway? That could be a very naive statement from me but I think safety and sturdiness should be paramount

[Hardhead]

It's easy to get sentimental about boats, but it's also easy to bite off more than you can reasonably chew - so to speak. There are a ton of used boats out there, and steel has it's own unique set of problems, and very narrow set of benefits IMHO.

I'd fall in love with a fiberglass boat, that is more easily assessed & repaired, and call that the winner. On the other hand, you'll get some great stories, one way or the other, out of the steel boat rehab... life is always a gamble.

[gulfcoastsailor]

If you are asking for opinions... no.

[picklesandjesse]

It really doesn't look that bad. Maybe you could get it for 5k if they know it's going to a good home !! I'd give the engine a good run as you want it to be able to motor. Make sure that the fuel is clean, you will need a good filter system. The wood looks like it might not be too bad, sound it with a small hammer to find any soft spots, they can be dug out and treated with a special thin epoxy and new pieces glued in. Don't spend any more than what you are paying now on rent and you are ahead. I used to work on fishing boats and we used to just chip the rust with a hammer, treat it and paint over it, do it whenever you see some. Rust stains often look worse than they are. Most come off with acid.

Don't buy lots of electronics, you really don't need them. This boat is never going to be worth much but you should get your 5k back quite easily if it looks like it's cared for.

I see the mast has a tabernackle and is easy to lower which means you can get under bridges and find a nice anchorage with this boat. Sounds like you're keen enough to give it a go. Just don't spend too much. How about another 5k not 15k?

[TrentePieds]

What's the urgency? What's the attraction to this particular boat? Just the 8 grand?

There are frozen snot boats available, fully found, for the 8 grand acquisition cost of this boat + the 15 grand for repairs + the rent of a hard on which to do the work. Call it 40 grand in all within the first year after you buy it.

Near me there is a forty-footer completely ready for deep sea work that I believe I can get for that kinda money. Won't tell you what or where till I've made up my mind :-)!

Not my business really, but you sound all too enthusiastic and too committed to what on the basis of what you've said must be suspected of being a dog.

All the best.

TP

[sailingchiro]

With a boat, it isn't the hull that should cost much to repair. The other stuff is the expensive stuff, electronics, rigging, electrical, plumbing, engine, transmission, refrigeration, air conditioning, sails, etc. All of these items can and will cost $1-5k apiece. If you are going to spend that much to fix just the hull, I would ask myself, if I spend $50k on this boat including repairs, how much will it be worth after rehab. Too me, it doesn't look like a $50-70k boat. But I could be wrong.
But, if the boat is your passion, who can stop you?
All of us have a lapse of judgment sometimes, I did.