Asking for help for a good friend.. boat in Greenport

[IRGuy]

I have a very good friend in Australia who bought a B33 FBC a few years ago in NY, had it repowered in the US, and then shipped to Australia. He has become interested in a B37 (I have never seen one) with Cat 3208 375HP power.. and of all places the boat is in Greenport. I told him the B31 faithful are having a rendevous there soon and I would ask if someone might take some time to look at the boat and offer an opinion on it. The boat is on Yachtworld and brokered by Brewer, and I assume is at their marina. The price is $60K, which seems to be very low, and the engines have 2,200 hours on them. All the pics look great, but all boat pics look good to me.

I have visions of about a dozen of the attendees suddenly descending on the broker and terrorizing him while they go over the boat from stem to stern with a fine tooth comb.

Could someone take a look see for him and me please?

Thanks

[Todd Pearce]

I have been watching that boat since it came on the market two years ago, was originally on for $129000.00 I purchased a B42 for family reasons but those 37s are a fine boat there's 3 or 4 here in nz, the cats are favoured in this part of the world so hes on the right track ,I was told by the then broker that it had been well maintained, but he said, there were no service records but the boat had been looked after by the same cat guy all the time, how true I don't know, funny at the time I told the broker that I would fly up if the boat was around the 100k mark ,he told me not to bother! Seems like a lot of boat for the money, Is the boat market up there still depressed?
ps I just imported my boat last year and would do something's very differently, some small, others ,very important, Pm me if I can be of any help

[buzzk]

There used to be a few 37's around here and I can only think of one that had Cats. Most of the boats had Detroit 6v92's. I was told that the 6v92's had better performance.

[Whaler1777]

I'd take the cats over dd hands down...

[wmachovina]

As much ass 92s scare me 375 cats in a 37 give 17-18 kts. Also the engine room does not allow for an old body like mine to maneuver very well. Those facts convinced me ,an older 38 with c cummins, 450s, works. Bigger salon, more bow flare, surprisingly only 17deg of dead rise aft. Not as sexy but an honest 21 kt cruise boat with bullet proof economical engines. I only look back to check the lines.

[Todd Pearce]

for what its worth ,I`d take the dd`s any day vs the cats ,and I`d agree C series cummins would be awesome, but when I did my research, the cats in a b37 performed very well giving 20 plus knots and the 92 dd`s giving late 20 knots,to be fair the B37 I`ve been on had 6v92s@ 475hp,so cant speak first hand on the cat performance, I`d caution against 6v92 dd`s at over 475 hp,and I would not buy the 6v71s , but the cats should be fine in that boat, not so in a b42 or b43 where the cats are probably beyond there limit, refer to David Pascoe's articles on line, 2 cycle vs 4 cycle, Very informative, he also gives the B37 a good rap, if I wasn't going with a 37 I`d skip the 38(its older and hard to find a good one) in favour of the later 43 or even a late model B42 , for down under the B37 makes a lot of sense, down here the B38 is a hard boat to sell compared to a 37,its probably all about the look in truth,( call us shallow) a b37 is a much newer looking design, don't get me wrong my B42 isn't exactly going to fly out the door ,in fact I know a b37 would sell a lot faster, and history would suggest I am right, in our market, I think your friend is definitely on the wright track with a b37,there a great boat, just watch out for some common problems, the fly bridge floor tends to get soft right were you land after stepping of the ladder, and under the saloon door the bulkhead below often rots out, lift the step in the cockpit and reach forward and up and you`ll often find that she's gone all through there, also the hull sides are cored and on rare occasions are known to get wet around the side air intakes, just check them,
I really wish that a B37 had three bunks as it would be my favoured boat, but it doesn't, so I am of to replace my B42 with a mid 1990s B46,(not aB46,6) but I love those B37s, awesome sea boat , very dry ,and a proven fish raiser

[Bob H.]

Todd, my Dad has a 1987 37 with 3208 cats, 375 hp, cruise all day 21 knots in just about anything, fuel capacity is the knock on this boat the cats will allow canyon range burning less than 30 gph combined the DDs are much more thirsty. GREAT boat, he had to replace original engines as they were built during a strike by Cat employees and both lost a connecting rod bolt, adjuster knew exactly which bolt let go. I would take him with me to check out that 37, he has owned his since 1989 and knows them inside and out. Find out where the boat is located and I will grab a few Bertram brothers and give it a good once over for you. BH

[tjhartsr]

bob ,its a few miles away ,ill drive you over .michelle and i are gonna set up the friday get together .ill put a post up shortly.

[bob lico]

I know the boat.stolen at montauk and used for drug tranfer then abandon she wash ashore on montauk beach .was towed back to yard and " repaired" i am looking at the boat since last month because i have c-9 cats that need a home.505 hp the 3208 cats in the boat will need work do you really want a 2800 lb per motor? 3126b motors at 420 hp are half the weight.i am going wednesday for further negotiations .

[IRGuy]

BobH and tjhartsr..

Thank you both for your kind offer.

The boat broker's info is...

Bruce McDonald, CPYB
Brewer Yacht Sales, Inc.
Brewer Stirling Harbor Marina
1410 Manhanset Avenue
Telephone: Cell: (631) 987-9989, Fax: (631) 866-377-5659
Email Bruce McDonald bmcdonald@byy.com
The boat is at the Brewer marina.

