questions about 290 dancer 1997

[AFD]

Holy smokes.

Go buy it.

looks like survey is friday.

next time you're on your boat, can you take pictures of everything and email them to me or post them here? little things you have come up with and places you mounted things. just anything you can think of especially the canvas..thanks, i'll shoot you a PM with my email address.

 

[magstang1]

Everything is a pretty broad request. Anything in particular you're wondering about?

Here are a few to get you started.

 

[Gofirstclass]

AFD. I am going to send you a PM so please watch for it. Aside from what I'm putting in that PM, here's a hint on something that might save you some money. Before the survey is done, get the selling broker to agree to split the cost of any safety related and major repairs that are needed on the boat, with the provision that you get the repairs done at the facility of your choosing.

If this seller had the boat for sale last year and it didn't sell, and he still has it for sale, remind him it's losing value through depreciation, insurance, every month he owns it. He may be happy to do that just to see it go away.

Also, on the cost of the trailer, see if he can order one for you and get it at a lower price than you can. He may be able to get a "dealer discount" on a trailer. You can probably include that in the selling price and get it covered by your loan if that's the way you're going.

GFC

 

[AFD]

First off, thank you magstang1, i meant if you had an album or something like webshots you could link me too that way you wouldn't have to post everything here. but that is a great start and you got the "up optioned" version which i am going to have to pay a lot of money to get to if this survey goes well.

Gofirstclass, i read your pm before i read this post and I thank you for the post it was a great read. the sale is private and the seller stated he would have the boat ready for the water for the sale, I have PFD's and some dock line i can use from my little 170 and have some bumpers for this season if we put the boat in the water this year at all. the owner actually owns a business boating and this was used for half a season for the company and then minor private use. the business has their own certified marine mechanic and he is the one that would be doing all the work as for the price he is asking i dooubt there is much wiggle room. the owner already told me he was listing the boat again and if it didn't sell he would just bring it to auction. i'm not letting that sway my decision though. My wife is really the one that held all of the power in the decision making process. i have found several boats, mostly Sea ray's, that i would like and researched a ton about them then she walks on board and shoots them down right away.
we both fell in love with a chaparral 270 a few months ago and that fell through due to broker slacking and poor communication. i actually went into this boat kind of mellow although i was getting excited due to this post before we went to look at it. my wife is pregnant and getting her up the ladders for all of these boats has been a balancing act and with the crazy heat we have been having the parking lots where we usually end up looking at them has been like the surface of the sun but she toughs it out and has been the level head...usually shooting down every boat we look at in a matter of seconds. the chaparral and now this 290 she loved the second she stepped on board. couldn't stop her from looking at everything and on hands and knees through the aft cabin. she started talking survey and sea trial with the owner before we even finished looking at the boat. the owner had to go back to his office for a jump pack because his mechanic took the battery's off due to some theft in the lot...see PM about anchor. with the asking price, this survey is more of a "is it as good as i think it is" and "are the issues we know about the only ones" everything i have found has not turned us away at all. maintenance is up to date and all recorded since the new engines went in. Hot water heater was removed due to a leak and lack of use, interior is in 99%. it is amazingly clean. the owner has replaced the door track and rollers, replaced the stereo, had a garmin 540 i beleive but it was stolen with the anchor. all nav lights work, almost all of the other lights work, all the outlets work with the inverter, very few switches didn't work like the port wiper and vent window but the owner said the motor was new last year before the sale fell through he put it in and it was working. sure i can fix that. all in all this is going to be a great project for me if it all works out.

your tip about the trailer would have been a great one if it was through a dealer as we are planning on financing some of the boat just to have a large sum of incidental cash without touching the savings. and the practical side of the wife thought about looking again at a 270 same year but wanted more money with a single engine but had a trailer. eventually she realized the wider boat will work better for the family, towing wont be an issue with my truck and short 20 minute drag to the water when we get one. we talked and decided that the trailer isn't the boat. we can find a trailer eventually, lets find the boat that we want as it has been a 2 year search for just the right one.

