The Used Boat Option
(For those of us who don’t own the mint!)

By Tom Neale

Some of us simply can’t afford to buy a new boat. That doesn’t mean we can’t find a good used boat, fix it up, and go cruising with the best of them. But it can be depressing to look at the used boats that are affordable, while remembering the stories and photos of sparkling perfection that we’ve seen in magazines and boat shows. Perhaps the first hurdle to overcome is to accept that your boat isn’t going to be perfect. This is easier when you realize that sometimes beneath the glitz, some of those brand-new megabuck boats aren’t perfect either. Another hurdle is that there’s no getting around the fact that owning a fit cruising boat, even a used one, is an expensive proposition for most of us. But that doesn’t mean that we must be able to sign blank checks to make it happen. The picture grows rosier when you realize that it’s a buyer’s market. There are a huge number of used boats around that are well worn but that can be made into great cruising boats.

Benefits In Addition To Saving Money

Besides cost, there are other benefits of buying a used boat. One is that the running characteristics of the hull should be well known. I’ve been surprised by the number of new hulls that I’ve seen which, in my opinion, didn’t perform in the water as well as they should have. Another benefit is that inherent flaws in the construction are more likely to be known, particularly if a well-qualified surveyor is involved. I once saw a large, new, pristine-looking multimillion dollar trawler which had impacted, while tied in a slip, the top of a piling. The hole in the upper portion of the hull, around a foot below the gunwale, revealed shards of fiberglass that had clearly not been well impregnated with resin. This new boat was structurally flawed, but you’d never know it from looking at the beautiful lines and glistening gelcoat.
Another benefit is that older boats were often built with thicker hulls than recently built boats. The thickness of the hull in my 1975 motorsailer has amazed me. It’s often true that these older hulls weren’t as well protected from osmosis as many of the newer hulls, but good protection can be applied retroactively, even by the owner if he has the necessary strength and skill. Many experts say, and probably correctly so, that the material (such as Kevlar) used in the hulls of many new boats is much tougher than the thicker layers of fiberglass in the older boats if used correctly in the building process. But I still like thick hulls.

Looking

When looking for a boat, many people overlook two important elements to success. First, you can’t just decide what you’re able to spend and then buy based on that. You must factor in a margin adequate to allow you to do what you think the boat of your choice needs to bring it up to par. This is a part of the true cost and it’s almost always more than what you expect. That’s the nature of boat work. It’s also the nature of cruising that you just can’t do it “for cheap” safely and comfortably in a seaworthy boat. But by keeping the true cost in mind, investigating carefully, and being conservative, you can keep your budget within manageable boundaries.
The second is similar to that of buying a new boat. Decide the size and type of boat you need and the use to which you’ll put it. This is critical. Discovering that your boat doesn’t suit your purposes and having to sell it and buy another can be a very expensive proposition. Many err by thinking they want to go farther in rougher conditions than they’ll actually enjoy, while others err by getting a boat that they quickly outgrow. It’s hard to know what’s going to make you happy, especially if you’re relatively new to boating. This subject alone could fill a book. To help decide, talk to people now doing it, charter boats that you think you’d like, volunteer to be crew on friends’ boats, and attend seminars such as those offered at PassageMaker’s Trawler Fest.

Deal Killers Or Bargain Makers?

