Help me spend my $ on a family cruiser for the Chesapeake

AndreasW

AndreasW

New Member
Apr 28, 2009
84
Malvern, PA
Boat Info
320 Sundancer 2006 &
185 Sea Ray Sport 2008
Engines
Bravo III
I have been browsing the forum for a while now, but joined today to find the perfect boat. Have been looking for a family cruiser for some time now and narrowed it down to Sea Ray. I need a boat big enough for our family of 4 (me, wife, boys 5 & 10) to cruise the Chesapeake on the weekends (Sassafras river). Most likely we will be staying at the marina overnight (AC/Heat), but want to have the freedom to moor where ever we want (ie generator). I started looking at the 260/270 Sea Rays, but quickly realized that for a family of 4 it would get crowded really fast. I like that size originally because I could get a fairly new boat for my budget ($70,000), but I rather get the boat that feels right for all of us now than be subject to the 4-foot-disease as soon as I buy the boat. So right now I am looking at 30-35” Sea Ray cruisers with a late ’90 to early ’00 vintage.

I would welcome your insight on what boat could work for us.

Thanks!

PS: I have been sailing +30” boats for a few years now and my parents always had power boats. Seems the family is more into power boats, so that is why I ended up here.
 
Welcome!! There are lots of Chesapeake boaters on here. We are on the Northern bay on the Eastern shore. We just got our boat this season and are just starting cruising.

With that budget something in the 33-38 ft range would be good. We have a 330 and it suits us good so far. Our two youngest are 5/6 and they both sleep just fine in the aft berth... Our older daughter gets the dinette.

You should be able to find a used 96-98 330 for that budget.

PM me if you have any questions...

Enjoy!!!
 
30-35 feet? of course trailering is an option. Not a desireable one, that is why I asked. If he is going to trailer he would want to go with a 290, or something of that size at the largest. otherwise, a 340 that is a few years old would fit the bill.
 
I think the 320-340 might just be the ticket. I gave up on the trailering real quick. Why bother. I will keep the boat in the water at a nice marina from April to October and the marina can keep it out of the water in the winter. I am only an hour and 15min away from the Bay. This way I can get the wider beam that will give us more space and stability. Let me know if you can recommend one boat over the other or what to look for in the late 90's early '00s Sea Rays. :thumbsup:

The other nice thing I would get with a bigger boat would the the dual engine which would make docking much easier and give you that extra safty margin for cruising.
 
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From what I read over and over from the really experienced guys on here there are 2 major things to look for with a used boat:

Service and Maintenance Records, records, records!
and
Get a professional survey done as it is money well spent.

Like you, I hopefully will be in the market in a few years for a bigger boat and I read every thread I can on here about people who are shopping up in size. This is where this forum is worth its weight in gold.

Have you found some possible candidates local?
 
Personally when I was shopping I stayed with 97 or newer 330 sundancers as strictly personally to my taste the interior suited me as did the dash. Then any 340 style 99-01 that was within reason. I did a search on www.boats.com and found several that interested me, they may interest you as well.

Not sure of your location whether you are North of or South of the Sasafrass. But Bear,DE Marine Max has a 340 for 99K and a 34 Rinker for 75K. www.marinemax.com Also this one at Sea Isle,NJ 97 330 for $54.9K. If I was going to travel I would check this one out as the price is ripe and it has the MPI engines which is a very nice upgrade to have in that vintage model.

Also Clarks Landing around Annapolis has a 340 for 94.9K and 89.9K, also a 97 330 for $63.9K www.boats.com and search on Sea Ray, 30-35 ft, 100 mi from zip code 21220 is what I use to look for boats in the area. There is a 97 330 for 69.9 located in Somers Point, NJ that looks to have a lot of desiable upgrades to it. Jackson Marine in North East, MD has a 98 330 for $75K that looks nice also. There is a 98 330 in Pasadena, MD for $69.9K too.

It is truly a buyers market so you can negotiate quite a bit on prices. Or drop the price and have the difference made up in services or upgrades.

Get the most boat you can afford. The only issue with the 340's of those years I believe is Water Ingestion. Do a search here to read about it. That is the only major issue that I am aware of on those vintage models with the Horizon engines...

Some things that confuse me is Brokerage vs Pre-owned speak. Brokerage means that the previous owner still owns the boat and they have the final say on the deal. Pre-owned means Marinemax owns the boat and they want to sell it and you may have more leverage with that boat.

By all means get a survery done. Make sure you do a structural and a mechanical survery. It will cost around $20/ft for the survey and additional for the mechnical. But it could turn up several thousand dollars of issues. The only guarentee on a used boat is that they guarentee that you get to fix the problems after the deal is done. Everything is pending sea trial and survey.

Our survey turned up $4500 worth of items that we were able to negotiate on.

Have fun, shop around, don't feel like you have to rush, get a good deal, sleep on it, and get a survey!!!!

Enjoy! Hope to see you out on the Bay this summer!!
 