 

[Jersey Mike]

AFD, Just an fyi...a 270 or a 280 for that matter is no comparison to this era 290...Good luck on your quest

 

[AFD]

Mike,

thanks. I know now. my wife looked at a 1998 270 when i was at work and immediately knew it wasn't for us. actually she wanted a smaller 250 when we started looking 2 years ago and i talked her into looking at the 270's and even the Chaparral Signature 270 that we moved forward on and eventually backed away from that she fell in love with and was already calling upholstery shops for quotes to redo the entire cabin. when i told her we were going to look at the 290 she was concerned with increased maintenance on twins and paying more for a slip (negligible but still more money) more for insurance, more for fuel. we needed a boat that the 2 of us ( i guess 3, she is pregnant) could go disappear for a weekend and visit family without the traffic of going over the bridges to the cape. we would have the room to pick up friends along the way for a weekend on the islands and something that was large enough to make the trip to Nantucket with out being slammed around. there is some big blue water on the way over, got slammed around in my grandparents 23' formula and had to turn back to Martha's Vineyard last year. also the 290 seems small enough that it wont be a burden to take out for a day trip or even just a cruise. at this point i'm trying to not get my hopes up until after the survey but it's going to be a tough search to find another 290 for this little money with a wide beam that the wifey will love if this one falls through.

 

[magstang1]

What you describe is exactly how I use my boat. My wife, myself and my 3yo son (and my second son who was just born today) spend the days cursing and weekends camping on the boat.

Its big enough to take 2 families out (4 adults and 4 or 5 kids) and small enough to handle myself. I'm really impressed with how well this boat takes the rough water. Just this weekend we were out and cut right through a 4' wake of a cruiser. It blasts right through the 2-3' washing machine conditions that are so frequent around here.

The private midcabin is a giant bonus with young kids. The extended swim platform is a close second.

I hope yours is optioned with air conditioning and preferably a generator too.

 

[AFD]

congrats on the newest member to your family. Our first is due in Nov. and i'm terrified.

no generator and no AC. after the first few years we will evaluate the need ad add if required i don't think we will outgrow this size boat for some time so it will likely stay with us for a long time.

 

[magstang1]

Thanks. The first one was a huge adjustment. I was terrified too. This one is a welcome addition.

The head on the 290 is big enough for my 9 month pregnant wife to navigate. The table in the back is big enough for us to actually sit down and eat a meal together. My son LOVES the port side lounge seat. He kneels next to my wife and watches out the window while underway. The galley is big enough to cook a modest meal. The examples go on and on.

More room is always welcome but it comes at a cost. The three of us can fairly comfortably spend a weekend aboard and I don't see adding another child will be a big deal.

Things I would like that this boat doesn't have:

A dedicated bed as opposed to one that converts. In my case, the forward table drops down to create a v berth.

More cup holders in the cockpit. The captain doesn't have a place to set a drink. Maybe I was spoiled by the helm of my 280ss.

More storage. Again, the 280ss had TONS of storage. I miss the locker in the floor of the cockpit. This boat having a midcabin makes that impossible. While this boat is a little bigger, the areas to store larger items are limited. We use our midcabin every time out. I refuse to use it as a catch all.

I looked at and very seriously considered buying a 270da. It was essentially the same layout as my 290da. After a summer on my 290, I would have been disappointed with the 270. I often find this boat being just enough to keep us comfortable. I'm sure the 270 would have worked. We just would have had to cozy up a little more.

 

[AFD]

the one we are looking at has the same set up convertible table. I have considered making a table for the lounge seat so we could leave the berth set up as a bed although preggers wants to stay in the mid cabin because she said she would rather crawl than fall right now. love the pictures BTW. All those fancy electronics... do i see autopilot lower right? we looked at a sunsport and of course, I loved it. the forever bachelor in me wanted the party boat not the cruising boat. I noticed all the storage and thought it was great but this one doesn't really have much. transom locker is great and under the rear facing starboard seat but that's about it on the deck. we'll see how everything goes tomorrow. wish me luck. oh and i can't find a used trailer anywhere and all the new ones are HUGE $$$. say a prayer that someone posts one on CL for short cash. i don't want to pay to move this thing all the time. i just got an estimate from the marina to my house and almost threw up.

 

[magstang1]

I've come to realize that the lack of storage is actually perception, I just travel heavy. (Read: wife packs for a family of 40 as opposed to 3). There is enough, just not much to spare.

I loved my 280ss. I still do, but this boat is much family friendlier. Bigger bathroom. