Hello Everyone

[J. Lafitte]

Hi everyone. My girlfriend and I have decided to cruise the east and gulf coasts of N.A. for a couple years starting in November of this 2019. I am taking a two year assignment with a two week on two week off schedule so we plan to cruise in the off time. She is new to the nautical lifestyle so I think easing her in via a nice roomy and comfy trawler might be the way to go and move on to a cruising sailboat at a later date or maybe not, time will tell. So from here to our planned departure time we are intensively boat shopping so I will probably be asking many questions about boats of interest as most of my knowledge is centered on pleasure in and offshore sailing, large commercial offshore, and center console in and offshore fishing vessels. One caveat in our boat search is our dedication to remain debt free the rest of our lives. So finance for our vessel will be out of pocket. We realize that we will have to make accomodations on certain things and that is okay. We are both very handy and can do most anything except maybe a major engine overhaul, and I say this just because my experience in overhauling farm tractor diesels was never a favorite of mine as a youth and young adult. Thank you in advance for all of your advice and shared knowledge. Kindest regards, Jeremy

 

[Jmk2000]

Welcome and keep us up to date on what you look at. Ask all the questions you want. I’m sure someone can help

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Welcome aboard.

 

[GFC]

Welcome, but I gotta tell you, if you think she's going to be happy going from a "nice roomy and comfy trawler" to a sailboat maybe you'd better rethink that.


Do you really expect her to go from a comfy cruising boat that's simple to operate where all she has to do is handle a dock line now and then, to a sail boat where you're always outside in the wind when you're sailing, and the boat is tipping, and bouncing and she has to handle the helm and handle all kinds of lines with her cold hands?


Wow, you really have a lot of faith.

 

[GregBrannon]

Welcome! What is your budget, and which boats have caught your attention? Where would you like the boat to be when you consider/buy it, or does it matter?

 

[Comodave]

Welcome aboard.

 

[Star0210]

Sounds like a fun plan! Good luck!
I agree with GFC though...no way I could go from a nice comfy trawler to a claustrophobic sailboat!

 

[J. Lafitte]

GFC; She will change over if she wants to go with me to South East Asia, Oceania, and the south seas when I retire in 7 years

Greg; thank you for inquiry. Our budget is a bit flexible. I suppose I am looking for value above all and just enough boat to do what we need it to do. If I could find something for 30K I would be very happy but if needed 75K will be okay but that’s about it.

I have looked at a couple of Albin 36’s (noticed there is a nice one listed on here). I am not sure of their quality but assume it’s good based on owners comments, but owners tend to be biased but non-owners are just speculating or regurgitating hearsay unless they are a marine professional such a surveyor or technician.

A boat that needs some TLC isn’t out of the question but a full blown re-fit is most likely not going to fit into our timeline. Only restriction on location is it be on the east side of the Panama Canal with ocean access even if I have to motor down the Mighty Miss from the Great Lakes or a river port inland.

Thanks again for the reply’s.... Jeremy

 

[Mako]

Well your plan is probably accurate if your budget is 75k or less. Coastal cruising there are tons of boats available. But if you want to cross the pacific then that budget will likely only get you a 30' sailboat, but Bluewater capable. Trying to find an ocean trawler for that price is tough. Perhaps an older, home built Diesel Duck 38. Maybe. Likely would be made of plywood though.

 

[J. Lafitte]

I did a market survey today using the moreboats.com platform.
I looked at all of the 36' trawlers with an aft cabin layout on the US east coast.

The search yielded 33 boats on the market with 13 of the 33 made by Grand Banks.

Applied filters using my max price of 75K leaving 21 of 33 boats with and avg price of 48.0K USD.

Excluded gas powered boats leaving 19 of 33 boats.

Excluded boats with main engine hrs over 3600, this left 4 boats with unknown hrs and 13 of 33 with less than 3600 hrs.

1 boat was excluded due to poor condition in the posting photos leaving 12 of 33 or 36.3% of the current market as potential buys. This can change once I find out the engine hours of the 4 unknowns.

The makes of the remaining boats are:

Albin
Grand Banks
Gulfstar
Marine Trade
Nova


In the sailboat world Gulfstar has a checkered past some good and some very bad so I am guessing it is the same in the trawler realm.

My knowledge of Albin is they are good quality, especially the Albin Vega 27, a well known blue water sailing vessel.

The rest I haven't a clue and unlike the world of sailboats there is not that much information on the web regarding these vessels. Any help you can lend will be greatly appreciated.


Kindest regards, Jeremy

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Mr. JL. Condition, condition, condition. The make or brand is of secondary importance IMO. Layout and amenities to your liking is what counts. Look for maintenance records.


I'd change your upper limit to about $90K. $75K is what the seller is asking, not necessarily what they will get.


3600 hrs on a well maintained engine is nothing in the overall scheme of things. MUCH better than a sister ship of the same age with, say, 500 hrs. Again, IMO.


Time to take a road trip and walk the docks.

 

[J. Lafitte]

By upping my pricing window to 90K it only adds 3 boats to the mix all of them Grand Banks Classics. The GBC is on the very upper limit of my bridge clearance window.

I am well aware of condition condition condition but my two main concerns are hull integrity and remaining main and auxiliary service life. Manufacturer has great bearing on hull life. Hence my question.

Just to clarify my one piece of occupation is surveying and inspecting offshore OSV’s, MODU’s, Platforms, and onshore drilling rigs, all diesel driven vessels and equipment.

I have thousands of hours of sea time and many many miles under my keel in a pleasure sailer. However I am unsure of which trawler manufactures are notorious for building crap hulls.

