Coronado 41

[VetMike]

I too am looking at a Coronado 41 as a live aboard as well as cruising the Caribbean. My interior tastes are simple; space to live in comfortably and enough amenities that I don't need to go ashore for every little thing. I am concerned, however, as several posts have mentioned leaks in the bilge with some sounding as if they were rather serious as well as keel to hull leaks. Are these common problems with this boat? I absolutely will have it surveyed prior to any consideration of purchasing it and I am handy enough to do a lot of repairs/maintenance myself.

[CaptainForce]

I happen to be the owner of an older fiberglass "tank" of the early seventies. Mine happens to be a Morgan, but still an often maligned production. There was a time in 1971 that I would have had a Coronado if I had the credit and borrowing power at 23. Image and status, as well as real world performance, has the result of some vessels costing far less than others. The best buy in real estate is the cheapest house on the block. The best boat is the one that does what you want it to do! Take care and joy, Aythya crew

[svthefilthywhore]

Vetmike,

there is a possibility of rot in the deck and keel to hull joints in any boat with wood in the deck and a bolt on keel. the real question is that the case with a boat you are looking at.

our coronado 41 was neglected for more than ten years before I bought it. the keel was painted with rustolium spray paint and there was standing water in what should have been a dry part of the bilge. the top nuts on the keel bolts were not installed correctly and were in standing water causing corrosion at the threads under the top nuts... luckily the previous owner never put a wrench to the bottom nuts and the threads were fine. I smacked the keel bolts with a hammer and every one sang me a tune. you should do this too.
if the boat you are looking at has any leaks in the deck, you may have rot. the extent of the rot can be discovered by using a hard tappy kind of device (handle of a wood hammer) and start where you know the core is good and move into suspect areas (around deck hardware) if the sound goes from a sharp sound to a dull sound, you have bad core..... I found bad core on my boat around a few stanchions, but it was minor and was easily removed and filled with thickened epoxy. this method is ok for a few square inches, but if it is a few square feet the deck should be opened up and the core replaced.

I know of no other places there would be leaks, the shaft log is solid, the rudder bearing is a huge mound of fiberglass and prop shaft strut should be ok as long as it hasn't had a line wrapped around it and yanked off (pretty easy to discover).

the down points to a coronado 41 is the size of the tanks, 40gal water, 35 gal fuel, and not built with a holding tank. these things are something to overcome. for water, I have installed a dock water fitting in the bow that supplies us with unending water as long as we are connected and we carry a couple of jerry jugs while cruising puget sound. 50 gallons last the two of us about 5-6 days. the fuel we haven't found to inconvenient since we have stayed inside puget sound... with a fuel burn of less than 1gal/hr and time to transit puget sound from end to end being less than 24 hrs we are usually in range of a fuel dock.

good luck

[skylol]

Originally Posted by VetMike

I too am looking at a Coronado 41 as a live aboard as well as cruising the Caribbean. My interior tastes are simple; space to live in comfortably and enough amenities that I don't need to go ashore for every little thing. I am concerned, however, as several posts have mentioned leaks in the bilge with some sounding as if they were rather serious as well as keel to hull leaks. Are these common problems with this boat? I absolutely will have it surveyed prior to any consideration of purchasing it and I am handy enough to do a lot of repairs/maintenance myself.

Hi Mike, I have this boat but any problems about leaks in the bilge the only problem is about a bad core but I think that every boat hav his history. If you want I have found one coronado on sale in italy vendo Coronado 41 - Coronado Yachts :: SailingTheWeb

Lorenzo

[CaptainForce]

Those 80,000 euros for the 1975 Coronado 41 are $113,000+. You find old 41 Coronados in the best expected shape here in the US for about half this price! Take care and joy, Aythya crew