Mainship Pricing

Hello,

For various reasons I still have not bought a trawler.

A Mainship is on my short list.

Here in Australia I’ve seen two Mainship 34’s . 2004 & 2005. Both around $200kAU and in good condition. One with single engine , the other with twins.

I have also seen online a 1997 350. With twins. It’s more expensive at over $200k.

I would have thought the newer 34’s would be worth more so the 350 should be slightly under $200k ?

I realise theirs is the age , model , condition but also the owners ‘price’ .

Is there any rough calculation on pricing an older 350 vs newer 34’s. Or does it really just come down to the price the sellers want ?

I have spoken to the 350 owner and he is firm over $200k. It’s a considerable distance from me. While I really don’t want twins. Due to the low volume of sales here I am palming to try and make the trip to see it in person within the next 4 weeks.

Thanks
Byron

In general, Mainship build quality improved over the years from generation to generation. They tended to upgrade components and systems when they changed the models a little. That said there is not a ton of difference between the 350 and the 390, but the 34 is a totally different boat than either one. The 34s, at least here in the US, get higher prices than the 390s do, partly because most of them are newer (there was some overlap) but also because, in my opinion, they are "better" boats.



Then there is the 400, which is a totally different, much bigger, boat than the 390 with a different hull shape. They demand about 40% more than a 390.


Twins in the 400 generally sell for a little more than singles. I'm not sure how that works out in the 34. I would suspect that there is more room in the ER for twins in the 400 than in the 34, but I don't know that for sure.


We bought our twin engine, 2005 400 in 2013 for $180,000, judging by yachtworld ads, it is worth somewhere in the $220,000 range now.


Hope that helps.


Doug

I owned a 2006 MS 34T for several years. Mainship called it a 34T to differentiate it from the older 34. In all respects it is a better boat than the 350/390 (which are essentially the same boat) except if you need two state rooms. The 34T only has one up forward but it has a nice island Queen bed.

The 34T has a very wide hull, 14' for a 34. It is the only 34' trawler that I would consider with twins. The fuel and water tanks are forward of the engines so the entire width of the hull is available for the engines (except for batteries, etc). This makes getting around the engines for maintenance doable. Even a generator can be installed aft of the engines.

I liked my single engine 34T very much. It would cruise "fast" at 12 kts burning 10+ gph, whereas the twin version will do about 15 burning about 15 gph. If that is worth it to you, ok get the twin. Otherwise stick with the single.

David

The more I pour thru my MS Pilot II 30, the more I understand why they are priced the way they are, and hold their value. I continue to be impressed with the build quality, since acquisition in November last year. 6lpa Yanmar, No Genny.

I purchaed my 2006 MS 34 in 2017. I have also noted the asking price change and the short length of time MS vessels stay on the market. I think the MS market has changed because of lack of of any real competition. Example, a $200000 grand banks ,nortic tug, krogen, etc that have a trawler look will be 25-30 years old etc. Also Marlow the company that bought MS have over priced there offerings and dont get me started on the size/pricing of ranger tugs. I know MS is not "real" trawler but you know what I mean.

byron said:

Here in Australia I’ve seen two Mainship 34’s . 2004 & 2005. Both around $200kAU and in good condition. One with single engine , the other with twins.

I have also seen online a 1997 350. With twins. It’s more expensive at over $200k.

I would have thought the newer 34’s would be worth more so the 350 should be slightly under $200k ?

I realise theirs is the age , model , condition but also the owners ‘price’ .

Is there any rough calculation on pricing an older 350 vs newer 34’s. Or does it really just come down to the price the sellers want ?

I have spoken to the 350 owner and he is firm over $200k.

Click to expand...

Sounds to me like the 350 owner's ask is overpriced for your market... especially since it's not even a newer 390 either...

-Chris

There is no reason why a 1997 350 would be at or greater in price than a 2004 or 2005 34T. The 350, then later then 390 are the same boat rebadged. The 34T is the same class as the 350 and 390 but completely redesigned. They are also respectively 7 and 8 yrs newer.

The 350 owner is delusional. It it likely highly upgraded or customized. Some folks seem to think that a $100K boat with $50K in upgrades is worth $150K. Sadly, that is not how it works. You have a $110K boat that you can sell faster.

Mainship started their newer trawler range in 1997 with the 350. They changed the model to 390 a few years later and ran until 2004 (not many 04's were made). The 390 was replaced by the 400. Mainship polled all of their 390 owners to see what they liked and disliked about their boats. they took that info and developed the 400. the 34T and 400 started production in 2004 ( I think). The beam on all three boats is the same. The forward stateroom and head for all three boats is essentially the s (so the flybridge is much longer. That's where the similarities end. The 34T and the 400 are similar to each other as they were designed at the same time.

Maybe it's location? Are there many Mainships in Australia? $200 Au is equal to $133 US. With a major refit the price might be a fair asking price, ready for negotiation.

johnma said:

Mainship started their newer trawler range in 1997 with the 350. They changed the model to 390 a few years later and ran until 2004 (not many 04's were made). The 390 was replaced by the 400. Mainship polled all of their 390 owners to see what they liked and disliked about their boats. they took that info and developed the 400. the 34T and 400 started production in 2004 ( I think).

Click to expand...

I beg to differ slightly. The progression was 350 -> 390 which was really a simply re-badge as the boats are identical. The 390 was replaced with the 34T. The 400 is a different class of boat and much larger than the 350/390. Mainship did rely heavily on user input from model to model.

I examined the 34T and the 40/400 closely. The 40 isn’t that much larger than the 34T, with a difference of about 2 feet in LOA and 20% in displacement. (The 34T is actually 39 feet long, but the 34 moniker was a marketing strategy to evoke nostalgia for the original 34.) The 40 is a two-cabin arrangement, while the 34T has a single cabin.

I owned a 34T for 8 years.

byron said:

Hello,

For various reasons I still have not bought a trawler.

A Mainship is on my short list.

Here in Australia I’ve seen two Mainship 34’s . 2004 & 2005. Both around $200kAU and in good condition. One with single engine , the other with twins.

I have also seen online a 1997 350. With twins. It’s more expensive at over $200k.

I would have thought the newer 34’s would be worth more so the 350 should be slightly under $200k ?

I realise theirs is the age , model , condition but also the owners ‘price’ .

Is there any rough calculation on pricing an older 350 vs newer 34’s. Or does it really just come down to the price the sellers want ?

I have spoken to the 350 owner and he is firm over $200k. It’s a considerable distance from me. While I really don’t want twins. Due to the low volume of sales here I am palming to try and make the trip to see it in person within the next 4 weeks.

Thanks
Byron

Click to expand...

Something to look out for: some boats were delivered to the dealers without deck furniture on the flybridge, with the understanding that the dealers would do the installation. Some of the installations were performed poorly, with no sealant, allowing water ingress and rotting the cored flybridge deck, an expensive fix.