You’re expecting to buy a boat with problems (if you aren’t expecting this, you’d better go buy a condo), but you’ll need to decide which are acceptable problems. There must be a line between “worth fixing” and “walking away.” It will vary with your budget, patience, skills, and time. The line should always be contoured by safety, where there is no room for compromise. Following are some indicators to alert you. A good surveyor should know these, but if you have some ideas, you may be able to weed boats out and then pay the survey costs for a more serious contender.
I’m assuming a fiberglass boat. Old wooden boats may be attractive because they’re wood and because they’re probably less expensive, but the increased survey costs, the likelihood of debilitating rot, and the special skills and costs of reviving and maintaining wooden boats place them beyond the scope of this article. And many things said here aren’t applicable to old steel and aluminum boats, not because they may not present great opportunities and be great boats, but because they may present special issues. If you do consider a metal boat, add to its cost the fact that you’ll probably need to spend a lot of extra money for survey specialists who can determine plate thickness and find hidden corrosion and other damage.
Indications of previous sinking: While it may be perfectly OK to redo a boat that’s been sunk, and while it’s often done, it’s something that you want to be aware of before you buy. Look for signs of mud or sand in areas which may have been missed in a previous cleanup. Examples include the tight spaces underneath where decks join the hull and hard-to-access areas between bulkheads. Check the history of the boat.
Signs of fire: Damage from a fire could have been repaired perfectly, but maybe not. The fire could have weakened the fiberglass laminate and this may not be noticeable without destructive testing.
Wiring: You should expect to redo some or perhaps all of the wiring on an old boat, but this can take a lot of time and money. If you can safely do so, try to look at terminals in the panel and wire ends for badly corroded wires and/or terminals. But while many experts will say that any green corrosion whatsoever on a wire end or terminal is reason for replacement, I’ve noticed that in the real world of used boats, you’re almost always going to find some green here. Often, removing the wire from the stud and cleaning the terminal and contact area and applying a light spray of product such as WD-40 is adequate. However, if the entire wire is stiff with green corrosion well up into the insulation, you’ll probably need to replace it. Remember that anything electrical on a boat can be dangerous territory. Fatal electrical shocks are not uncommon in this area of work. And the wiring standards for boats are different from those in a house. As is true of other boat improvement jobs, unless you have a high degree of knowledge, skill, and expertise, this is a job for a qualified professional.
Engine: You may want to repower, but this is very expensive. An engine survey can be arranged or performed by your surveyor after you zero-in on a choice, but when you’re shopping around, look to see how well the engine has been cared for. Is there an unusual amount of rust? Remove the oil fill cap and look down onto the rocker arms. Does it look dirty or rusty in there? Are there deposits of old oil sludge in the crevices? Take an inspection mirror on a long wand and look under the engine for rust, oil leaks, and other problems. It’s relatively easy for a mechanic to check the pressure in the cylinders and for you to send oil out for tests. Some like to get this done early on in the decision-making process, because these can be very critical indicators. Beware if a coat of paint was recently and hastily sprayed on.
Significant stress cracking in critical areas of the hull: Fiberglass, by its very nature, will flex and a certain amount of gelcoat cracking or crazing isn’t necessarily serious on older boats. But cracking around critical stress points such as where the bulkheads meet the hull, where the hull and transom join, beneath engine stringers, at the bow, or around the rudder post(s) or shaft strut(s) may be cause for extra concern.
Excessive mold or mildew: This indicates prolonged lack of care and may present health issues to some people. Some years ago when I was looking for a boat I saw one which had green mold under the valve cover on the main engine. I spent no further time on that boat.
Balsa hull coring that extends below the waterline: This has been an accepted method of building by many builders, all of whom I assume would vigorously disagree with me. But I would never buy such a used boat, no matter how well the coring had been done (and there are methods that are much better than others). I found what I thought to be a “perfect” next boat once, but then noticed that the coring didn’t stop above the waterline. I also found that water had been leaking inside the hull layers through a breach in the bow hawseholes and various other places. You could see the core rot in the very bottom of the hull where sections had been removed to install new through hulls.
The ride: It’s odd, though understandable, that sea trials usually aren’t conducted until near the end of the buying process. Obviously the seller doesn’t want to be giving free boat rides to every dreamer who comes along. Also, sea trials take time, and buyers can’t spend that much time on many boats. But believe it or not, even with all the excellent design firms, the tank testing, and the computer programs to guarantee well-formed hulls, there are boats out there which don’t ride well. This includes, sometimes, new boats fresh off the line.
You may see boats lumbering along pushing water aside like the QE II. Or you may see them weaving along, decidedly bow down. Or you may see a huge bow wave riding up the hull almost to the gunwales. Or the boat may take spray in a light sea like she’s going under Niagara Falls. Or you may see them hobbyhorsing going into a sea, the bow plunging up and down. (Stabilizers do little to control this sort of motion. And if the wheelhouse is forward, the skipper and mate are likely to be in for many very uncomfortable, nauseating rides.) You may see a boat that, running light, handles like a dream. But loaded as she must be for cruising, she handles like a pig.
There are many causes for poorly performing boats. If you’re looking at a well-established older used boat, you may be able to learn from other owners how well they do. It helps to watch boats in which you may be interested as they move under way. If you’re looking at a boat that’s a one off or one of only a few built, be extra cautious about how sea kindly she is, and try to find out before you waste a lot of time and money on other issues. A poorly designed hull can seldom be fixed.

Evaluating The Problems That You See
Over the years, I’ve seen many people buy a boat with great dreams, only to give up several years later because the project was too big. They’d underestimated the problems and overestimated their abilities. Following are some issues that commonly appear, and ways of assessing them. The key is to remember that you don’t want a lifetime repair project. You want to go cruising in your lifetime.

