pmf44
Member
......and also dealing with the decisions and costs of rebuilding versus replacing the old 4108, I got to thinking about something which we all probably have pondered..or so I would assume. So in the very worst case scenario, when does it become way beyond reason to either purchase an older boat in need of lots of work, if one had to do the ultimate no-no of selling one of our Morgans for scrap...yikes! Run, do not walk! Dont get the wrong idea here, I am just...speculating. A single piece of lead surrounded and bonded resin and marble dust and then glassed. Hmmm. 6000 pounds of lead. Scrap price at $1.20 per pound (minus the costs of extracting, removing and hauling it--assuming it is not on the bottom...uggh). All the steel and the iron might collect a few hundred more as I learned that the old Perkins might fetch seven cents a pound for scrap...and when I rerigged my boat I sold all the old shrouds and stays for about $15.00...but then you could remove and part out the hardware, winches etc, maybe the sails))???, and then the spars with scrap aluminum at maybe $.80 per pound. I guess the mast, spreaders and boom might be 150 pounds??? Well, this is just an exercise in mental futility I suppose, but according to my careful calculations I have reached the inescapable conclusion that any boat is a lost cause financially! I do not mean that in an economic or cost-benefit sense, but only in terms of dollars spent her versus dollars invested there, i.e. the opportunity cost.
It seems that the most a M38 might fetch is around $40k--would that be fair to say in general terms? So if adding windlass, autopilot, air conditioning, new propane and oven etc etc etc is desirable, it will not likely raise the value of the boat otherwise in good condition by more than...a dollars on a good day? So the very old and hackneyed adage about throwing money in a hole in the water is clearly a maxim. However, such additions may increase one's desire to sail and to sail more comfortably.
The best we can do is sail and enjoy, rinse, lather and repeat and not fret too much one way or the other about the costs but be happy that we can spend our bucks on these things, It's what I call a first world problem. All boats, especially wooden boats, return to compost, and fiberglass boats do the same although much slower. Many of these are doing this before our eyes as they have been blocked up on land for year after year after year..... As for we the sailors, it's a similar proposition. So best so spend the money where it helps to enjoy the sailing and not wait to get blocked up on land. I am speaking of the boat only of course...yes? And by the way, sunny, 70 degrees and light southerlies yesterday off Annapolis on November 7 was wonderful! So today I am going to tend my garden, with apologies to Voltaire, which by the way, I think Candide would make a good name for boat. (One could have fun with that name volts and air!) Thank you for allowing me to pontificate.
It seems that the most a M38 might fetch is around $40k--would that be fair to say in general terms? So if adding windlass, autopilot, air conditioning, new propane and oven etc etc etc is desirable, it will not likely raise the value of the boat otherwise in good condition by more than...a dollars on a good day? So the very old and hackneyed adage about throwing money in a hole in the water is clearly a maxim. However, such additions may increase one's desire to sail and to sail more comfortably.
The best we can do is sail and enjoy, rinse, lather and repeat and not fret too much one way or the other about the costs but be happy that we can spend our bucks on these things, It's what I call a first world problem. All boats, especially wooden boats, return to compost, and fiberglass boats do the same although much slower. Many of these are doing this before our eyes as they have been blocked up on land for year after year after year..... As for we the sailors, it's a similar proposition. So best so spend the money where it helps to enjoy the sailing and not wait to get blocked up on land. I am speaking of the boat only of course...yes? And by the way, sunny, 70 degrees and light southerlies yesterday off Annapolis on November 7 was wonderful! So today I am going to tend my garden, with apologies to Voltaire, which by the way, I think Candide would make a good name for boat. (One could have fun with that name volts and air!) Thank you for allowing me to pontificate.