How long did take to find the "Perfect Hatt"

[egaito]

Woodsong's YF thread got me thinking about this....

How long did it take you to find the "right" boat, and how many frogs did you kiss before the prince/princess appeared?

Misty took me a year to find, several plane trips, two attempts at survey, and 4 months to get to her new slip.

It was quite a bit longer for Sanctuary, but I'll let Ang can fill the stats for her.....

 

[luckydave215]

Two years of frog kissing, and in the end found her just 100 miles from home. The trip home only took 7 hours (force 7 conditions ) instead of a prolonged dockwise ordeal. :

The best part was having her out in rough weather right from the start. Now I know what a great sea boat she is, and I'm not afraid of anything short of a hurricane.

 

[Angela]

All in all, my search lasted about two years from the conception of the idea to having boat in hand.

My search didn't begin with looking for a Hatteras, specifically. In the spring of 2004, I had the realization of "why wait until I retire to live on a boat in the Carribean islands and entertain friends on the boat, when I can do it now and earn a living at it." That's when I set out to find a charteryacht. The first boat I actually wanted to purchase was a 66' Cheoy Lee Long Range Cruiser. Upon haul out, the straps were located incorrectly and despite the broker telling the yard folks it was wrong, they lifted her anyway and the straps tore through her aft section, destroying a lot of the master stateroom cabinetry, which was georgous, by the way! Over time, I moved on to other non-Hatteras candidates and then I realized, from knowing Ed's Misty, what a quality boat a Hatteras was. And then I found all of you! From that point, I knew the boat was definitely going to be a Hatt. Then, after a lot of research of the Virgin Islands charteryacht industry, I narrowed my search to a vessel under 60' so I could still use the mooring buoys in the BVIs. We looked at several 53MY, 58YF, 58MY, and one 58 Triple Cabin. During the summer of 2005, we looked at 9 Hatterases in one trip! We made several other trips here and there after that. While attending the Miami Boat Show back in February of this year, we found her! And it was a miracle that this particular boat became ours. So, I've got about 2 years in the process which began with researching several candidates before hitting the road and dragging Ed all over the place looking at boats. I think he enjoyed it, though!

And yes, we kissed a lot of toads....one survey invovled billowing thick black smoke, and then she tried to sink herself at the dock that night. What's amazing is that the price of that "project boat" (and seller wasn't moving off his price) was the same as what I paid for the boat I'm in. The seven months I sat miserably boatless was well worth the wait in hindsight. But I have to say that was the most miserable seven months of my life.

Not all of what we saw were toads, some just weren't right for my particular intentions, and some were simply over priced.

 

[MikeP]

2 Years to find our '53 and three days to get her home to Long Island. Boat was 30 miles North of Philly on the Delaware River. We only considered boats on the East Coast.

 

[yachtsmanbill]

Hey Ang-- Was the Cheoy Lee LRC "LA DAMA GORDA"? I looked at that one before the big Hatt too. When that boat was lifted the straps broke out a
14" X 6' section of the port side fuel tank.That faux pas showed the meager 3/16" outer skin as well. The fly brdge was also vaporized as the boat broke her mooring and drifted under a 12 foot highway bridge.Mi ISO fell in love with the interior joinery tho- our little yellow bretheren are artists with teak arent they?? ws

 

[MarioG]

One phone call to SeaEric landed our current boat. The reality is that I've been looking for a 58' YF for a LOOOOOOONG time. But it seems that my timing has always been off for one reason or another. But times are changing...

 

[Angela]

yachtsmanbill,

No, it was "Resolute". I, too, moved on in search of a more robust boat. I had to admit...the layout was perfect (I have no idea how that could have been improved!) and breathtaking gorgeous inside, even more so than my Hatt, but underneath the "pretty" was Sea Ray quality. No thanks! I saw that boat three months later at New River Marina boat yard. They were repairing her.

