Hello All, Looking for Research Help

[orange150]

I was referred to here by the folks over at The Hull Truth,

My father in law is very interested in buying a boat and living aboard. He retired last year and has spent the better part of his time boat shopping for older Hatteras motor yachts with the intent to live aboard and hop between NC, FL, and the islands.

He's from down east NC (Atlantic) and has spent his entire life working on boats, but has never owned a 'pleasure' boat, let alone a 50' - 60' motor yacht. So, being a good son in law, I'm going to do my best to gather as much info as I can for him on estimated annual cost of ownership, dock fees, etc. so he can make a more educated decision.

He would prefer his home port to be Newbern, Morehead City, or Beaufort. It looks like Newbern Yacht Club is relatively affordable. Where else should we look?

As far as annual maintenance; most, if not all the Hats he's looked at have Detroits in them. I know with their age finding good mechanics, and potentially parts, might be a chore. But what else can we expect for annual maintenance in the NC area?
Should he expect a "simple" annual maintenance inspection that could be done by a mobile mechanic?
How often, and at what cost, should he expect to have to pull the boat for a more thorough inspection?

Someone on THT mentioned he might have a hard time getting insurance since it's his first boat, but he was a second mate for a large commercial shipping company when he retired, running ATB tugs hauling fuel across the west coast, gulf, Mississippi, and east coast; so he has all applicable licenses and certs. I'm wondering if that would make a difference.

I'm truly in a "I don't know, what I don't know" situation here. What other questions do I need to be asking?

Thanks!

 

[Comodave]

Welcome aboard.

 

[socalrider]

Sam's Marine has a good forum specifically for Hatteras owners.

https://www.samsmarine.com/forums/

A big old Hatt is pretty appealing but they are large complex boats not for the faint of heart. Call around to make sure you can actually find a slip and insurance, and to figure out what the cost is.

I had an opportunity to take my grandfather-in-law's Hatt 53 (with a 10' cockpit extension) for a song and ended up passing on the opportunity because there are simply no slips in all of San Diego available - it needed a 70' slip. (Note: a Hatt 53 is actually about 60' long). I'd estimated annual ownership costs at around $50k/year and I do almost all my own work aside from bottom paint and diving. It could easily be 3-4x that if you are hiring people to do everything. Refit costs can easily eclipse purchase price. Best to buy one that's been gone through if you can.

Good luck!

 

[O C Diver]

As far as experience for getting insurance, if he still has one of his MML (Merchant Mariners License) certificates or booklets, most insurance companies look favorably on commercial experience.

Probably more of an issue will be correcting survey issues to the satisfaction of an insurance company on an old Hatteras.

Maintaining old cruising boats is not for the faint of wallet.

Ted

 

[PierreR]

I have a 1977, 42' Hatteras long range cruiser. The LRC is very economical to run but slow. 42-43 is a good size to start with in terms of bigger boats. He will find it intimidating enough to take a fair amount of time to get really comfortable with the boat. 42-43' is complex but not redundantly complex. My annual cost without upgrades is about $15k per year. If I wanted to travel much and I chose a planning hull, my costs would likely be closer to $20k with the extra fuel.
You can get parts for a Detroit and the parts are generally cheaper than other diesel engines.
Detroit's don't like exhaust back pressure so they are set up with a rather throaty sound , they are heavy, can leak oil and use about 10% more fuel than other diesels. The good points are they always start, run, are cheap to maintain and are generally bullet proof. I happen to like them.

 

[Riverguy]

I have a 1977, 42' Hatteras long range cruiser. The LRC is very economical to run but slow. 42-43 is a good size to start with in terms of bigger boats. He will find it intimidating enough to take a fair amount of time to get really comfortable with the boat. 42-43' is complex but not redundantly complex. My annual cost without upgrades is about $15k per year. If I wanted to travel much and I chose a planning hull, my costs would likely be closer to $20k with the extra fuel.
You can get parts for a Detroit and the parts are generally cheaper than other diesel engines.
Detroit's don't like exhaust back pressure so they are set up with a rather throaty sound , they are heavy, can leak oil and use about 10% more fuel than other diesels. The good points are they always start, run, are cheap to maintain and are generally bullet proof. I happen to like them.

Agree on Detroit Diesel power, no reason to shy away. IMO, when buying a 40-50 year old boat, the brand of engines is among the less important considerations. Find a surveyor who has lots of experience with these boats and pay them what they're worth. Plan on reducing the pitch on the props at least 2", almost every one I've ever seen was overpropped. It's absolutely amazing how much better an old engine (gas or diesel) will behave when it's not overloaded as a result of being over-propped.

 

[orange150]

Thanks for the initial responses!

I’ll post up on samarine as well to get their take.

He’s also been looking at Grand Banks (my favorite), MainShip (my second favorite), and others like Marine Trader.
I think the draw to the Hats is more livable space.

So your annual cost estimate of 40-50k includes fuel burn while under way?

 

[socalrider]

Thanks for the initial responses!

I’ll post up on samarine as well to get their take.

He’s also been looking at Grand Banks (my favorite), MainShip (my second favorite), and others like Marine Trader.
I think the draw to the Hats is more livable space.

So your annual cost estimate of 40-50k includes fuel burn while under way?

I just dug up the old Excel spreadsheet I used. My rough estimate was $54k/yr, including $22k/yr for moorage. My fuel cost estimate is only $3k/yr but you could easily blow through that. For fuel, assuming you're moving at hull speed you'll get 1nmpg max for a big Hatt (the 42LRC might do better). If your diesel costs $6/gallon (another thing you can check easily), that buys you 500 gallons per year for 500 miles. Fuel is usually a pretty small piece of the overall cost. Again, you can easily spend multiples of this so be careful & generate your own numbers.

I also like the idea of getting something smaller unless there's a real need for a 50-60 footer. Costs go up exponentially with length.

 

[orange150]

I also like the idea of getting something smaller unless there's a real need for a 50-60 footer. Costs go up exponentially with length.

I originally had him looking at Grand Banks 42s and MainShip 43s, but once he got on a GB 42 he thought they felt too small to live on, let alone have us (me, my wife, and our two young kids) visit occasionally.

I just dug up the old Excel spreadsheet I used. My rough estimate was $54k/yr, including $22k/yr for moorage. My fuel cost estimate is only $3k/yr but you could easily blow through that.

So excluding moorage and fuel, you were at $29k / year for general maintenance and repairs. Again, total new guy coming into this, but man that sounds high! Haha