Thanks again,
Jeremy

 

[Bacchus]

Jeremy
Welcome aboard TF
Have you read through Boat Search 101 ?
What is your plan for leaving the boat during the work time?
Will GF remain with it or travel with you?
@ Anchor or @ marina?

 

[J. Lafitte]

Ok lemme rephrase what I’m asking. Which manufactures are the McGregors of trawlers?

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Mr. JL. So, is this McGregor a good or bad thing?


Edit: It may be the same in the sailboat world but various manufacturers changed (evolved?) over their lifetimes. Some of the same models of X? may have solid or cored hulls depending on years for example. Perhaps some synthetic deck core material replaced the common Asian wood based materials. Again, depending on the years.


I think Gulfstars are notorious for osmosis but again, only some years.


I'm not trying to be argumentative but the build and condition parameters are too broad to make a blanket statement like: All brand X's are bad/good.

 

[J. Lafitte]

Fair enough. Thanks.

 

[PM]

Hi Jeremy, I received your private message and responded. Welcome aboard!! I love my Albin as you will see when you read my reply. Your budget is higher than my cost, but that was about 8 years ago. I suppose the market is a little higher now. Keep us posted on your progress

 

[Imp]

Do you really expect her to go from a comfy cruising boat that's simple to operate where all she has to do is handle a dock line now and then, to a sail boat where you're always outside in the wind when you're sailing, and the boat is tipping, and bouncing and she has to handle the helm and handle all kinds of lines with her cold hands?

I went from a cabin cruiser to a Fantasia 35' sailboat without any problems, & spent several happy years bluewater cruising. Quarters weren't particularly cramped, as a properly designed cruising sailboat literally has tons of built-in storage (I carried a year's provisions + a Christmas tree). I was never in the cockpit in the wind, as my boat was well outfitted with the appropriate protective canvas, etc., & the only bouncing I recall was in a couple of uncomfortable anchorages. Making passage was literally a breeze with autopilot & sails set appropriately for our course, & hardly ever any line handling. Don't forget that inshore & for other close quarters where maneuvering is required, a nice diesel works just as well on a boat with sails. Katy Burke's classic "The Liveaboard Book" still is very helpful for those planning to cruise via sail. We'd be shopping for another sailboat now instead of a trawler if my skipper & I didn't have 3 artificial knees between us.

 

[rgano]

Hi Jeremy, I owned a wooden GB42 for a long time and still considered it the equal or better of just about any plastic trawler I ever boarded. Sold it in 2015 with 5300 hours on the two Ford Lehman 120s and considered them likely to outlive the new owner. Two years back, wife and I delivered a 1985 fiberglass36-foot GB classic up the rivers to Lake Michigan and ran her with the mast down right through downtown Chicago - so much for bridge clearance. Popped the mast back up as soon as we moored at the lake front marina that evening. You can do a lot wrong in boat buying but with all other things being relatively equal, buying a GB is not one of them. My wife and I are not small people, after the GB42 considered the 36 with its narrower confines, including companionways, too small to spend the two months we did on her. It was a single Lehamn 120 which performed marvelously, but I sure would have put a bow thruster in her to help out now and again.

 

[Oldsarge]

Jeremy good luck.
Although A trawler is nice it is not very economical for thousands of mile across oceans.
You need something like what I have. A Formosa 41' ketch. The wind is free. You can probably get an older well built sailboat within the 75k range if you think you will be doing ocean passages. I'm an older guy and could use a crew on my boat for the south Pacific.
Consider that. Unfortunate you are not retiring for about seven years, but It would be great. I have spent a lot of time in Asia but never by boat. Japan, Korea, Philippines, Australia. I would really like to do it by boat. I lived in Hawaii for five years and it don't
get much better than that. We all have our goals and dreams

 

[Bamossman]

The Krogen Manatee 36' - Kadey-Krogen Yachts, Inc. : Kadey-Krogen Yachts, Inc.

The KK36 Messing About was posted for sale a few months back on this forum in the for sale section. More interior room than the Albin 36, better fuel economy and greater range. Not as pretty as the Albin, but a lot more comfortable as a live aboard. Great designer and built at Taiwan yard with very good reputation. From your discription, it sounds like a good fit.

 

[eggman]

I have a 1989 36" Sabreline Fast Trawler in Maryland. twin Detroit diesels with about 2200 hours. It does not need a lot of work as a lot is new. I think this may be my last season of boating and am thinking of listing her. There are a couple on the market. I am sure it would be at the high end and maybe outside your budget. If remotely interested, send me a message and we can chat.

 

[Bryant]

What kind of boat

Hi everyone. My girlfriend and I have decided to cruise the east and gulf coasts of N.A. for a couple years starting in November of this 2019. I am taking a two year assignment with a two week on two week off schedule so we plan to cruise in the off time. She is new to the nautical lifestyle so I think easing her in via a nice roomy and comfy trawler might be the way to go and move on to a cruising sailboat at a later date or maybe not, time will tell. So from here to our planned departure time we are intensively boat shopping so I will probably be asking many questions about boats of interest as most of my knowledge is centered on pleasure in and offshore sailing, large commercial offshore, and center console in and offshore fishing vessels. One caveat in our boat search is our dedication to remain debt free the rest of our lives. So finance for our vessel will be out of pocket. We realize that we will have to make accomodations on certain things and that is okay. We are both very handy and can do most anything except maybe a major engine overhaul, and I say this just because my experience in overhauling farm tractor diesels was never a favorite of mine as a youth and young adult. Thank you in advance for all of your advice and shared knowledge. Kindest regards, Jeremy

Full disclosure, I’m prejudice but reading your plan, I would very strongly recommend a hard look at the Grand Banks 36 Classic. The two stateroom, two head layout will greatly appeal to your girlfriend and it’s a really nice boat.