Ex charter -jeanneau/Beneteau 50'' range

[Myblueheaven]

Prices seem good on many Jeanneau 51''s etc. I have seen in the ex charter market. Though I would expect to have alot of work to do to bring one back to snuff, any info from folks in the know would be great. Also, the typical 4 and 5 cabin layout is less than desireable and I have heard of owners converting the forward two in to one cabin with a center queen bed! If you have done this or know of what is involved, I would love to here from you.

[Jeff_H]

My only advice here is based on helping who are rebuilding boats that either were in charter/purchase deals or who bought ex-charter boats. From what I have seen, unless you can do all of your own work, and you don''t put much value on your labor, then no matter how cheap ex-charter boats appear they are generally really bad deals. You have to realize that these boats are getting somewhere between 5 to 10 times the hours on the waterthat a normal privately owned boat would have, often in a really tough sailing venue. Think of a 7 year old charter boat as being a 35 to 70 year old boat and you will have the picture.

They are being used by people who at best are not familar with the boat, and at worse do not care how much damage they do as long as they have a nice vacation. From the ex-charter boats that I have been around, you can expect to replace sails, standing and running rigging, electronics and electical components, deck, galley and head hardware. Often the engine is in need or major rebuild or replacement. Fuel tanks are often in need of overhaul. These boats often have structural components that are loosened in hard groundings and landings, or containing rot from poor maintenance. Because of the way that boats like the Jeanneaus and Beneteaus are built with liners everywhere, these items are not necessarily possible to find in a survey and are extremely difficult and expensive to repair, and even more expensive to repair invisibly.

Friends don''t let friends by ex-charter boats.

Respectfully,
Jeff

[doubleplay]

As I understand from the question you are trying to buy the biggest boat within your budget and in that sense ex-charter boats look like a good alternative.
I agree with Jeff and my advice to you is to stay away from ex charter boats.
I was at a marina in the Med. this past July and close to the berths of a well known(internationally) charter company.They were trying to pump water out of one of their boats(50 ft) and there were at least 4-5 people trying to clean the inside of the boat.Inside was a mess..
When I asked them what happened they said one of their clients had the misfortune of having a leak from the shaft connection and did not realized it on time so the boat was half flooded when they got help and a tow back to the marina.
After asking them how long it will take them to get the boat back in service they said don''t worry a good cleaning and some drying the boat will be back in 2 days!!!!!
Apperantly they dont care about long term care and maintenance but saving the day...
Buy the best boat not the biggest boat you can afford..
Good Luck