1980s trawlers

[DaveGibson]

I bought an old 46' Cheoy Lee LRC trawler in that condition. I paid $22k for it. I spent $150k on upgrades (electronics, some new glass, appliances, etc) before I even got to cosmetics. The big concern with those stains down the woodwork are the balsa cored decks. That is a huge repair. My advice is to walk away.

 

[psneeld]

Is "...to reglass the whole bottom" using fiberglass to repair damaged bottom? if there is no damage, so I only need to sand the bottom smooth, apply paint and biocide coats, this job will be much less demanding, right?

Depends if you have any significant blistering or hydrolysis of the deeper laminates.

You can be like many boaters and just not worry because hull failures from those two issues are rare. They can be fixed the cheap way or the hard way....or like many boater's solution.... just ignored.

 

[paulga]

Appreciate the insight.
15k for upgrade sounds more reasonable to me. I want to commit some time and money, but not expecting spend more than the value of boat

 

[mickand]

My first question would be to ask your age? But I'll answer it for you.
If you are no more than 65, then you've a few years to start doing most of the required work yourself without hardship.
If you're heading towards 70, then maybe not so many energetic years left.
From some of your comments, I get the feeling you are not well versed in understanding boat repairs?
It can all be learned and put into practice, but you need to understand that some of the learning curve is quite steep.
However, if you can't or won't undertake a majority of the work yourself, then this or most other old inexpensive trawlers are not for you - unless you are very lucky in finding one that has been well maintained and updated.
Looking at the photos of the leaking windows, it suggests a severe lack of maintenance and I wonder what else has been neglected.
It has been re-powered with 5.9's which are normally very reliable and replacement fuel tanks are also a plus.
I'm always reluctant to post negative remarks and I'm just trying to be realistic.

 

[boomerang]

We completely rebuilt our last boat, a 34' Mainship, with the exception of the hull. That was the only thing on it that was sound and needed no attention. All of the decks ,except the cockpit, needed to be completely removed and rebuilt. After they were done, we started on the fluff...the interior, gadgets, bells and whistles. Would I attack a project like that again? Probably not. Not so much due to the cost of materials but due to the time it takes. My poor ,and at the time naive, wife was, at times, in tears when she realized the size of the project(s) we had undertaken. She wanted to be able to use the boat and found out in a hurry how many cans of worms an old ,neglected, boat can hold. It took us 3 years before we could actually start cruising the boat and that was 3 years that we could've been boating and enjoying life rather than in a boatyard on the hard missing the summer holidays.
Scotts (psneeld) project was maybe 5X the scope of ours yet he persevered. When he started making noises about selling, I knew right away his was a used boat worth investigating. Luckily for us, everyone's timing was right (our boat sold & his came unofficially on the market; I'm smart enough to not be a 2-boat owner and assume that our boat will sell) and happily bought his quasi Albin. Quasi meaning it has Albin bones but the rest has been tweaked by a extremely knowledgeable cruiser/liveaboard that did what it took to make it a decent vessel.
Is there still stuff that needs doing? Yep. It's still a 35 year old boat. But the majority of the stuff that needed doing has been done. Long story short, I wouldn't have a problem putting the money into the boat that Scott put into it (over the span of time that he made the upgrades). I don't have the time to do what he did. We want to be using it.

 

[paulga]

it must be a great deal. I can imagine, all critical categories revamped with all details given attention to meticulously.

We completely rebuilt our last boat, a 34' Mainship, with the exception of the hull. That was the only thing on it that was sound and needed no attention. All of the decks ,except the cockpit, needed to be completely removed and rebuilt. After they were done, we started on the fluff...the interior, gadgets, bells and whistles. Would I attack a project like that again? Probably not. Not so much due to the cost of materials but due to the time it takes. My poor ,and at the time naive, wife was, at times, in tears when she realized the size of the project(s) we had undertaken. She wanted to be able to use the boat and found out in a hurry how many cans of worms an old ,neglected, boat can hold. It took us 3 years before we could actually start cruising the boat and that was 3 years that we could've been boating and enjoying life rather than in a boatyard on the hard missing the summer holidays.
Scotts (psneeld) project was maybe 5X the scope of ours yet he persevered. When he started making noises about selling, I knew right away his was a used boat worth investigating. Luckily for us, everyone's timing was right (our boat sold & his came unofficially on the market; I'm smart enough to not be a 2-boat owner and assume that our boat will sell) and happily bought his quasi Albin. Quasi meaning it has Albin bones but the rest has been tweaked by a extremely knowledgeable cruiser/liveaboard that did what it took to make it a decent vessel.
Is there still stuff that needs doing? Yep. It's still a 35 year old boat. But the majority of the stuff that needed doing has been done. Long story short, I wouldn't have a problem putting the money into the boat that Scott put into it (over the span of time that he made the upgrades). I don't have the time to do what he did. We want to be using it.

 

[paulga]

I'm still employed, and can commit up to 6-8 hours on DIY per week.
Not sure if there is a way to do the teak deck removal myself. Working on one section each time, and cover the incomplete deck using canvas as shed in between the work?
the challenge is too much uncertainty. and 6 hour per week might take forever to finish.

