cheoy lee - what to look out for?

[slipacre]

In my quest to find a boat I can afford to cruise with. (Ie buy for cash and not have to spend too much to make her ready for typical ICW Bahamas etc cruising.) Have come across a Cheoy Lee 36 ft ctr cockpit. The teak deck is a problem but what else should I look at specifically - it has new masts and rigging.
Thanks
Todd

[WHOOSH]

Todd, I''m guessing you''re looking at a Midshipman-class Cheoy Lee. They were built in the 70''s at a time when CL believed they could make everything themselves at cheaper prices, thus competing well in the New Boat marketplace. (Today we call this a ''vertically integrated'' company). The snag is that they could do simplier things okay but more challenging things less well, and a buyer needs to keep that in mind. E.g. they could laminate okay but did a terrible job of gelcoating; they could run wires but may have used poor wire and not understood how a boat uses electricity; they could cast metal but not necessarily to the strength specs a winch or windlass requires.

I would regretably give a CL boat of that era a pass. But if it seems suitable for your purposes, question all the gear not made by 3rd parties, expect some of the basics to need attention over time (shaft, tanks, DC wiring & breakers), plan on a big/messy but not expensive or overwhelming deck job (DIY job), and be thankful the spars and rigging have already been tackled, since the CL pieces could prove problematic.

Jack

[windship]

WHOOSH,
Good morning.
May I ask you where you get the info presented in your post please?

Dennis

[Jeff_H]

Jack''s decription very much matches my own experiences with Cheoy Lees of the 1970''s(except for the gelcoat problems. The CL''s I know have had good gelcoat jobs.) Other problems that I have encountered on CL''s of that era have been iron tanks. Many of the CL''s had SS or other non-ferrous tanks. But I have watched a guy pulling out and replacing rusted through black iron tanks on a 1971 or 1972 Cheoy Lee. Another issue with Cheoy Lees was lack of consistency in ballasting. During this era Cheoy Lee''s had iron and concrete ballast internal ballast. The mixtures varied in density and so individual boats could be far more tender than their sisterships. I met owners who have experienced this with a CL Newell Cadet and also on larger 35 foot model. When I worked for Charlie Wittholz (who designed a number of boats for Cheoy Lee) he commented on these and some of the problems mentioned by Jack (WHOOSH) as well.

Jeff

Jeff

[slipacre]

Thank you all for your responses.
Vessel supposedly has new shaft etc, but ballast material is something I had not considered. A good reason to consult this forumn.
Wiring is clearly dated and will need work, but hopefully as needed. And the deck Well tis the price of not being able to buy a newer boat - Though will have the deistinct advantage of not blowing all of savings on boat.
Thanks again Todd