Neither Tom nor I have ever owned a liveaboard boat, so we were excited to get on some boats and see what we liked and disliked. In total we viewed 9 boats, before finding one that we felt would be the best fit for us on our journey on America’s Great Loop.
Initial Desired Specs
- Diesel engine(s)
- Accessible queen-sized bed
- Open kitchen
- 34′ – 42′ LOA
Budget
We were first drawn to the tug boats, for many reasons, but there were none remotely close to our price range.
We had a modest budget, with the intention that we would purchase a boat in need of improvements – but hopefully not too many repairs. With Tom’s expertise in electrical, we were specifically hoping to find one in need of electrical upgrades. Our budget for the total purchase price, plus fees, taxes, etc. was $50k.
1st Boat | 1996 Mainship 390 Sedan Bridge
The Mainship is by far the most popular boat on which to cruise the Loop – the AGLCA cites that the Mainship is doubly popular when compared to the second most popular boat manufacturer (Carver). For this reason, we thought it’d be a great place to start!
Specs
- Engines: Twin Cummins 6TBA 330hp
- Beam: 13′ 6”
- Draft: 3′ 6”
- Length: 40′ 7”
- Type: Motor Yacht
- Asking Price $45,000
The size and layout of the boat were exactly what we were hoping for! However, the owner severely misrepresented the condition of the boat – extremely frustrating, considering we spent a whole day traveling to view it. As soon as we stepped onboard, we could smell the musty interior. There was trash strewn throughout, like someone had a party and couldn’t be bothered to clean up. One engine had white exhaust. The decks were soft. Overall, there were so many issues that there was no possible way we would consider this boat.
2nd Boat | 1980 Gulfstar 38
After the alarming experience with the Mainship (not a reflection on the manufacturer), we thought that perhaps our budget was unreasonable, so we decided to take a look at a pricier boat. This was also the first trawler we’d been on, and not-secretly Elyse really wanted a trawler (versus a motor yacht).
Specs
- Engines: Twin Perkins (model unclear) 85 or 100 hp w/ turbos
- Beam: 12’
- Draft: 3’ 5”
- Length: 38’
- Type: Sundeck Trawler
- Asking Price: $69,900
This boat had beautiful interior woodworking and caning, and was in overall fair condition upon first glance. Looking closer, we found a whole can of worms. We lifted up the rugs and found the floor to be in poor condition. We slid the couch away from the wall and discovered a 2’ x 2’ hole cut into the woodwork. Almost all the windows had wept at some point, damaging the wood around them. Headliner was falling down in multiple areas. Although we liked the layout overall, the bed was less than ideal and although the price was almost double the previous boat, the condition did not reflect it. Ironically, the owner increased the price $10k after our viewing…
3rd Boat | 1977 Marine Trader 34
Marine Trader seems to be a widely available trawler option, so we decided to take a look at a trunk trawler. This boat didn’t have a set price due to the fact that the engine had seized. We considered replacing the single engine as something we could feasibly accomplish, if everything else was in good condition and we got it at the right price.
Specs
- Engine: Ford Lehman 120hp
- Beam: 11’ 6”
- Draft: 3’ 4”
- Length: 34’
- Type: Trunk Trawler
- Asking Price: make an offer
Just, wow. Imagine a boat (that’s still floating!) in the worst possible condition – that’s this boat. All of the decks were soft, some areas squelched loudly when we stepped on them. There was water actively dripping into the interior from the ceiling. We would not have taken this boat even if we were paid $5k to do so. We love a project, but this boat was not remotely worth a complete refit.
4th Boat | 1973 Gulfstar 36
The price for this boat was low because one of the engines and the generator were not currently working. Again, with this price range we could afford to repair or replace the engine. The generator didn’t matter to us because we planned to install a beefy solar and battery system anyways.
Specs
- Engines: Twin Perkins 4.236
- Beam: 12’
- Draft: 3’
- Length: 36’
- Type: Trunk Trawler
- Asking Price: $16,000
This boat wasn’t in absolutely horrible condition, but it wasn’t great. Apart from the engine and generator not working, the decks were soft, the smell was musty, and there had been many “modifications” that needed to be redone. Overall, it was way more work than we had planned on, or had the time for.
