1960 34' columbia flybridge

[1960 columbia]

i have the oppertunity to buy this boat for 1,000cdn, two interceptors were rebuild five years ago and running well, this boat has been sitting in a shipyard for the last five years. What do you think?

[timgoz]

Post alot of images, inside and out. Give more info on overall condition. Specify problem areas.

Right now it is totallt impossible for anyone to give you a reasonable estimate.

Tim

[charmc]

As they say on TV in one of those abysmal game shows, "Survey Says ...".

I purchased and restored an old wood Pacemaker many years ago, so I know from experience some of the desires you may be having, and something of the work ahead of you. My boat was formerly owned by the father in law of one of the marina owners, so it was well maintained and there were no surprises when I bought it. I had to do extensive work, however, to bring it to the condition I wanted, and to keep it that way. My initial "conservative" estimate of total cost was perhaps 1/3 of the actual costs.

2 running engines are probably worth the $1,000., but the owner obviously places no value whatsoever on the hull, which might be a warning. Expect to have a vast amount of work, and possibly a vast expense. The tone of your question sounds like this might be a first project of this type or scope for you. If not, I apologize. If so, I repeat my initial comment about the survey. A wood boat stored on land for 5 years will have many potential problems. The biggest is rot. I would recommend getting someone familar with wood boats to check it out, poking all over with a screwdriver blade to test for softness. The extent of any rot will give you an indication of how much more than a "routine" restoration you will have, since replacement is the only sure cure for rotted wood.

Some other questions, based on your saying that the boat has been sitting in a yard for 5 years:
What is the basis for the statement that the engines run well? Has the boat been put in the water and actually run recently for testing purposes? A test on land, with hoses supplying limited cooling water and no load to speak of, isn't a full reflection of the engines' condition. Any preservative would have had to be renewed several times, in my opinion, to remain effective and prevent corrosion damage internally.
Is there documentation of the rebuilds? Were they full rebuilds by a qualified rebuilding shop, or possibly extensive replacement of parts by the yard (new heads, rebuilt carbs, etc.?
Again, 5 years is a long time in storage. It would be good to have an engine specialist take a look at them.
Other on board systems besides the engines will need to be checked very carefully; lack of use can sometimes be worse than long use.

I've assumed you are planning a restoration. If, on the other hand, you are looking to buy "more boat for less" because of the age of the boat ... consider that this will be a major project even if you just want to fix the minimum necessary to get it floating and running. A 34' boat wood boat requires a lot of "routine" maintenance to keep everything in good shape. If you don't do a full restoration up front, you'll be doing 3 - 4 times the "usual" ongoing work.

All the above is, of course, based on assumptions and suppositions. Tim's idea is good: posting photos, including wide angle and closeup views, will help those here give more specific advice.

Final word: If you are prepared to do what it takes to make her safe, then to make her like new, the result will be a beautiful thing, worth all the time, labor, and expense. If this is your first project like this, the skills and knowledge you acquire will be priceless. Just make absolutely certain that everything below the waterline and related to the engines is in excellent condition before you take her out with family aboard.

Here's a good article on inspecting wood boats, by a surveyor: http://www.yachtsurvey.com/Wood.htm

Good luck!