quote:

Originally posted by 71 TRUCK:

quote:

Originally posted by pace40:
I've said before. Go to the bank and get $1,000 in $100 bills. Go to your closest marina, stand at the end of the dock and throw them in the water one at a time and watch each one float away. If you're comfortable doing that, then by all means, buy a boat.

Someone once said the happiest days in a boat owners life is the day they bought the boat and the day they sold the boat.

^^^ YES and YES!

BOAT =
Break
Out
Another
Thousand

It is an expensive hobby!
Just look at gas prices, go to your nearest gas station, look at price per gallon, then head on over to any Marina- $1, to $1.50 more per gallon.
Maintenance / Mechanics aren't cheap, especially one that knows what they are doing.

Don't get me wrong, it's fun as hell! Also expensive as hell!
If you're bringing the Wife & Kids with on the boat for a long trip or to live, You will find out if you love each other!
One thing having an argument when you can leave the house and blow off some steam, it's another when you're stuck together in close quarters.

The sea can be a cruel master! Besides the ongoing expense, there is a real possibility that you are putting your life on the line any time you venture out. There is a book I first read in my teens, Trustee from the Toolroom by Nevil Shute that graphically describes a sailboat being driven onto a reef by a relentless wind. Very moving, and well worth a read.

I wouldn't expect living on a boat that is meant to be sailed, rather than one purpose-built as a houseboat would be particularly comfortable due to space and technical considerations. Just the sanitary facilities alone might prove to be a challenge for day-to-day living. Kind of like tent camping vs. a modern RV. Fun for a while, but not so much for the long term.

I know we have at least one expert here, Jimmy123, who makes his living in the pleasure boat industry. I'm sure I'm not the only one who would appreciate his insights on this subject.

71 Truck, here are a couple more YouTube channels you might like: *
https://www.youtube.com/@mvfreedom
Trawler liveaboards in PacNW
https://www.youtube.com/@Tulasendlesssummer
Buy, liveaboard, fix, some insurance & hurricane discussion
https://www.youtube.com/@The71Percent
Trawler liveaboards, currently cruising Australia to North America
https://www.youtube.com/@ParlayRevival
Rebuilt hurricane damaged cat (from Carribean), now cruising around the world
https://www.youtube.com/@SailingMagicCarpet
Mix of cruising and rebuilding sail boats
https://www.youtube.com/@SailingUma
Mix of cruising and rebuilding sail boats

* Beware the rabbit hole!

My neighbor said owning a motor boat is like standing in a cold shower tearing up 50 dollar bills. Owning a sail boat is the same just tearing up 100’s. I hope I never find out.

Thanks everyone for some great information.

I was thinking this was something we could do in the beginning of retirement for about five years. We still have a few years to go to get to that point however.

The dream would be to be able to sail around the Bahamas then the US Virgin/British Islands.

After that maybe settle down in Tennessee where we already own 3.5 acres and build a small house after selling the boat.

Again Thanks everyone
Joe

quote:

Originally posted by Redleg06:
71 Truck, here are a couple more YouTube channels you might like: *
https://www.youtube.com/@mvfreedom
Trawler liveaboards in PacNW
https://www.youtube.com/@Tulasendlesssummer
Buy, liveaboard, fix, some insurance & hurricane discussion
https://www.youtube.com/@The71Percent
Trawler liveaboards, currently cruising Australia to North America
https://www.youtube.com/@ParlayRevival
Rebuilt hurricane damaged cat (from Carribean), now cruising around the world
https://www.youtube.com/@SailingMagicCarpet
Mix of cruising and rebuilding sail boats
https://www.youtube.com/@SailingUma
Mix of cruising and rebuilding sail boats

* Beware the rabbit hole!

Thanks for the Youtube links, it looks like I will be busy watching a lot of Boating information.