Assess Repairs And Projects

Blisters: For years, blisters have been favorite fodder for magazines and windfalls for boatyards. People go nuts talking about and worrying about blisters. It’s my personal opinion (and I’m sure that many would disagree with me) that a few yards and surveyors go out of the way to scare people about blisters because of all the money they can bring in as well as the fact that they’d rather err on the side of conservatism. If I were buying a used boat, I might even look for a boat with blisters, because the owner may be extremely anxious to sell and because, despite what some say, many blistered boats are easy to fix and it’s easy to apply protection from future blisters. Often the new owner can do the job. It’s hard work and time consuming, it requires study, and it usually means that the owner will have to be content with a less than perfectly faired hull. But it can be done. Mel and I completely redid a hull on a previous boat, from grinding to repairing. We covered the job with Interlux Interprotect 2000 (yachtpaint.com) and never had further problems. It’s also true that some boats have severe blisters and serious delamination and the cost of necessary repairs could torpedo the project. Severe blisters and delamination can also cause safety issues. If you’re looking at a boat with blisters, seek more than one qualified professional opinion as to their significance.
Wet hulls: Another big scare comes from the moisture meter. A surveyor or yard may pass one along the hull and pronounce that the fiberglass hull contains an unacceptable level of moisture and thus is developing or has developed blisters or delamination. In fact, it’s very difficult to find an old fiberglass boat, that’s been primarily stored in the water, that doesn’t have moisture in its hull. And “acceptable levels” can vary with the circumstances. Many experts will strongly disagree with me, but I believe that this isn’t always proof of serious impairment. It’s a boat—as in “B-O-A-T!” Boats are not perfect. A good yard or surveyor may want you to have a perfect boat, and this is fine, but you’ve got to live in the real world which includes the fact that you can’t sign blank checks. I’ve heard of “wet” boats drying out for years at huge expense, just to get a good meter reading. Sometimes, the owner either went broke or died before he could go cruising. As mentioned earlier, this doesn’t mean that you should compromise on safety or structural integrity. It’s also true that the moisture meter used realistically can be helpful. Seek opinions from more than one qualified expert if the boat otherwise fits the bill but someone is scaring you about blisters and hull moisture.
Fuel tanks: Many older trawlers have black iron fuel tanks. While these have been used for many years and, with proper care, can last a very long time, there is a high likelihood that they, in an older boat, are prone to soon fail. Owners often can’t check the tops of tanks which are up against the bottom of the deck and which are therefore susceptible to rusting from leaks. Nor can they check the outer wall of the tank next to the hull and the interior bottom of the tank, where water may have lain underneath the diesel fuel for years. Look very carefully for any signs of rust or seepage. Use an inspection mirror as thoroughly as possible. Run your hand, with a white rag, along every corner and across as much of the bottom as you can reach. Any sign of diesel fuel or oily rust is cause for alarm. Some tanks can be replaced easily. Some require major demolition and rebuilding.
Tanks of other materials can also have problems: Aluminum may be corroded by contact with salt water or electrolysis. Welds on stainless tanks, when in contact with moisture, often corrode over the years in part because of dissimilarity between the metals of the weld and the tank plates. Well-built fiberglass tanks have generally fared the best over the years, but still should be checked. (The issue of E10 gasoline and fiberglass tanks is beyond the scope of this article. And hopefully politicians and bureaucrats won’t be adding ethanol to diesel.)
Leaks topside: We’ve all experienced the annoyance of a leaking porthole or hatch or door. But if this has occurred over many years, as is often the case with an older boat that hasn’t been well cared for, the water may have migrated to some amazing places and caused substantial rot that’s perhaps more than cosmetic. It may be in structural timber supporting components such as the decks or fuel tanks. It may be very hard to repair because it’s so difficult to access. Usually you can see signs of leaks such as discolored paneling or flooring. If you do, try to determine the extent of the spread of water. It may be cosmetic only, or it may indicate an expensive problem.
Deck and superstructure coring: Rotten coring generally occurs because water enters the fiberglass sandwich through screw holes or imperfections. I’ve often noticed that the effects of this can be much more serious on more recently built boats because the fiberglass on each side of the bad coring is so thin. I’ve also seen many older boats with bad coring which was not a problem. This was because the layers of glass over and under the coring were not only thick and heavy, they were far more so than the actual hulls on many new boats built today. Check into this. Ask owners for plugs of laminate left when holes were drilled for fittings.

Making It Happen
When you’re analyzing that boat which may fulfill your dreams and analyzing the costs of bringing her up to par, you’ve got to also carefully analyze yourself and your mate. This includes what you are able to do, what you have the knowledge and skills to do, what you want to learn to do, the amount of time you want to spend, and when you want to actually begin cruising. It probably won’t be easy. Owning a boat isn’t easy, unless perhaps you don’t have to worry about how much money you spend on it. I’ve never been in that camp. But I think that I have as much fun as those who do. And, if you do it right, you can too.