5th Boat | 1989 May Flower Custom 38
After looking at two different trunk trawlers, we decided that style boat wasn’t our favorite. We like the europa style, but we hadn’t seen one that was in our budget and general geographical location. So back to the sundeck trawler!
Specs
- Engines: Twin Ford Lehman 185hp
- Beam: 12’ 5”
- Draft: not provided
- Length: 38’
- Type: Sundeck Trawler
- Asking Price: $39,000
We liked the interior fiberglass (instead of carpet or other headliner material) finishes because it made the boat look exceptionally clean. There was no windlass. The kitchen in this one was pretty small and awkward, which was unfortunate because a nice kitchen is Elyse’s number one priority. That coupled with a few soft spots on the deck caused us to hesitate and it sold before we had come to a decision.
6th Boat | 1986 Mainship 36 Nantucket
Continuing to explore the sundeck trawler, we decided to view our second Mainship. We were especially excited about this one because it had a full enclosure with Isinglass on the flybridge, and it looked to be in great condition.
Specs
- Engines: Twin 5.9 Cummins
- Beam: 13’
- Draft: 3’
- Length: 36’
- Type: Sundeck Trawler
- Asking Price: $34,999
The exterior of the boat was in really good condition overall. The inside was a different story. There were five different types of flooring, the bilge was especially wet, there was dripping hydraulic fluid, and more. The main berth was only an island double, not the island queen for which we’d been hoping.
7th Boat | 1986 Bayliner 3870
After viewing our fifth trawler, we turned our search away from trawlers for two reasons: the broken-up layouts and abysmal interior engine access. Elyse: “Nooooooooooooooo!” Her dreams of a rugged trawler were over.
Specs
- Engines: Twin Mitsubishi-Chrysler 6 cylinder
- Beam: 13’ 5”
- Draft: 3’ 2”
- Length: 38’
- Type: Sportfish Yacht
- Asking Price: $19,000
We hadn’t seen such a spacious interior since the first yacht we viewed, and we felt like we were on the right track. This boat had been extensively tinkered on, so there were numerous areas that needed to be addressed. However, there wasn’t anything alarming, and a lot of the work involved wiring and electronics – exactly what we wanted! The engine was access by sliding door on the rear – amazing after all the weird interior engine access in the trawlers. Unfortunately, after researching the engines, Tom found that they were not reviewed very highly.
8th Boat | 1987 Bayliner 3870
Our second Bayliner 3870! This one was set-up especially for fishing, aso the allure for Tom was strong. We already knew we liked the spacious salon, galley, and berth.
Specs
- Engines: Twin Cummins
- Beam: 13’ 5”
- Draft: 3’ 2”
- Length: 38’
- Type: Sportfish Yacht
- Asking Price: $32,000
This boat definitely had projects for us, but was in good condition for the price. It was the first boat that would reasonably work for us. There were three main issues we wanted to consider; the great engine access only applied to one engine – the other engine was not so accessible, the ladder to reach the flybridge was long and narrow, and the side decks were extremely narrow and uncomfortable to walk on.
9th Boat | 1989 Carver Santego 38
Carver is the second-most common Loop boat manufacturer, so we thought we should see why. This is our first motor yacht since the very first boat we saw, what seemed like so long ago. We recalled loving the first yacht’s open single-level layout, and easy outdoor engine access.
Specs
- Engines: Twin Yanmar
- Beam:
- Draft:
- Length: 38’ (45’ LOA!)
- Type: Motor Yacht
- Asking Price: $49,900
We were boat-buying pros at this point. Tom went straight for the engines, while Elyse stomped around on the decks as classily as she could to check for soft spots. Both passed muster. The exterior was incredibly open and spacious, as was the interior. We had thought this boat was around 38 feet, but it turned out to be 44’ 11” long overall. This was a tough sell for us because we were aiming for a shorter boat for maneuverability, fuel efficiency, and more affordable docking fees.
Final Thoughts About Buying A Loop Boat
The most difficult part of finding the right boat was really the extreme lack of communication from sellers. There were a number of boats that didn’t make this list because either the seller never responded, or the seller was difficult to schedule with.
