Seeking advice - Considering buying a 1974 boat

Submitted by March on Fri, 09/04/2009 - 10:43
I am considering buying a Flying Scot as a first sailboat, and read the "prospective buyer" thread with great interest. I recently came across a 1974 flying scot near where I live in the Southeast, and I want to make sure I don't buy something I can't re-sell later if I need to. Based on the reading I've done, it seems like the newer boats (1990's and newer) hold their value really well, but can anyone tell me if the 1970's boats are hard to sell or if they have any particular disadvantages? (BTW, I don't know yet if the boat is a Douglas or a Customflex, but I'm going to make sure it's a Douglas before I make any offer, and I'm going to check the deck and hull for balsa core rot - thanks again for the previous posts) I'd appreciate any insight. Thanks.
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Comments

Follow-up to my previous post - I just called Flying Scot, Inc.

Submitted by March on Fri, 09/04/2009 - 14:49.
Follow-up to my previous post - I just called Flying Scot, Inc., and they said the specific hull number I gave them was a Customflex boat, not a Douglas. That makes me much more wary. Can anyone tell me whether the Customflex boats were all bad, or how to spot whatever particular issues they had? Thanks again.

i've been sailing a 68 customflex boat for just over a year now.

Submitted by blridge on Fri, 09/04/2009 - 14:53.
i've been sailing a 68 customflex boat for just over a year now. it is competitive, i'm not so much. :) i checked mine out throughly, no soft spots. there are some places where the gelcoat is spidered, but othing of any consequence. all in all quite worth the $3K i paid for it, 2 complete sets of sails and a trailer. FS Hull# 1296 Elsbeth

I've raced #338 (1961 Douglas) for 5 years with no major problem

Submitted by SavageViews on Fri, 09/04/2009 - 19:28.
I've raced #338 (1961 Douglas) for 5 years with no major problems and done quite well in club events despite things like this. Last year I replaced 1/2 of the floor balsa (knew it was soft when I bought it). This year I replaced the aft deck balsa around the old boom crutch holes and repainted the boat. If you buy an older boat, you will likely have some work, but if it's not soft, then I wouldn't hesitate. From what I have seen, there's a strong re-sale market for boats < $4,000. If you want to win NACs then you might want to buy a late model, but then again, there are plenty of 3-digit boats the can mix it up w/ the best of them. I'd take an old Scot over just about any other boat.

If the price is reasonable when you buy it, and you don't have t

Submitted by sawyerspadre on Fri, 09/04/2009 - 21:26.
If the price is reasonable when you buy it, and you don't have to put a lot of money in for parts or upgrades, you should have no problem reselling in the same price range after a few years. We have boats in our fleet as low as #520 that are still competitive. It is likely to be inexpensive entertainment. Phil Scheetz FS 4086

Phil Scheetz

FS 4086

Fleet 163, Nockamixon Sail Club

Thanks for the replies and the benefit of your experience.

Submitted by March on Fri, 09/04/2009 - 23:20.
Thanks for the replies and the benefit of your experience. I'm going to look at the boat tomorrow morning. I may post some photos or some more questions - wish me luck.