 

[Pascal]

i almost feel bad answering this post...

after getting separated, i decided to get a large boat to live aboard... i quickly realized a 53 hatteras was the ideal boat and started looking in july 03 once i got a contract on the condo. I saw 4 of them (marco island, Ft Myers and FTL), 2 being unkissable toads. When i closed on the condo, i called back to make an offer on the 3rd one (in FTL) but was too late, however since it remained on YW for a year after that, I guess something showed up in the survey...

i then saw nr 5, only 5 miles away ! ... that was the one. price was ok after negotiating pre and post survey, not great, but ok... that was late august 03, closed in sept.

guess i was real lucky considering the trouble some of you have gone thru...

 

[Paul45c]

From the point I'd made up my mind on the 45c, it only took about 4 mos. There were several around the country, but even from just reading listings it was clear that the ones well away from my home FL waters were no better than the 4 I had immediately available down here. And FL boats are usually cheaper, which was definitely the case with the one I settled on.

 

[ohiohatteras]

We had a 28 Bertram and were looking real hard for a 35 Bertram. We were just about to make an offer on one and got a call from a friend/broker about a 36 Hatt that was only 3 marinas away! .......I guess we kinda fell into ours.....needless to say.....that was 10 years ago and we never looked back!

 

[SKYCHENEY]

I looked for about 9 months. Several trips. One to Conn to see a frog that was supposed to be nearly perfect(if you listened to the broker). Then I cast a little wider net, pricewise. That landed my current Hatt, only an hour an a half away from my home. The hardest part was the bargaining that went on after I found her. Thought I'd lost her, but ended up closing the deal afterall.

 

[Trojan]

Interesting! I was cruising around our marina in my F32 Trojan. AND this big boat caught my eye. I didn't even know what kind it was, but I knew I liked it's lines. After that. Every time I passed this boat I would tell my wife. Wouldn't it be nice to own that. She would say. It's too big. The following year it didn't go in the water. I said to my wife and everyone else that I had on board every time we went past it, setting on shore. If that boat ever comes up for sale. I would like to make an offer on it. The next year it still didn't go in the water. So I started checking around. I found our it was for sale and in August the bank was going to taking over. Just for fun I went to the bank. I talked with the bank and the owner. Then about the asking price. I looked the boat over a few times in the next week. After talking with the guys here I made an offer. Now this is early August. The bank said they thought the offer was too low. I gave all the reasons for the low figure that I got from the group here. I was the only person interested. I didn't here anything for 5 months. I did here through the marina that they were trying to correct all the things that I said lowered the price. They gave up. This was in November now. The third week in December. The bank called. They asked if I was still interested in the boat and still at my price offer. I said sure. But there was one catch. I had to have the money and complete the sale by December 31. I did better on the price than I thought. I had offered a percentage of the unpaid loan. They thought I offered a cash price. I did OK. I had no intention of buying another boat. I don't regret any part of it. It took 3 years. Thanks again guys for the help you were great.


BILL

 

[Boss Lady]

Two years of looking and now two years of refurbishment on the boat I wanted. I wanted a boat that I could single hand if I needed to, but still offered the best useable space for entertaining and occasional fishing, oh and it had to have a reasonable cruising speed, since I still have a business to run and need to make maximum use of time, so we can go 250 miles in a day during daylight hours. That means that I can really get somewhere during a 3 or 4 day weekend. Also boat slip availability means that when you get above 50 feet your choices start becoming limited on marina space. The 48 Yachtfish design offered just what I was looking for, except that cruising speed just wasn't there, so after looking at a bunch of overpriced boats, I decided to look for the best deal on a boat that needed everything. A buddy of mine had this one and wound up needing to sell her to complete a house in the Bahamas. We stripped everything to the glass, and every fitting is new. The only thing old is the hull, the struts and the shafts. This one will be finished for 1/4 the cost of something new, but has an all glass hull, and I know every part and system like the back of my hand. Stay tuned!