I would really recommend two Sea Rays for your and your crew that might fit the budget.

95-97 370 - Sundancer
95 ish Sea ray 37ft Express w/diesels

These are great family boats, the Express has a bigger cockpit and with the diesels is a super package.
 
Alegria said:
Not sure of your location whether you are North of or South of the Sasafrass. But Bear,DE Marine Max has a 340 for 99K and a 34 Rinker for 75K. www.marinemax.com Also this one at Sea Isle,NJ 97 330 for $54.9K. If I was going to travel I would check this one out as the price is ripe and it has the MPI engines which is a very nice upgrade to have in that vintage model.

Also Clarks Landing around Annapolis has a 340 for 94.9K and 89.9K, also a 97 330 for $63.9K www.boats.com and search on Sea Ray, 30-35 ft, 100 mi from zip code 21220 is what I use to look for boats in the area. There is a 97 330 for 69.9 located in Somers Point, NJ that looks to have a lot of desiable upgrades to it. Jackson Marine in North East, MD has a 98 330 for $75K that looks nice also. There is a 98 330 in Pasadena, MD for $69.9K too.
Click to expand...

Thanks these are the boats and dealers that I am currently talking to. I will try to drive by them this weekend to "kick the fenders" or whatever you say in boating :grin:
 
Asureyez said:
I would really recommend two Sea Rays for your and your crew that might fit the budget.

95-97 370 - Sundancer
95 ish Sea ray 37ft Express w/diesels

These are great family boats, the Express has a bigger cockpit and with the diesels is a super package.
Click to expand...


In the end you will get what you get, but I say "Ditto" to Asureyez's comments above, If you can afford the storage and will not be trailering. Get the most boat for the bang...At least look at both sizes and make your comparison of the two, to include slip fees.

If you will be able to handle a 30+ footer..you will be able to handle a 37 footer.

Good luck with whatever you find and decide on.
 
AndreasW said:


I would welcome your insight on what boat could work for us.

Thanks!

PS: I have been sailing +30” boats for a few years now and my parents always had power boats. Seems the family is more into power boats, so that is why I ended up here.
Click to expand...


Insight? Perhaps buy your 3rd or 4th power boat first, get ahead of the curve and save a bundle for not buying and selling boats one through three.

Seriously, I think you taking the right approach. A SR in the low 30’ size will be fine for most of the conditions you will experience in the Sassafras and northern Chesapeake. Should you want to take longer trips to Annapolis, St. Michaels or further, then comfort will become an issue. The 34’ boat may then begin to feel small for a family of 4 and some aboard may become uncomfortable in the conditions the Bay can throw at you
 
Make sure to check Jim's listings. I think he has a nice 1996 330 listed... ; )

Also, when you get your boat, come to some of the Chesapeake Bay CSR events (Still Pond and BIH)

Good luck.
 
jrirvine1 said:
Insight? Perhaps buy your 3rd or 4th power boat first, get ahead of the curve and save a bundle for not buying and selling boats one through three.
Click to expand...

Exactly... This market is really giving people the opportunity to get into boats they could never have before (assuming you have cash or a job... or both...). As Jim said, skip steps 2 through 5 and go directly to step 6.
 
All good tips! I think I am buying my 3rd boat...:wow: I found a really good deal on a '01 Sea Ray 340 Sundancer (36'). A little over might budget, but a great deal compared to what you get. It will cost me more in slip fees as I have to get on the 40' slips (I am thinking Skipjack Cove Marina right now), and it will cost me more in maintenance for the two engin boat, but in the end, I will get a really nice boat that the whole family will like for longer trips.

I will have to take a day off work next week to check it out. :thumbsup: I need to hurry up with this whole process as I have the green light from my wife on the boat purchase in the first palce...
 
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sounds great... Good luck and keep us informed as to how everything goes!!
 
340 or larger is best. It's not just about the comfort inside but also the ride and stability. The bay gets rough when you least expect it and you want to be able to travel without worrying about getting stuck somewhere due to small craft warnings.

Plus, larger boats last a lot longer and are built much sturdier than say a 270 or 280.
 
AndreasW said:
All good tips! I think I am buying my 3rd boat...:wow: I found a really good deal on a '01 Sea Ray 340 Sundancer (36'). A little over might budget, but a great deal compared to what you get. It will cost me more in slip fees as I have to get on the 40' slips (I am thinking Skipjack Cove Marina right now), and it will cost me more in maintenance for the two engin boat, but in the end, I will get a really nice boat that the whole family will like for longer trips.

I will have to take a day off work next week to check it out. :thumbsup: I need to hurry up with this whole process as I have the green light from my wife on the boat purchase in the first palce...
Click to expand...

Just remember to keep in the back of your mind what the annual cost of keeping and running the boat will be. You can easily spent thousands of dollars a year on slip fees, storage, haul outs, winterization, spring commission, fuel, and many more. That figure also goes up with the size. You don’t want the sticker shock to show up after you bought the boat.
 
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