Caterpillar 3412E Black Smoke issues

Capt Ralph

No this is my first boat ownership looking for using this as my office /liveaboard probably 70% of the time since I am in Florida and then taking it out on the water once or twice a week.

I will be taking courses and hiring a Captain to get some good training so initially will take things very slow until I have the right training not looking to hurt myself or others.

I am in my late 40's and a business owner so not a crazy kid looking to get in trouble.

I have been on high speed powerboats with friends that have experience driving boats.

I am looking for an express cruiser style boat in the 50-60 foot range

Pascal appreciate the input. Not attached to this boat just gathering info from more experienced boaters like yourself to understand reality

I am not focused on resale value I see buying a boat like going to a Casino the money is never recoupable but there is some fun while it lasts and I have a loss threshold I am willing to accept for that fun

Appreciate the info Fiametta42,
After getting a copy of a recent survey from the selling broker it had way too many other issues than just the engines so it was good to go through the exercise.
What I am noticing is most boats in the 50 - 60 foot range and under $100k asking price needs a lot of work. Considering many of these boats were probably north of $500K new bringing them back to life has a pretty large price tag to value both in enjoyment and resale if one is looking at future resale.

I will continue my search for a boat and see where it takes me. There is definitely a lot of experience on these forums so it is nice to leverage the trial and errors from others experience.

I am also finding that 90% of these sellers are full of $%it and can never backup any of the "I've invested 50+K" and can't show one receipt or any work / maintenance logs and the boat looks like it's falling apart, can't do a successful sea trial etc, etc.

I am in no rush and if I have to wait a couple years and increase my budget I will in the future or if the right boat comes along.

I am not an emotional buyer so I am fine with the outcome good or not.

Just a side note I notice several captains on this forum in the Miami / Ft Lauderdale area after speaking to a few insurance companies they stated I would need to spend 40 hours on the water with a captain anyone do training on 50+ foot boats and what are your fees?

I was also looking to take boating courses and possible captains license to get some book training.

I would rather be prepared vs being in a bad spot and not know the proper procedures or cause an issue for other boat(s) due to my inexperience.

I drove 45 foot SUV limos for 15 years but I know boats are a whole different animal.

You have given me a lot of info in a short period of time so your experience is valued.

mapism: LOL life is about having fun!!!

bayoubud: I agree 100% but I guess they think it will work or I am sure it has worked with other buyers so they keep using the same lines to sell their boat(s).

mapism - I have taken the Tempest 60 off my list based on many factors

I looked at a few 1973 45 and 47 Chris Craft Commanders and an 1981 58 Bertram and they definitely were very comfortable and spacious as a home/office scenario.

I am sure I will find something , need to get clear on what I really want / can afford so fun doesn't turn into a headache. I am sure all boats can become a headache very quickly.

I am starting to understand the boating world a little more everyday. Never learn if you don't jump in.

Koffee Cruising appreciate the input I see things can add up fast and depending on whether you do the work or not.

There is a lot of catch 22's for everything from the boat purchase , insurance , DIY boatyards.

Example a DIY boat yard I spoke to wants Full Coverage Insurance and you to purchase all supplies from their yard. The supplies I understand they need to make some money as the per day yard time was low.

The catch 22 - most insurance companies won't give you Full Coverage Insurance for a project boat and being a new boat owner / operator.

So that boils down to you have to pay a yard to do all the work which then gets to your point of doubling or tripling costs.

Also sellers give you very little info or conflicting info about the boat so you get to the offer do the surveys / sea trial and the potential buyer is on the hook for $3-4K with haul out / splash costs and then the seller sees that your vested and may not walk or the buyer maybe emotionally attached and they can't walk.

I am glad I am not an emotional buyer and never have been so if the numbers don't make sense to me I don't even make an offer or if I do it will be very low to the point of possibly offending the seller / seller broker based on the asking price.

From all the responses on this thread on most of these used project boats they are all worth nothing or close to nothing.

The second challenge is finding good reputable vendors to do work it is effecting all industries across the board.

Off topic but on a renovation of my Condo many years ago I hired several sub contractors to do things I just did not want or have the skill to do. Most of them did not last more than 4 hours on their first day because they would cut corners or do half a$$ed work . I would pay them for the four hours and ask them to leave.

We have definetly gone in a very poor direction in society today always one scam or another someone always hustling and BS to make a buck.

I can't afford "dealer" prices but when you pay good money say $125 for a mechanic and they are a hack patience gets very thin and I get annoyed very quickly.