 

[spartonboat1]

A Hatt was my unrequited dream...I never thought it would happen. I was searching for a 35' Chris Craft Double Cabin commander...quite a few around and usually reasonable priced. While calling into Wisconsin on one such boat the broker asks "and what boat would you really prefer?". I replied, well a 43 Hatt would be ideal, but I can't afford one...to which he responded what if I had one? One thing lead to another, I had it surveyed by what I thought was an overzealous old guy (turns out he might have understated "she's a project boat") who in retrospect was "grrreat!". I then ran a risk analysis of all I thought could be needed to be done after purchase and adjusted my offer accordingly- more naivete. Owner fainted at offer. But I made the offer, got into a mild bidding war with someone on the West coast who dropped out.

She was mine subject to a sea trial. Sorry to say, I was super naive...I had no clue about sea trialing! Obviously I know now, but not then. The broker was a very nice guy, still is, but new to the biz and no help on the trial. But the build quality of a Hatt is a major saving grace. Also one of the mains with a bad survey had, since the time of that survey been in-frame majored, which was unknown at the time of purchase. Its (the main) having been rebuilt offset other costs. The genny was considered no good, since it wouldn't start. A major yard said its shot...smokes like crazy. Turned out to be a starter issue, plus half the heater plate and a glow plug were bad. I somehow reached the Onan tech who worked on it he said it had been bench re-built - now starts great, uses no oil, run well.

So with an oil change, song in my heart, and a new loan, off I went clear across Lake Michigan and up the West Mich. coastline without so much as a look at the weather forecast. Did I mention naive. Thankfully, June is good month for boating weather and was nice that day. Of course the great sea keeping of a 43' DCMY covers sins of the sea, but with only 1-2' seas that day, it was a walk in the park. Holy cow, talk about naive and I have been out on the Great Lakes all my life.

I was so overwhelmed by the size of the boat that I hyperventilated whenever taking her out running her for the first four years. Now she seems very friendly and normal- they grow on you. But I must say I still get a rush when first firing up those DD's and hearing the sound like 10 Harley Davidson's and running up to cruise speed is still a kick. My cousin has a non-Hatt 45' sportfisherman with Cummins or Cat's and he was pleasantly surprised about their sound at speed and the great ride (I've posted that before).

So start to finish...5 years wishin', 2 year hopin', 4 mos searching for something else and 1 month negotiating when I found her by happenstance. That was in 1997 and she can be 'spensive to run, but knowing that I could hit by a bus some day, I keep running her. Virtually every trip is different. There is nothing like her (except other, bigger Hatts!). Also, a lot sweat equity, plus work by professionals has her in pretty decent shape. So on we go...

 

[Wild Bill]

After hearing some of your stories, I feel fortunate. I found my Hatt in two months. It took another four months to close the deal (the owner was out of town). I didn't even have to travel far. In fact, the boat still resides in the same slip she was in when I bought her.

My first experience with a Hatt was when I was a kid. My father owned a 41C. I don't remember what year model. He being an old salt, had always been a proponent of wood boats. He claimed a wood boat would out fish a plastic one. I for one will never deny that claim. Anyway, the Hatt was his first plastic boat. I remember how impressed he was with the construction and attention to detail that he found. He was so impressed, he made a trip to the Hatteras facilty to see first hand how they were built. Upon his return, he was a Hatt man forever. My father was a very hard man to impress.
As a result, I named my Hatt after him, hence the name Wild Bill.

I think he would be proud.

 

[the kuz]

My wife and I were looking around the Chesapeake for most of 1990/91 for a diesel 36C Hat. We found "Sandtrap" a 77 near Annapolis. After reviewing survey info (the boat seemed sound, but needed interior work) we made an offer but got outbid by another buyer we didn't even know was in the picture. A little over a year later we were doing the weekly scan of the boat ads in the Washington Post, and saw a 36C up for private sale. Went to look at "Baby Grand" in Colonial Beach Va. Interior had just been re-done, and the owner (a tug boat engineer moving to California) had just put about $10K into running gear and mechanicals. The boat looked familiar and sure enough it was the same boat we got out bid on the previous year. The seller was moving and had to sell, and we got the boat for the same offer that failed the year before. Ran her for 13 years before re-power and interior refit last year. We plan on keeping her. Some things are just meant to be!

