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1971 47' Pacemaker on Ebay for 15K after haul out broke it's back

  • Thread starter Thread starter ralexa6808
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The seller is delusional on multiple fronts. There's almost zero salvage value as most likely all the pieces and parts are probably in the same rotted shape as the rest of the boat. As far as the boat yard goes how would they be liable for damaging an already rotted out non structurally sound boat? If it was my yard I would have told the owner to go somewhere else because the yard is going to end up with an abandon piece of junk.
Btw, had an old timer that did some paint work for us who retired from Pacemaker/Egg Harbor who always talked about how many of the boats had rot before they left the plant. They would just cover it with Bondo and paint.
 
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Look close at the photos. I've never seen a hull crack vertically like that. 😳 WOW
 
Cricket said:
As far as the boat yard goes how would they be liable for damaging an already rotted out non structurally sound boat?
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Well you know, I'll just be there's a lawyer out there ready to go if that's the direction the owner chose. You see a rotten boat, he sees incompetence and gross negligence. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I ask you. Didn't so and so boatyard hold themselves out to be a competent, no expert, boatyard able to properly handle fine vintage yachts such as this? Did anyone hold a gun to their heads and make them wreck ole mister so and so's boat, his home?'

Hell if he could wait on me I might just go to law school. Can you still take a correspondence course?
 
Sad, but you have to wonder how much rot there already was in a boat which broke in the slings (I'm assuming that's what happened)
 
I see a great restoration project for a certain kind of owner.
 
Looks like she cracked pretty far forward of the straps from the lift. Looks like the weight of the forward section broke the rotted ribs and planks forward of the ER bulkhead. Probably very lucky this happened at a haul out rather than at sea.
 
Those boats were built without floor timbers. They relied entirely upon the skinny little steam bent oak ribs to keep the hull shape and support the keel. Going forward the engine stringers end at a certain point and there is nothing much in the way of structure to hold her together except for the planking. When all of it becomes compromised by age, this is what happens. It's amazing that she made it this far. There was an almost identical 47' Pacemaker here that a previous owner had actually had rebuilt and retrofit floor timbers added at a huge expense. She is now in the landfill as of a few years ago. This boat on ebay has a negative value even counting the engines, if they're healthy. It can cost $10K to dispose of a big old boat like that.
 
saltshaker said:
Looks like she cracked pretty far forward of the straps from the lift. Looks like the weight of the forward section broke the rotted ribs and planks forward of the ER bulkhead. Probably very lucky this happened at a haul out rather than at sea.
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If I searched correctly, there are just 3 wood Pacemakers for sale on Yachtworld.. Would you say they were all built as you described?

This one gets pulled out every year for a coast guard inspection and doesnt break...whats the difference; the the boat, or the yard doing the work?

http://www.yachtworld.com/boats/196...02473/San-Diego/CA/United-States#.WaGLfMh96M8
 
The difference is an owner who understands how to maintain the boat and where to take her for haulouts. For that 60 footer a synchrolift would be nice. Even still, I bet most yards have the owner sign a waiver of liability. You can see in the photos that it appears that 47' broke at the line of the forward bulkhead and the fwd lift strap was well aft of there. Even with a glass boat, its nice to lift them where the structure is located.
 
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ronparise said:
If I searched correctly, there are just 3 wood Pacemakers for sale on Yachtworld.. Would you say they were all built as you described?

This one gets pulled out every year for a coast guard inspection and doesnt break...whats the difference; the the boat, or the yard doing the work?

http://www.yachtworld.com/boats/196...02473/San-Diego/CA/United-States#.WaGLfMh96M8
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Your kidding....right? The difference is the boat that broke in the slings was a neglected bucket of rot. Unable to bare it's own weight.
 
You guys are too critical, that'll buff right out.


Someone had to say it😁
 
mykim said:
Your kidding....right? The difference is the boat that broke in the slings was a neglected bucket of rot. Unable to bare it's own weight.
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not kidding, Given what SeaEric says in his post I thought it was a good question
"Those boats were built without floor timbers. They relied entirely upon the skinny little steam bent oak ribs to keep the hull shape and support the keel. Going forward the engine stringers end at a certain point and there is nothing much in the way of structure to hold her together except for the planking. When all of it becomes compromised by age, this is what happens. It's amazing that she made it this far."

what he says makes it sound to me that wooden Pacemaker boats will all break sooner or later because of the way they were made....good maintenance might extend their life but sooner or later they will all break no matter how good the yard.


 
Based on what SeaEric and Ronparise wrote it can be safely assumed that wood Pacemaker's have a shelf life.

Do Hatteras boats have a shelf life too?

Is there a point of no return when it comes to the age of the boat where it no longer makes sense to keep?

Just throwing it out there.....I think I can keep my 1974 58 YF another 20 years, but I could be wrong, let the debate begin.....................
 
Comparing an old Hatteras to any wood boat is apples and oranges. Hatteras hulls don't rot and we will probably never know just how long they will last since we will all be gone by the time they are no longer serviceable because of structural weakness. Some old wood boats have been very nicely restored, at great expense by people with deep pockets and a total disregard for recovering some or none of their investment when they are done with it. Years ago when I was just a kid and all boats were wood (some were metal or concrete) a LARGE boat was somewhere in the high 30 ft to 40 ft. Only very well off people could afford to buy and maintain them. Regular folks like me were happy to have our 24 to 30 ft boats. Spring time fit out was quite an event as all the caulking and painting was being done in the yards. When major rot eventually happened many were just scrapped for fire wood. The 47 Pacemaker which is what this thread is about has been on borrowed time and artificial life support for some time. I feel sorry for the yard that was so desperate for a couple of bucks and agreed to haul it. They should have known better. Their only fault was taking on the job in the first place. Back in the day of wood boats we had rails extending into the water and a well cradled cart to haul a boat. Today we use travel lifts which are fine with most boats but not old wood ones. I agree that I would not take that boat for free to try to make a few bucks on salvaged parts. It will cost too much to gain too little.

Walt
 
Just the rental on the dumpster and wood chipper would make it past what any salvaged parts are worth. Forget the labor, yard fees, disposal costs etc.
 
Walter said it right. Our boats will outlive us.

Natural selection at its finest.
 
This is yet another example of why fiberglass is the ONLY way to go.
 
As for fiberglass boats, we all know there are the good, the bad, and the ugly. I have seen personally a 33' fiberglass hull crush its keel when set down on blocks. Another 56' that also crushed its keel when set down on blocks.

As a former fiberglass Pacemaker owner, for 2 years only, thankfully, the word back then is you never lift a wooden Pacemaker with travel lift straps. Looks to me that the boat got squeezed on the horizontal behind a forward bulkhead and cracked by the planking being stressed horizontally across the edge of the bulkhead.

On a related note, I haul our boat at Jarrett Bay in Beaufort, NC, using a travel lift, but the yard rigs a steel beam horizontally between the two forward straps, and lets the bow sit on that beam alone. The rear double straps lift as well control any roll motion. Only yard I have seen do it this way, but I like it.

Pete
 
hatteras 1985 said:
This is yet another example of why fiberglass is the ONLY way to go.
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Im sure you are right, but every time I see one like this I stop to look. There are three 57' Constellations as well as this 60' Pacemaker for sale in San Diego right now....My wife wants a bigger boat and Im tempted to at least take a look at them

They are just so damned pretty.


3606266_20140807081048245_1_XLARGE.jpg


 
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