Effect of "Homemade" Title on Value of Older 13-footer

A conversation among Whalers
f1loco
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Effect of "Homemade" Title on Value of Older 13-footer

Postby f1loco » Wed Jun 21, 2017 7:40 am

[I am ] looking into buying an old classic [13-foot Boston Whaler boat] but the one I found is titled as "Homemade." For you Whaler Whaler boat owners, does this effectively kill resale value?

Seems like [the restoration of the boat] has been well done and I can physically pick up the back end corners by myself. I figure it is not waterlogged.

I am guessing the title "Homemade" is because: someone lost it [?], someone died and [the boat was] re-titled without probate at one point, or worse [the boat] was in an accident and [declared] a total loss by the insurance.

Of course, we are talking pre-HIN so there is no way I can run a check. I inquired about the [stencil number] as [the boat] was sanded and painted, but the owner indicated he didn't find [the stencil number]. I don't think there can be a mistake; with the curves it is a Whaler (see image below).

Lastly, I have a Tohatsu 9.8-HP I purchased for my Gheenoe last year. I know it won't break any water speed records, but will it push [the 13-foot Boston Whaler] to at least 12 to 15-MPH?

There are too many no-wake zones where I am to worry much about wanting to run at 25 to 30-MPH.

Many thanks.
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jimh
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Re: Classic '13

Postby jimh » Wed Jun 21, 2017 8:40 am

I would consider the influence of the boat's present title indicating the manufacturer as "homemade" to have some effect on re-sale value. You can gauge the amount of the effect by your own willingness to buy the boat with it titled as "homemade." If you think it detracts from the value, then you can assume the next buyer may also feel that way. That you are asking about the homemade designation suggests you do think it is a bit of detraction from value.

I don't know for certain what my own reaction would be. From the single image, the boat in question appears to be in very good condition, and it appears to have been nicely restored. I don't see any particular defect in the boat, other than the notion that the title assigns the builder to be homemade.

In general I believe that older Boston Whaler boats are purchased to be used, not to be collected and resold. They are not classic automobiles, and the market for older Boston Whaler boats does not insist on "matching serial numbers" for every component, as is seen in classic car restorations. As long as the boat has original parts, has not been modified in some awful manner, and has a sound hull, it's a classic 13-foot Boston Whaler. You won't ever know the year of original production without discovery of the stencil number. And the stencil number might have been sanded off in the restoration, and can never be recovered.

If you have your heart set on owning a Boston Whaler with a particular provenance, this is not the boat for you. If you just want a nice older 13-footer, this boat looks good in the picture you posted.

jimh
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Re: Effect of "Homemade" Title on Value of Older 13-footer

Postby jimh » Wed Jun 21, 2017 8:48 am

Regarding the use of a 9.8-HP engine: see the specifications for the boat as reproduced in the REFERENCE section at

http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/13/

Find the specification for "Minimum horsepower." This specification is the for minimum horsepower that will allow the boat to get onto plane with a minimum load. For the 13-foot hull the minimum horsepower is specified as 9-HP. This suggests that with one person aboard the boat should get on plane.

Factors that could affect that outcome are related to PERFORMANCE, and can be discussed at more length in the PERFORMANCE forum. I suggest that at the least the factors are:

--hull weight increased due to absorption of water
--operator weight significantly more than expected
--actual engine horsepower delivered to propeller shaft
--proper selection of propeller to permit engine to accelerate into its peak torque engine speed

Therefore, if the hull has not picked up too much water and gained weight, if the one person aboard weights about 175-lbs or less, if the engine actually makes 9.8-HP, and if the propeller is properly chosen, then a classic 13-footer ought to just get on plane with 9-HP. Exactly what boat speed will result is hard to say, but probably at least 10-MPH.

Jefecinco
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Re: Effect of "Homemade" Title on Value of Older 13-footer

Postby Jefecinco » Wed Jun 21, 2017 9:04 am

If the price is not above the going prices for similar hulls, the designation "Homemade" on the title would not bother me. A valid title is just that, valid. That title allows legal sale to anyone and should be recognized by officials in other states. In our home state, Alabama, we don't have titles for boats and Bills of Sale are used.