My first question would be to ask your age? But I'll answer it for you.
If you are no more than 65, then you've a few years to start doing most of the required work yourself without hardship.
If you're heading towards 70, then maybe not so many energetic years left.
From some of your comments, I get the feeling you are not well versed in understanding boat repairs?
It can all be learned and put into practice, but you need to understand that some of the learning curve is quite steep.
However, if you can't or won't undertake a majority of the work yourself, then this or most other old inexpensive trawlers are not for you - unless you are very lucky in finding one that has been well maintained and updated.
Looking at the photos of the leaking windows, it suggests a severe lack of maintenance and I wonder what else has been neglected.
It has been re-powered with 5.9's which are normally very reliable and replacement fuel tanks are also a plus.
I'm always reluctant to post negative remarks and I'm just trying to be realistic.

 

[Nepidae]

80s trawler

We have an '86 Albin sundeck and she is great. The damage you are addressing is probably from owner error.

We have some under side deck window discoloration and a v-berth bulkhead which shows bare wood, both due to leaving windows open and the v-berth from leaving the hawse pipe anchor tube uncovered, for a long time.

She is a solidly built boat with a thick hull.

The items you list are non-items to me.
• depth sounder plastic cover is cracked and the sounder likely is not working
• no gps or chart plotter
Any electronics would probably need to be replaced, period. IF the transducer is an airmar, you have the basis for a new MFD to be connected to it and get a chartplotter in the mix.

• leaky windows indicated by discolored veneers/bent wood beam. one window on cabin's port side was leaking so visually that the underneath veneer was still wet with rain waters
The portlights are a hand screw down and probably just need ne seals. Home Depot has glue backed strips of sealant that can be used on the part of the portlight that pens to give a better seal.
• mildew dots and areas on vinyl celing
This and the picture of fwd V where the water has run down the bulkhead could be problematic. What I found was that the weep holes around the fwd windows was blocked by wasps. That allowed the water to pool on the windows that ran to the inside. There is a ledge above the galley that the water could have pooled on that ran to the fwd V. A stiff piece of wire in the weep holes fixed that but that shelf has some damage that I will address, someday.

What I personally don't like are the 210 Cummins engines. I have Ford Lehman 135 naturals and IF the Cummins aren't naturals then that might be a problem. Those with Cummins can advise about that. Also 210 is a waste of HP and would impact your hourly use of fuel. With both engines I burn under 4g/h.

The Albin with her flared bow can't be beat and her hull allows for little stern wave action to deal with.

We love our sundeck and it can't be beat. Full walk around queen in the MSR is nice as well.

They are a well built and well thought out boat.

PM me if you have other questions.

 

[jleonard]

The Cummins 6BT 210 is one of the most bulletproof engines around. And it won’t use significantly more fuel that the 135 Lehman at the same hp level.
I know that when I powered up my old Mainship the higher hp Cummins actually used much less fuel at the same cruise speed as the oem Perkins.
I also owned an 83 Albin 40 trunk cabin. Fortunately the teak decks were in decent shape. Wife and I recalled the entire flybridge in a weekend. Prepped on Saturday caulked on Sunday.
Also did a lot of recaulking smaller areas on the main deck in sections at a time. Never applied a finish just let them gray out.
I contemplated repowering it with a Cummins 6BT out of a pickup truck but decided against it do economic reasons. It would have made the boat a 10/11 knot cruiser instead of a 7 knot boat. I talked with a previous owner who had a single 40 with the Cummins and he could easily do that and topped at 13+.

 

[psneeld]

Every boat and it's mechanical systems suffer from operator error and engineering that only works when it's built and is taken care of but diminishes with time if not given constant attention.

Truly great built boats are the ones that no matter how much maintenance is deferred, they are still good to go or need little restoration and that is easy to do.

Even some of the worst built boats can be good boats when well maintained and operated well.

When buying used, you have to spot the smallest details to see just how far the neglect has gone.

 

[alormaria]

De main ten ance is de ting.

 

[mickand]

Cummins 5.9's at 210hp have small turbos.
I had 2 in a 41ft Cheer Men back in the early 2000's and they were great engines. I have 2 x Lehman 120's in my current boat and I would take 210 Cummins again anytime.
At anything over hull speed in any semi displacement trawler, you are just pushing water with consequent inefficiency.
At an economical 7kts, I would expect the 210's to only burn slightly more fuel.

 

[djones44]

Far from the complete list, this I sent to people asking about me selling.....

In this class of vessel the asking price is likely the price of a used pickup truck. yet prospects will expect Lloyd's reports on every detail. That process is to be avoided if you can. If you hear an offer - take it.

 

[psneeld]

In this class of vessel the asking price is likely the price of a used pickup truck. yet prospects will expect Lloyd's reports on every detail. That process is to be avoided if you can. If you hear an offer - take it.

I am not sure what you are saying or offering advice or what?

I had 3 people asking about the boat and were 3 completely different buyers...so 3 completely different approaches may or may not have been best...I went with the flow and got more than expecting and didn't care.