 

[Woodsong]

well, we just stepped on our first hatteras about 2 weeks ago.

However, we've been wanting to get a bigger boat for the last few months...very minor efforts to market our current boat due to not being able to decide what boat to buy as replacement. But...so far, if we an find a good 58' hatt i think we have found our boat! It was a real debate for us whether to go that big and keep it on the TN River or just get a 42' express cruiser and trailer it occassionally back and forth from ATL to the river for extended trips. If we can find her the big boat wins!

 

[ADaily3224]

Interesting stories:
I had a 33 Bertram and received an unsolicited offer from the broker who had sold it to me 4 years prior. I had just completed the last detail to bring what was a nice boat to start with, to new condition. So in my typical everything is for sale style, I took the offer. I wanted something bigger, missed a stall shower, and decided to find a nice 38 Bertram. I had owned two Hatteras, a 37 C and a 38 DCMY, liked them both, but really wanted a 38 Bertram. From what I have seen in general the average Bertram is in much poorer condition than the average Hatteras, that's a personal opinion. The old phrase, ridden hard, put away wet, comes to mind. After a few months I finally found what seemed to be a very clean, fresh water since new, 38 Bertram. I negotiated a price, sent a deposit, and went to look at it. As usual, a picture can tell 1,000 words, or can hide 1,000 defects. I probably should have canned the idea early on as the boat was equipped with 6V53TI's the 250 HP version, twin turbo charged, oil leaking, noisy, green pigs, but I was optimistic. I was hoping to find everything clean and neat with good service records, you know the deal. Besides that the broker promised me it would cruise at 18K, which I doubted. The previous owner was a do-it-yourself kind of guy and should have been a, have-someone-who-knows-what-they-are-doing kind of guy do the work. Deal over. I went home depressed, and worried I wouldn't have something for next season while my wife and friends kept saying, "I told you not to sell that boat". There were a few toads over the next month or so, much traveling, and a little scolding of brokers who couldn't resist tempting you with a misleading description. I kept checking the Internet coming back to a 1988 36 Hatteras that seemed to hold my interest, I was concerned it would be too small. I contacted the broker, who explained that their office was closed until spring but he would meet me if I wanted to see the boat. This one was 500 miles away almost straight north, no close airport, no easy way to get there, and a genuine risk of hitting some bad weather on the way. After much e-mail and phone conversation I decided to go, and I'm glad I did. The broker was very honest, likeable, helpful. The transaction was easy, and the work I had done to the boat while it was in storage was excellent. I couldn't have asked for a better deal or a better buying experience. My belief is this boat didn't sell sooner because of it's location, and extreme cost to get it south. After looking at toads this boat looked new, stored under cover since new, heated indoors winters, 182 hours, what the heck, it looked like it had been in a time capsule. End of story, at least something else comes along.

Tony D

 

[thoward]

A few hours.....We were not in the market for a boat as we have a old 43' wooden Egg Harbor I have been working on(It is FOR SALE cheap!). We had been looking at boats to get ideas for the Egg and for future purchase. Well along comes this boat at auction with hurricane katrina damage. We had decided the next boat would likely be a Hatteras but we were thinking a 53' Sportfisher, not any thing like this one. We came up with a price from looking at the pics and did some last second Ebaying and to my surprise we bought a 60' Conv. Enclosed Flybridge sight unseen . Well, I got that what have I done feeling and my wife got that I really did not think you would buy it feeling(little did she know). I got up from the computer, loaded up and drove the 10 hours to inspect her. It turned out she was in much better shape than we expected and to top it off were getting offers to buy her by the next day. At first the boat seemed really big but now not so much until you have to wash her. It has been 2 months and most of the damage has been fixed and I have made it through most of the systems. I figure it will take a year to get her back to being a looker.

 

[CARL GUZMAN]

Nice story thoward can you post some pictures of day one and some progression pictures???