What can be seen of the trailer looks good. Since the boat is a bare hull the trailer is a larger part of the total price. I would inspect it carefully before making an offer.
Butch

f1loco
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Re: Effect of "Homemade" Title on Value of Older 13-footer

Postby f1loco » Wed Jun 21, 2017 9:38 am

Thanks. The trailer has new bearings, wiring and lights - that said - it's only probably got a couple of years in salt water here. But a new one is only about $600 so it won't break the bank. Just didn't want to buy something wherein the title severely limited my resale - not that I plan on reselling it anytime soon. Just wish the owner would have taken more pics of the before/during restoration to get a better of what I would have. I am a bit of car freak and history is everything on my classics. Better yet, find the stencil serial! That said, I don't plan on sanding the three possible locations for some time if I can avoid it. Who knows, maybe it's the grail first production 13'.

jimh
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Re: Effect of "Homemade" Title on Value of Older 13-footer

Postby jimh » Wed Jun 21, 2017 10:37 am

One solution: contact the curator at a local art museum. I believe that specialized techniques using X-ray devices have been developed to discover layers of painting in fine-art masterpieces. If your local art museum and curator are skilled in this technique, ask them to investigate the transom area of the boat you are considering for purchase. Maybe they can find the stencil number under the new layers of material applied above it.

Okay--more realistically: visit my CETACEA collection at Page 82 to see the location of the stencil number on the transom of a 13-foot Boston Whaler boat of similar vintage:

http://continuouswave.com/whaler/cetacea/cetaceaPage82.html

There you will find a close-up image of the transom showing the preserved stencil number, as below:

Image

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Phil T
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Re: Effect of "Homemade" Title on Value of Older 13-footer

Postby Phil T » Wed Jun 21, 2017 3:34 pm

To an educated buyer, the title will not affect value.

We can see it by its design and features is a Boston Whaler 13 Sport.
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f1loco
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Re: Effect of "Homemade" Title on Value of Older 13-footer

Postby f1loco » Wed Jun 21, 2017 4:36 pm

Sport or Standard from the pic? I thought the Sport had the console steering?

Ended up [buying the boat for] $2,500 due to a run in the paint I found on the front corner and the "title concern." It has two fresh coats of Pre-Kote Primer and two coats of Brightside. In the end, it was clean and freshened Boston Whaler that fits my family now. Gheenoe is up for sale--anyone? --I laugh aloud--

The only pressing problems are the drain tubes. The seller says he didn't touch them, but I only see a rounded lip edge on the inside of the transom. But the outside of the transom, and the outside of the inner piece where the rope pegs go, THERE ARE NO rounded lip edges suggestive of the existence of a brass drain tube? I put my finger in them and they are solid and dry, but feel "rough" with over-spray most likely. With over-spray it's hard to say if they are original brass, but I would think I would see a lip on the outside edge of each, no?

jimh
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Re: Effect of "Homemade" Title on Value of Older 13-footer

Postby jimh » Thu Jun 22, 2017 1:22 am

For advice on drain tube replacement, see the FAQ at

Q12: How Are Drain Tubes Replaced?
http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/FAQ/#Q12

The brass pins used for securing lines are called Norman Pins on the classic Boston Whaler 13-footer. More comments about Norman Pins can be found in the archives.

For help with identification of models, see

http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/13/models.html

The boat as it appears in the illustration in the in initial article is a 13 STANDARD.

f1loco
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Re: Effect of "Homemade" Title on Value of Older 13-footer

Postby f1loco » Thu Jun 22, 2017 7:17 am

Thanks, I've looked at that page frequently over the last couple of days.

If the drain tubes were sound, wouldn't they have a flared lip on each end? Both tubes only seem to have a flared lip on only one end

Also, saw this fix and looks pretty nice and easier than dealing with the flares: I wonder longer-term how the 5200 seal held up:

http://www.whalercentral.com/forum/view ... rowstart=0

jimh
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Re: Effect of "Homemade" Title on Value of Older 13-footer

Postby jimh » Thu Jun 22, 2017 10:58 am

If you use a extremely strong adhesive-sealant like 3M5200, you will never get the drain tube out again. For some first hand experience in trying to remove through-hull fittings which have been embedded with a very strong adhesive-sealant, read my article at

Refitting a Depth Sounder Transducer
http://continuouswave.com/maintenance-logs/newDS/

As the article to which you linked seems to conclude, you really want to "do it right"--use the OEM technique and a brass tube.

For more advice on how to make repairs to the Boston Whaler boat you just boat, start a new thread in REPAIRS and MODIFICATION.

Wweez
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Re: Effect of "Homemade" Title on Value of Older 13-footer

Postby Wweez » Thu Jun 29, 2017 11:48 am

Good looking boar. Use it and have fun.