The rabbit hole started when Youtube showed me the first video of the kid, (intodeep is his channel) sailing the boat he repaired and that was what got me interested.
Now it is to late, I can't un see it

MVFreedom and The 71Percent are the only two that are mainly cruising...with some standard maintenance thrown in. All the rest have some serious boat work, from major rebuilds to restoration/maintenance, as well as thousands of miles of cruising (East Coast, Bahamas & Caribbean, The Med & Europe, Asia, etc.).

I'm not sure the exact context of your post. I have raced big sailboats offshore my whole life. literally hundreds of thousands of miles at sea all offshore. So I'm fully comfortable with the idea of maintaining a boat and dealing with whatever.
I have lived on a boat for a year at one point. No big deal as for the living part. Was is a good idea economically not a chance on the planet, boats are expensive at every level. I have also been contracted to deliver boats a number of times and certainly every one has a certain idea of what prepared means.
My assessment, if you have not a clue about owning or operating a boat at the time of retirement this is nonesense.
It is certainly easy to get the costs if that is what is driving you but that really is not relevant to the discussion. Go try a couple of crewed charters in the size boat you want to consider and the routes the matter and see what is needed versus your skill set.
It certainly can be done, but its a big project to acquire anything like the skills needed.

quote:

Originally posted by hrcjon:
I'm not sure the exact context of your post. I have raced big sailboats offshore my whole life. literally hundreds of thousands of miles at sea all offshore. So I'm fully comfortable with the idea of maintaining a boat and dealing with whatever.
I have lived on a boat for a year at one point. No big deal as for the living part. Was is a good idea economically not a chance on the planet, boats are expensive at every level. I have also been contracted to deliver boats a number of times and certainly every one has a certain idea of what prepared means.
My assessment, if you have not a clue about owning or operating a boat at the time of retirement this is nonesense.
It is certainly easy to get the costs if that is what is driving you but that really is not relevant to the discussion. Go try a couple of crewed charters in the size boat you want to consider and the routes the matter and see what is needed versus your skill set.
It certainly can be done, but its a big project to acquire anything like the skills needed.

Thank you this information is very helpful.
My wife and I have several years to retirement, this is why I am starting my research now.
I like the idea you mentioned about working on a boat similar to what I am thinking about.
As far as cost, I would be looking to trade the cost of living on land vs on a boat. I know it will be more expensive however like I said earlier it probably would only be for a few years earlier on in retirement. How much more expensive is the question. This is why I am starting now with the reasearch.
As far as training, my thoughts, start with online classes first then over time get hands on experience/training from a property trained professional.

While I swear by this forum, for this topic, go to trawlerforum.com.

Brother-in Law owned several watercraft says BOAT stands for "Bring On Another Thousand.

With this size boat you need to be able to captain it. It doesn’t sound like you have any experience doing that.
Start with classes at the U.S. Power Squadron or some equivalent. They have many courses, from basic rules of the road regarding buoy colors, channel markers, etc and piloting all the way up to navigation.

You also need to be an engine mechanic. Shit happens at sea, and when you lose an engine, you want be able to get downstairs and figure out what’s going on fast. Keep spares of every important part in storage (obviously spark plugs, caps, filters), in addition to whatever part seems quirky for your particular boat. With newer engines, you might be out of luck and just have to head to shore by tow.

Learn all about Marine weather and what to watch for in addition to what it says on the Marine radio. Squalls come from nowhere and they can destroy your boat and your confidence in a couple minutes if you’re not ready for it.
You’re smart to start planning now - start looking at marinas that you can dock at during the course of your trip. You and your spouse are going to have to hit land at some point to get food, take a moment, shop, etc.

