36' Islander $9600 - A Good Buy??

[Maine Sail]

The one needing restoration was really worth about $4000. Because when it was finished it would have all new systems.

Yep but that is not what the market supported at the time and used boats were going for a lot more then than now. The spread between a top notch boat and one needing thousands in upgrades is still a similar spread... My concern with any boat that was holed is how far did it sink? Wiring, engine, deck core etc. etc.. Some if these issues show up years later and can cost big.

At the very least a boat like this needs a good survey by a COMPETENT surveyor to determine the extent of the structural damage. Fiberglass repairs add up fast and that's just to get it floating again.. The Gurney designed I-36 is a decent boat and I think they still have a good owners association. The little Bob Perry designed I-28 is a really sweet boat for a smaller one and the 32 MK II is also excellent and you can get a floating one for around 15-20k...

 

[Ross]

I don't know who designed My '68-30 but it was built without a hull liner so access to the hull was simple and total. If it had had a liner the needed repairs woud have been far more complex.

 

[Old Skool Neil]

The only way I'd consider this boat is if I repaired it myself which means I'd need the CONSIDERABLE fiberglass expertise to pull it off. A proper repair will likely end up being 5 - 10 square feet. Included in the repair will be a full repaint of the hull.

I can easily see $1K in materials, a minimum of maybe 150 hrs. labor and probably a month in a yard. There's no way you'll want to lift her in the slings with fresh paint, she'll need to fully cure for a while.

Using those estimates at our local rates you're in the neighborhood of $4500 doing the work yourself, over $10K farming it out.

I don't know who designed My '68-30 . . . . .

McGlasson?

 

[Ross]

That is only the least of it. The glass repairs is simple. checking out all of the rest of the systems and searching for rotten and water damaged wood and replacing that is likely to be a far bigger piece of work. Remember the perfume commercials, "Promise her anything but give her Arpage`" Sellers of boats are almost as honest as politicians.

 

[RobertLangdirect]

Hi:

I found a 1984 36' Islander in Ft. Lauderdale for $9,600.00.
The problem is the hull smashed against the rocks and it's got a 2 1/2 ' X 12" gash in the side. It's been repaired but poorly and it's leaking.
He says everything else is in tact, including a 50HP diesel motor.

How much work/expertise would it take to fix a gash like that?
Can a gash like that be fixed to full restoration?
Can the boat ever be worth what it would have been if not for the gash in the hull?

See my Avatar. Most of the lower half of the port transom was GONE when I bought GOOD TRADE. It was, however, nonstructural, above the waterline, and FIBERGLASS.

Send us a picture or two of the damage and the rest of the boat. THe worst of my work was cutting out part of the cockpit to have access to the aftmost portion, and grinding fiberglass.

By gash, are you saying the material is there but it was sliced? I would definitely want think through how to mend that. You probably will probably want to put a more than a few positive attachments and not rely on fiberglass to fiberglass, resin glued joints. I do not know if I would go with bronze olts, but that may not be a bad idea.

Again -- SEND US SOME PICTURES.

 

[Ross]

Glass to glass joints are fine if they are properly done. The 12:1 bevels are carved in stone. Ester resin is strong enough with the proper schedule of cloth and chopped strand mat. The repair must be done from both sides. The essential tool is a 4 1/2 inch right angle grinder with many 24 and 36 grit sanding disks for the beveling and finer grits for the prefinish sanding. A random orbit sander will be wonderful for the finishing. Proper cover-up clothing, masks, gloves and goggles will preserve you health.

 

[Old Skool Neil]

Add to the list of tools a long board or air file with various abrasive grits for the finish work. For this repair to look right it must be optically correct. That is, the reflection in the high gloss finish will betray any imperfections.

 

[higgs]

For a few thousand more, you can get a boat that doesn't leak. Leaks can be so hard to to track down............

 

[RobertLangdirect]

Again -- SEND US SOME PICTURES.