I spoke with him a few minutes ago and told him to expect someone to contact him about looking at the boat sometime while you are at the upcoming rendevous. He said he will be out of town from Wed afternoon until Friday mid day this week, but he should be able to be reached by cell.

I am sure my Australian friend (AussieSyd) thanks you as well! He is a great guy and loves all things Bertram as much as we all do.

This site is great! Where else do so many people help so many others? It never ceases to amaze me how many friends we have here that we have never met.

Please feel free to contact me (cell: (508) 878=0987) if you have any questions.

Thanks again!

Bob Lico..

You posted your note above as I was typing mine. I am quite sure Syd doesn't want to get into a pissing match, and as all things in life the first "early bird" gets the worm. If you decide to pass on the boat I would appreciate your comments as well.

Frank B aka: IRGuy

[bob lico]

Frank the real question is how much structural damage was covered up " bondo sled" after she wallow on the beach with the waves breaking over her. If captain patrick did the bottom repair thats one thing but if Bubba repaired it and hide it under bottom paint i would try to look at every square inch of bilge. Unfoutunatly boat is being shown in water.i don't believe in joe surveyor with his dumb hammer Lets see the glass man i can see layup from filled in bondo.

[IRGuy]

Bob...

I agree, and right after I posted my last message here I sent an email to Syd telling him of both your comments and interest. The price is so low I was suspicious from the beginning. As I said.. if you aren't interested in the boat after looking at it I would appreciate having your comments on it. If you aren't interested after looking it I am going to continue on Syd's behalf until he tells me to stop.

Kind regards

Frank B

[Navatech]

Unfoutunatly boat is being shown in water.

That shouldn't be a problem... It's quite normal to request that the boat be hauled out for the initial survey... Even if at the prospective buyer's cost... If such a request is denied I wouldn't walk away from the deal...












I'd RUN away from the deal!... As fast as humanly possible...

[IRGuy]

Bob Lico..

Hopefully you will have been able to look at the boat today, and will post your plans/findings on it here. With this in mind I have posted the note to BobH and tjhartsr below.


BobH and tjhartsr..

Bob Lico said above he was going to look at the boat today. I have told Syd that when someone on this site expresses an interest in something none of the rest of us would knowingly compete with them. This being the case If Bob wants to pursue negotiations on this boat he has "rights of first refusal". I hope that if Bob decides he is not going to get involved with the boat he will feel free to post his findings here.

Syd and I very much appreciate your volunteering to look at the boat during the rendevous so as to be able to give Syd some idea on whether or not the boat is worth him pursuing. With Bob's potential interest at this stage I believe we should proceed in the following manner...

If Bob is interested in negotiating on the boat we will back off, and there is no need for you to waste your time looking at it on Syd's behalf.

If Bob says the boat is crap and not worth pursuing we will back off, and again there is no need for you to waste your time looking at it on Syd's behalf.

If Bob says he is no longer interested in the boat, but he is of the opinion that Syd or someone else should consider negotiating on the boat, we would appreciate your looking at the boat as well, and letting us know your thoughts on it.

We don't want to waste your time if there is no need for Syd's continued interest, but at the same time if Bob thinks the boat has potential for someone else we would appreciate your evaluation of the boat as well as Bob's.

I hope this all makes sense.. and again.. thanks for your offer.. I believe that "what goes around comes around".. hopefully one day I might be able to assist you in some way.. two more friends I have yet to meet.

And finally.. I hope everyone attending the rendevous has a great time! I hope to see lots of pictures!

[bob lico]

I took the bride with me to do a in water inspection and to get exact story of its grounding episode . She came in starboard to the wind on rocky beach .after she heel over to the beach and took out running gear.they replace both drag links ,tie bar,hydralic steering cylinder for some unknown reason they did not replace rudder box and bearing the collar and bearing is rusted junk but they look like new shafts .cockpit teak floor totaly shot and somebody actually just put new expose screw to hold floor from buckling.boat smells real bad ,holding tank,hoses,head should be replace with fresh water system.i did not check cored hull other then engine room walls .engine are leaking oil and water ,hydralic ,i don't care about the power i will be replacing with cat c-9. I will test generator under load friday as well as A /C system .interior is dated needs new floor now covered with dirty rug,L shape sofa,complete bedding( permeated with head odor) .bridge canvas and chairs nice . Will finish systems friday.

[IRGuy]

Bob Lico..
Thank you for the prompt report! Based on what you found, and your continued interest in her I will be telling Syd that since I don't think he is looking for a project boat and you might want to pursue her I think he should forget about this boat.

BobH and tjhartsr..
Syd and I both thank you for your offer of assistance, but based on what Bob Lico found and posted above I am advising Syd to take Navatech's suggestion and run away from this boat. I don't think he wants to have a project boat that needs a lot of work. Conversely I think Bob could bring this boat back if he chooses to do so.. having seen a few pictures of his work I am sure he could turn this boat into a proud again Bertram.

I find it interesting that neither the Yachtworld listing or the broker when I spoke with him two days ago mentioned anything about the boat's history or condition. In fact when I told him Syd was interested but since he was half a world away he asked me to step in and assist him he said.. "Why doesn't he just call a surveyor to look at it for him?" What surveyor would suggest this boat is anything but crap?

All I can say is what I have been told since I was a kid and earned a few dollars to spend.. "Buyer beware!"

I owe all you guys a couple of cold ones! Have a great time this weekend!