bertram31.com

I thought I knew all the Northern California Bertram 31's, but just noticed this Cummins 6BTA powered 31 on the market in Berkeley. 258 hours since 2005 might explain why I've never seen her. Looks a little rough cosmetically, but a lot of the major pieces are there if someone in CA is looking for a Cummins powered 31.

http://www.yachtworld.com/boats/1971/Be ... dYmi9zn8ei

Pretty boat for sure...and nice power....but you have to laugh at "Like new Condition"
in the brokers write up.

You know right where you sit when they start out like that.

She have any blisters...No
Rotted Bulkhead?...no way
Deck solid..Of course!!
Beefed up strut pads? Would sell boat without that being done.
Engines maintained, fluid changed as per schedule?...Religiously! I'm insulted!

I too scratched my head about the broker's reported condition. Keeping a boat looking good in Berkeley is an uphill battle to begin with, but 258 hours since 2005 doesn't equate to a lot of pride of ownership. The Berkeley Marina sits at the end of what sailors in the SF Bay call "The Slot" - the accelerated shot of wind from onshore breezes getting squeezed as they come through the gap between the Marin Headlands and San Francisco. That wind is easily 15-30 knots most days and goes through the Golden Gate Bridge, right at Alcatraz, and straight at Berkeley. It is what made Alcatraz corrode and crumble to the point that it was too expensive to operate. Sideways rain and general dust & dirt blown like that daily tends to get into otherwise tight places and make gel coat look dull for most boats in Berkeley. Drop the functional life expectancy of most things on a boat by 25-30% if you keep your boat in Berkeley. You trade the harsh environment for lower slip fees there.

The good news is when I found Shambala in Southern California, she was completely chalked over and fraught with the effects of years of general neglect.





60 days later most people couldn't believe it was the same boat.







That boat in Berkeley has a lot of the bigger ticket things - 6BTA's, fiberglass deck, glassed in front windshield, Furuno Navnet electronics - to make the cosmetics a worthwhile project. However, looking at the general condition of the boat and the amount of things that can go wrong from only 258 hours of use in 8 years, I think I would expect her to sell for somewhere around $65K based on how soft the boat market has been out here.

Hopefully someone will get the fever, some vision, and restore her to her former glory...

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Joli-Tim ... 8911622669" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

John, Here is a true Northern California 31 Bertram.

Ian Kramer

Ian,

Wow...Love it! You're right, Eureka IS the real Northern California. I did not know there were any Bertram 31's between the San Francisco Bay and Portland, OR.

I would love to see more pics of your covering boards and cockpit side panels. They look great in the two pics on your FB page. I would love to replicate them!

Sincerely,

John Vietor

John, come on up. I will take you fishing and you can get all the pictures you want.

I'd love to do that. I'm out of town on business next week, but will reach out to you to get something scheduled.

John, Seeing as how this is is no the appropriate pace to be advertising a business, please contact me through ian@jolitimesportfishing.com.

I would love to have you come up and see the boat and get a fishing trip in at the same time. Whom ever re-outfitted this boat in the early 90's new what they they were doing.

The same goes for any member of this site.

The wealth of knowledge here has been invaluable to me when helping me decide on if this was the right boat for me. So far everything about this boat has been more than I had could have expected.

Absolutely in a class all by itself.

Ian Kramer, Captain

Ian,
I can only speak for myself...if I want to book a charter you can bet your butt I am going to look for a 31 Bertram for the Charter.
From the 31 Bertram Charters, I am going to give someone from this site priority...I believe in keeping it in the family.
Brewster would be my choice, from the Long Island area,if he's still running charters...

So for me...if your not pushing and cramming your business with every response...I would not mind knowing if you had a Charter business...or any business for that matter. It guarantees nothing other then being given a crack at a job or fare...

I am not 100% sure what the rules are about that, even after being here a tad while...





John,
Shambala is in "Like New" or "Better then New" condition...a boat to be proud of for sure.

The one advertised as "Like New" is not a bad boat, nice motors, alot to work with...actually most likely in better shape then mine sitting on the hard this year. But what gets me, if a salesman is going to lie about the obvious condition of the boat...how do you expect me to believe anything said about the less then obvious things.

My buddy wanted a boat without Spider cracks... Plain and simple...before he/we drove a couple hours to see a boat or two he'd get the salesman on the horn and specifically tell them, "if boat has spider cracks, I will not look further, I will not look at any other boat you wish to show, I will never see "ANY" boat you may have to show me". I cannot tell you how many boats we went to see that had severe Spider Cracks in obvious spots...as we turned to leave many a salesman got "Pissy about us leaving without seeing the rest of the boat or the other boats" My buddy has Zero patients, letting very little roll off his back...he'd get right up in salesman's face and tell him off about who was wasting whose time.

He wound up buying a boat from a salesman who told him outright boat had a few minor Spider cracks, took pictures of boat and cracks then sold boat on it's merits...I just hate when people piss on my leg and tell me it's raining....always wanted to say that.

CArl

Thanks! Totally agree with you on all points Carl!!!

Anybody know who this one belongs to in Newport?

http://orangecounty.craigslist.org/boa/3908349089.html

This boat has been around Newport for a long time. I looked at it when it was for sale in 2003, but decided it wasn't worth the money at that time due to the BMW diesels and the cruise speed of 17 knots. In fact, here is what Uncle Vic sent me about that boat specifically:

"As for the off-brands, such as BMW, etc, just forget it. Why invest all that time, frustration, and money in something that has no reputation or resale value. That B31 on the left coast that has BMW diesels that has been on the market forever, the price keeps dropping, and no one bites. Maybe people that want a B31 get leader-shy."

It appears that the window frames have been painted since I saw it 10 years ago.

Only two pole holders....



The BMW motor looks similar to the Steyr design....must be similar in weight too as she is riding high.
I am fairly certain dads 236 Steyrs at 215hp weigh less then the dressed 440's he replaced.

Interesting, highly modified interior.

Pretty interesting how they moved the dinette forward...

Yup, moved forward by cutting out part of the "dash," and it looks like a head to port aft of the dinette.

Here are two more that have been for sale for sometime.

http://losangeles.craigslist.org/wst/bo ... 68529.html

and then there is this gasser..

http://orangecounty.craigslist.org/boa/3924439103.html

So I talked to the current owner of the BMW powered 31 on Friday. Got a little bit on information from him, but it sounds like I need to make the trip up to Newport for the rest of the story. Pics he sent me show the layout. Quality looks fine but I'm just not into what was done. I'd prefer a stock layout.

Talked to the owner of the gasser 31 in Newport. BBCs have low hours but our original which is not good. Port side is not running... however he bought it like that with the intention to repower. Still has the f-glass tank. Might be worth checking out if the price is right.

Regarding the BMW 31 - I actually was looking hard at that boat to the point that I had a survey completed on her. The cross bracing for the engine stringers that was put in place with the BMWs was almost completely rotted through . If you end up looking at her afterall, make sure you get it surveyed - I doubt anything that I mentioned to the owner was fixed.