Make sure (if you can) that the marina has a mechanic and fuel on site. Check to see if there’s good security at said same marinas- is there an issue with stealing - some islands in the Caribbean have problems with fun folks like you getting robbed. You also have to confirm where you can moor. You can get very stiff fines from dropping anchor on a coral reef in a protected area.
Boating sounds like a lot of fun and it is, but you have to be prepared.
We have a 42’ power boat that we live and play on in the summer. There’s no question that it’s not cheap, but we have enjoyed it over the years. We have not taken it around the loop or down to the Caribbean, but we’ve certainly talked about it and looked at it. Boaters that travel have lots of websites and forums - they connect and stay in touch on the water, helping wherever they can. It’s a great community.
One or two of the places that we’ve been diving at in the Caribbean over the past several years had boats mooring in harbors that were basically wrecks hanging onto a chain. Left behind by owners from various parts of the world.
I think it’s a great research project and well worth your time. In fact, if I were you, I’d research it by chartering a boat of your choice down in the area you want to play and spend a week or two letting someone show you the ropes- not just the fun stuff. Also check with Jimmy123? on this forum- I think he has a lot of experience captaining larger ships in the carribean.

quote:

Originally posted by smlsig:
A few weeks ago he told me he was scraping the idea of a trawler and is buying a new catamaran in the Moorings fleet in the Bahamas! The Moorings told him that if he puts it in their charter fleet he will actually make money when he’s not using it!!!

Hmmmmm. That sounds like buying an airplane and putting it on leaseback at a flight school. I’m sure someone must have made out on a deal like that, but I’ve never met one of them. Good luck to your friend!

quote:

Originally posted by slosig:

quote:

Originally posted by smlsig:
A few weeks ago he told me he was scraping the idea of a trawler and is buying a new catamaran in the Moorings fleet in the Bahamas! The Moorings told him that if he puts it in their charter fleet he will actually make money when he’s not using it!!!

Hmmmmm. That sounds like buying an airplane and putting it on leaseback at a flight school. I’m sure someone must have made out on a deal like that, but I’ve never met one of them. Good luck to your friend!

Back in the 90s I was a service manager for a fire protection company. I had a few customers that owned boats that had fire protection systems and fire extinguishers that needed to be serviced.
Everything from something the size I am looking at to boats larger enough to do catered party's for large crowds like weddings.
One of my customers, a doctor had a cabin cruise that slept 6 to 8 people.
He hired a professional captain to run the boat for charter when he and his family weren't using it. He told me over time he would make most of the cost boat back, I'm not sure how it worked out for him.

So we have a plan to sail around FL/Bahamas in the “winter” in SC. (So, January and part of February.).

Might get a little boat to gunkhole etc/possibly as a “commuter” between locations.

Those old trawlers tend to be very cheap, because the burn rate is absurd.

Many of them are bizarrely inefficient

living aboard and traveling are two different things. The fairy tale of sailing around half the world will most likely hurt, kill you, get you kidnapped or arrested or at the very least break your bank account. None of those sound great to me. You choose. Ymmv.

Build the house in Tennessee first.

There was an interesting guy in Miami who lived aboard a sailboat, drove a Testarossa and had a cigarette boat.

Been watching the reruns lately.

quote:

Originally posted by slosig:

That sounds like buying an airplane and putting it on leaseback at a flight school. I’m sure someone must have made out on a deal like that, but I’ve never met one of them.

I sort of did that. Not a flight school, but I put the Bonanza on the rental line at the local FBO. The deal was, the FBO got a percentage of the rental fee.

It worked because I was very much hands on, micromanaging everything. The rules were that the airplane would only be rented to pilots who were on an approved list, and I was the only one who could check a pilot out and add his/her name to that list. None of the other instructors at the FBO were permitted to instruct in that airplane.

The FBO owner initially balked at some of the restrictions, but I told him, "You said that you wanted an airplane like this on your rental line. If you want mine, this is the way it's going to be; take it or leave it. You have nothing invested in that airplane; I'm the one taking all the risk, so I am going to manage that risk on my terms."

With those controls in place, the V-Tail actually bought itself and was never abused.

quote:

I put the Bonanza on the rental line at the local FBO. The deal was, the FBO got a percentage of the rental fee.

Not being an aviator, I had to look that up: Aviation: FBO = Fixed-Base Operator

I think it worked for you because you were "very much hands on, micromanaging everything." If you weren't, your beautiful plane may have been abused.