Let the Fun Begin- It's Buying Time

[JLR]

Spent the weekend looking at boats locally just to get a feel for the different models. The 56 Ocean was nice. The 60 Viking and the 54 Hatteras were in such poor condition it was hard to tell. The Ocean had MTU's. I don't know anything about MTU's.

[Boatsb]

Although costly to maintain they are pretty dependable. If there's no major maintenance needed there's no reason to be concerned when your plans are low running hours.

[JLR]

Thanks Scott. The familiarity with the ECM display is comforting. The owner of the Ocean actually wanted to take a ride so I joined him. At 1950, we were doing 27 knots at 60 GPH total fuel burn. That is pretty darn good by my standards. I plan on looking at a whole lot of boats within the next two weeks or so to try to settle in on a model. With being a cash buyer with nothing to trade and a timetable that permits me about six months to look, I should be able to find the right model, right boat at hopefully the right price. With all of that said, I really hate to shop. I much prefer to buy. Now, on to the 58 Vikings, the 62 Oceans and perhaps the 65 Hats.

[saltshaker]

The 56 Ocean has a huge interior for its size. ER is decent and she’s pretty quick with small engines. Those were series 60 Detroits/MTUs at 825HP? Very reliable engine but not as preferred as the 3406E Cats that are in most. They’re a bit too heavy given the big superstructure for the hull. Ocean stretched that hull to make the 60. I think you’ll like the 62 a whole lot more. Real enclosed bridge with a stairs and a much better ride. Still no Hatt but you get a lot of boat for the money and they are much better than the older Oceans. No comparison in ride to the Hatt either.

[northshoreone]

Before I found my Hatt. I almost purchased a 62 Ocean in FL! The layout is GREAT and the wife would love it! The problem is build quality! It is NO Hatteras!! I backed out of the deal after the sea trial, not so much because of performance but due to allot of deferred maintenance issues that came to light and the lack of build quality, IMHO, was very apparent! Think Bayliner! That boat had 3412 catts in it and it ran very well, but the rest of the boat was falling apart around them!

[JLR]

Thank you both for the insight. There is no question that an Ocean is not a Hatteras. The real question is how much of a step down is it and whether those deficiencies impact my intended use. I have tried to learn what I can about the Oceans. According to one broker, the are well known for being replete with fresh water leaks. I do not know whether that is true or not. Yes, the were the smaller MTU's in the 56 I was on, I think. Although I do not know for sure, my gut tells me that it will come down to a 65 Hatteras, a 58 Viking or a 62 Ocean, hopefully all with enclosed bridges. Now, if only I had access to soldboats.com, I could get a realistic idea of what they sell for. But, my broker will have access and I do trust him. It appears to me by looking at asking prices, that there are a whole lot of MAN boats out there that go up for sale just before the 2000 service is due. I understand that this is sort of a mandatory service and quite expensive. While I am loathe to do this, what about the wisdom of getting a very nice Viking cosmetically at let's say, at a very attractive price and then springing myself for that service. I suspect that I would do better off in knocking the selling price down on a boat that cannot move because of the expensive service due, than it will actually cost me to have the service done. Or, is that logic faulty?

[Tim Powell]

The 56 Ocean has a huge interior for its size. ER is decent and she’s pretty quick with small engines. Those were series 60 Detroits/MTUs at 825HP? Very reliable engine but not as preferred as the 3406E Cats that are in most. They’re a bit too heavy given the big superstructure for the hull. Ocean stretched that hull to make the 60. I think you’ll like the 62 a whole lot more. Real enclosed bridge with a stairs and a much better ride. Still no Hatt but you get a lot of boat for the money and they are much better than the older Oceans. No comparison in ride to the Hatt either.

Get in the engine room and cut out the engine room lights you will be able to tell where the water line is on a sunny day. What does that tell you? We have a customer bunch of nice guys (doctors) who purchased one. These things are like a V tail Bonanza air plane doctor killer.
They as most doctors have trouble keeping it in deep water. It got to closes to the bottom shafts rudders and props. We are old school at the marina we only have a railway
anyway we had to call Ocean as where to put the chocks. Three sets were required. Front, middle and rear. Ocean sent a fax with directions. We normally only put two sets front and just before shafts. Wonder why the thing could brake in certain unsupported sections.
So the question comes up will it support its on weight?

[saltshaker]

Tim was that a 60? They are known to crack. I saw one that was cracked from a rough ride. Obvious it was poor construction as it was cracked on both sides at the same location. Some of the newer ones aren’t too bad but as mentioned definitely not a Hatt but certainly better than the Oceans from the 80’s and 90’s. If buying one I’d be looking at 2000 models that were not older models or updates/extensions of older models. The 50 and 62 are better boats than say the 56 , 60 or 66

[northshoreone]

Tha the way I did the deal on the Bertram. List price less all deferred maintenance issues, less the cost of the rebuild on the engines, due to the hours, although I did credit back about 10% of the engine rebuild cost hoping they last at least a couple of years of use. Being a cash buyer and not really needing to purchase the boat helps allot. It all comes back to how bad does the seller need to move the boat and how bad do you want his boat!
Good luck!

[Tim Powell]

Tim was that a 60? They are known to crack. I saw one that was cracked from a rough ride. Obvious it was poor construction as it was cracked on both sides at the same location. Some of the newer ones aren’t too bad but as mentioned definitely not a Hatt but certainly better than the Oceans from the 80’s and 90’s. If buying one I’d be looking at 2000 models that were not older models or updates/extensions of older models. The 50 and 62 are better boats than say the 56 , 60 or 66

Jack i am at home, had to call the mariner to be sure 60 is correct. When i ask the size the first question do we have to pull it again?