Getting into Sailing

[Ingeo]

A family member got me hooked a couple years ago and now that I am done school and working I am looking to purchase a Sunfish. I have attached photo's of the sailboat I inspected this evening. The boat did not have any obvious signs of damage, no bad odors, or discoloration. The sail is apparently 1 year old and did not have any signs of damage or repair work. It comes with everything necessary to sail and tow behind a vehicle.

Should I be alarmed by the corrosion on the rudder screws? As that seems like an easy repair, so long as they remove easily. Also the sand inside the rear made me raise my eye brow, but everything was dry inside and as previously stated no odors or signs of mildew. The bottom of the boat did look good, no major scratches or dents etc.

What is a fair asking price for this sailboat?

Thanks in advanced.
Adam S.

 

[andyatos]

For what it's worth, it looks to me as if both the hull and the deck have been painted. The sand inside may have just been from the round access port near the stern being left open when it was on the beach and sand and stones got washed inside during the winter.

The big U shaped bolt retrofitted on the bow seems strange to me. Likely as a way to hold the bow of the boat to the trailer... but there's many other ways this could have been accomplished without mounting such a huge hunk of hardware on the bow.

I'm also wondering the extent of that big scab on the bow just above the U shaped bolt. Does that wound extend clear inside the boat?

These are all questions I would ask the owner. Between the bits of Hardware Store gear I'm seeing on the boat and what I mentioned above, it kind of looks like a not very experienced sailor did a lot of this work.

Looks like it was an older boat with the original rudder that was upgraded with a newer rudder because of the access port that was installed on the stern.

Don't know what would be a fair price. Does the owner have a year the boat was made?

- Andy

 

[Wavedancer]

Too many ugly changes!
Less than $500 for the boat.

 

[sailcraftri]

This appears to be a late 60's to early 70's boat that has had a rudder conversion from old style to new style. Hull and deck has been painted as well. Not sure why they painted the aluminum edge trim as well. Looks like repairs are need for the added in bow eye. That is something I would remove from the boat and then repair the holes. The bow eye might also mean the boat sat on a mooring. Prolonged sitting in water will cause water absorption.

Location will dictate the going price in some cases. In New England I would probably sell this boat as is for around $350-$450 with no trailer.

The trailer shown is a Trailex trailer that sells new for over $900. That is worth more than the boat as a used trailer you can usually get around $600 for those. That being said, I would probably not pay more than $750 for the boat and trailer.

That being said, I really don't like fully painted boats when they also painted the aluminum trim.

 

[Ingeo]

I believe he said 15-20 years. It's an older gentlemen who no longer has the health or physique to sail. He was pretty absent minded setting everything up. The ding in the front does not go through the fiber glass. There are no signs of damage on the interior of the hull by that dent. In my opinion that mark is likely due to towing the boat as this is exactly where it rests against the trailer.

I think it has been repainted as well given the lack of shine on the deck and evidence of OEM hardware locations. What concerns me the most, I did not see a serial number anywhere.

I am not in any rush so I'll keep looking, there are a couple other options near my cottage that I can check out mid July.

 

[Ingeo]

I live in southwestern Ontario, Canada. But my cottage is in the muskoka's and things will be more pricey. He's asking $1,000 but before I even visited the boat I was thinking $700-$750.

I am quite picky about everything, so for now I'll keep looking because I want a boat in better condition and the paint job bothers me as well.

Thanks for all the input thus far!

 

[sailcraftri]

There are no numbers as this vintage boat had a serial number plate behind the coaming. Since the deck has been painted it was probably removed or had already fallen off. The lack of a storage compartment in the cockpit dates it a 1970 or earlier. My earlier thoughts on $750 accounts for the fact that it has a Trailex trailer worth roughly $600. At $750 it means you are paying only $150 for the boat. But the value of the boat diminished due to the paint. I have only owned one boat that had the hull and deck painted but it was done professionally (see).

 

[Ingeo]

That's the type of paint job I am looking for ^_- How much would it cost to repaint professionally?

Cheers,

 

[sailcraftri]

No idea. I bought the boat from the guy that painted it with Awlgrip. He was a professional car restorer. He took every piece of hardware off before refinishing the boat.

 

[Ingeo]

I'll start making some calls to the local shops.

Cheers,

 

[Doug Warren]

Have you weighed the hull? It should weigh about 125 or 130 pounds. If it weighs a lot more it probably means that there has been water sitting inside the hull and you should think about getting a different boat.

 

[tag]

This may be just my personal preference, but if you are being picky and patient - then I would keep an eye out for a Sunfish with the rolled gunwales (that replaced the aluminum trim around the edges of the boat). This would make the boat a 1987 or newer. If you keep an eye on craigslist or similar, you can occasionally find really good deals, as people just want to get rid of their old boat. A newer boat would also hopefully mean less chance of water damage and less likely to have been repainted over. Good luck!

tag

 

[signal charlie]

If the weight is right that boat has a nice sail rig and a 1000 dollar trailer. If you get boat and trailer for under 1000, take it and run. For the boat only I'd say 600-700

 

[Throwdown]

Would you mind taking a look at this stern? That is an old gudgeon? Year? Are they still reliable or can they be replaced? The rudder and the rest of the boat look in excellent condition. It has the back storage in the cockpit, so I'm thinking around '69 and it has Alcort stickers. Not sure if I want to go that old! I was still in high school and I'm OLD!

 

[signal charlie]

Would you mind taking a look at this stern? That is an old gudgeon? Year? Are they still reliable or can they be replaced? The rudder and the rest of the boat look in excellent condition. It has the back storage in the cockpit, so I'm thinking around '69 and it has Alcort stickers. Not sure if I want to go that old! I was still in high school and I'm OLD!

Old style rudder, it looks in good condition if the rest of the parts are there. Year is 1971 or so if it has the cockpit storage, there seems to be a year or two in transition to the new style rudder and cockpit storage. That rudder system is fine for recreational sailing, and the boat looks to be in great shape. And yes they can be converted.

 

[sailcraftri]

Cockpit storage compartment came out in 1971, new style rudder in 1972. So there are 1971's with old style rudders and storage compartments.