Buying a Catalina 320 - Part 2

In response to a question that was posed on the Catalina 320 list by a prospective buyer of a Catalina 320 looking for problem areas to be aware of, I wrote the following response. This response has been refined by input from others and has been improved from the original email for publication. 

Due to the length of the material, it is being broken out into two blog entries. This is part Two. For part one, click here.

Catalina 320 Pre-Purchase Inspection

By Doug Treff, September Song, Hull 350

General things to look for in your prospective purchase:

First of all, hire a competent marine surveyor in your area. Don't rely on your broker to recommend one. Find someone who has no "skin in the game". Many times, marina owners and managers will recommend a good surveyor. Your surveyor will look for all of the following, but you can save some money by educating yourself and eliminating any boats that have obvious problems. In addition to the usual Yacht Pre-Purchase survey, I always recommend people to have the engine surveyed by a diesel mechanic, including oil analysis. Many times this can be combined with sea trial and survey day. In the long run, this is money well spent. Most marine surveyors are not engine mechanics and they will usually clearly state that you should hire a mechanic for a complete engine inspection. Major engine work or re-powering a sailboat is expensive and you’ll want to know ahead of time, so you can make an appropriate allowance in your offer.

Your job here is to locate show-stoppers that would cause you to not buy the boat. This will save you money by preventing the survey of multiple vessels.  Use the very simple inspection list below to weed out boats that need work. You will be astonished by what you can find with no more than a critical eye and a slightly cynical nature. This list is NOT comprehensive and is meant only to help you find obvious problems on your own. Your surveyor will do the rest. Bring with you a small flashlight and a notepad for this inspection. Signs of shoddy workmanship or amateur-looking repair jobs should lead you to question everything. Take lots of notes – if you’re looking at multiple boats they will all start to run together. If appropriate, use your smartphone to snap some photos as well.

1. If the boat is out of the water, walk the perimeter at ground level and examine the rub rail from below. You are looking for any deformities that may indicate impact damage. The rub rail is made of aluminum and will show bends and deformities where serious collisions may have occurred. These may also be potential leaks inside to examine later. 
2. Examine the bottom closely. Make note of excessive paint build-up or peeling bottom paint, as

   

   Bent Rudder Shaft

   this will be a job facing you at some point if there are 10-20 years of paint built up.  The bottom should be fair and smooth. Look for signs of blistering. While you're down there, closely examine the propeller and shaft, looking for signs of pitting or corrosion that could indicate an electrolysis problem. Stand directly behind the center-line of the boat and check that the rudder is properly aligned with the keel, not bent to either side. Especially important with shoal draft models - see the "Design Flaws" section of this post.
3. While you're walking around the boat on the ground, stand back and walk slowly, examining the hull from a distance. Wear a pair of polarized sunglasses. Often they will reveal things that escape the naked eye.
4. Walk the entire deck and feel for soft spots that indicate serious structural problems. Gently test lifeline stanchions and other deck fittings for soundness.
5. Look around at the attachment points for the standing rigging. Any signs of rust or hairline cracks could indicate a serious problem. Look for cracks in the swaged fittings and also in the chainplates where they attach to the deck.
   
6. First impressions: Upon entering the cabin, is it clean and tidy, or a cluttered mess? Messy owners are often lazy about proper maintenance.
7. Use your nose. Does it smell like mildew, diesel, or sewage? All these odors could be signs of potential problems - and of course, each smell will have a specific cause. You'll want to examine what could be causing any odors, because it could be costly to clear up later. Sewage odors have many causes, one of which is noted in this post. Generally, the holding tank related problems noted on C320’s are easily repaired and documented on the C320 site. Diesel odors? Mildew smell? Pull up the floorboards and look for stagnant water or signs of an oil slick on the bilge water. This could contribute heavily to any odors, especially fuel or oil leaks, as well as mildew odors from stagnant water in the bilge. If you find oil or fuel in the bilge water, alert the marina manager and do not turn on the bilge pump!
8.  While you have the floorboards up, examine the visible structural grid below them for any signs of stress cracks or repair jobs. This may be difficult due to limited access.
9. Also in the cabin, look for signs of leaks. Leaky decks can be a real problem once the core gets wet and starts to delaminate. Water stains on wood bulkheads and floors, peeling varnish, drip spots or stains on upholstery are signs of trouble. Feel the acorn nuts in the cabin roof for water droplets. Look on those nuts for discoloration or deposits that might indicate leaks. Examine the interior areas around the chainplates and mast base, looking for signs of water intrusion.  Anything that looks like it's been leaking for a long time is a potentially serious problem. A good strategy is to examine the interior of a boat within hours of a rain event. Not always possible, but it helps.
10. If your broker will allow it, pull the forward engine cover and examine the fiberglass drip pan
    under the engine, looking for any obvious signs of leaking. While you're looking at the engine, check the belt tension (not too tight or too loose), and just look over the engine. Most well-cared-for marine engines are (nearly) spotless, and show little sign of oil or grease build-up. Yanmar paints everything including the hoses. If you're looking at a boat that is 20 years old and the hoses are painted like the engine, there's a strong possibility that the hoses are 20 years old as well. Look at the raw water pump. Feel around on the underside for any dripping water that could indicate a leaky system. Take a white paper towel or rag and wipe around some of the joints in the diesel fuel system. Off-Road diesel in the US is usually dyed pink and will show up clearly on a clean white paper towel. You should not find any fuel leaks. Feel the bottom edge of the oil filter and the lowest point on the engine and see if it has any oil drips forming. If you see a can of QuickStart (pictured) sitting in the engine bay, that's a sure sign the owner is having starting issues. Don't use this stuff. Get your engine repaired before you destroy it.
11. Look around the batteries and examine the fiberglass below them for any signs of acid damage from leaky batteries. Even if current batteries are good, there may be damage from battery leaks gone by.
12. Glance around the cabin for any signs of amateurish or non-standard repairs. Electrical
    components should look professionally installed, and there should not be any loose or dangling wires of unknown origin. Automotive battery chargers have no place on a boat!
13. Examine the hull for signs of repair work and the deck as well. When anti-skid is repaired, it becomes quite obvious due to the intricate pattern. Learn the standard anti-skid patterns of the C320 and question anything that looks non-standard. Repair work is not necessarily a problem if done well. Trust, but verify that work is done right. Closely examine the transom area for crazing where the swim ladder touches when lowered. There is a lot of stress on this area when the ladder is being used.

By this time, you should have a fairly good idea if the boat you are examining is sound or not. After you've decided to make a purchase, make your offer contingent on a successful pre-purchase survey, engine survey, and sea trial. Don't skip these steps.  

After you’ve bought your C320, please visit the C320 IA website and join the association for additional access to resources and information about your boat.

Now go sailing!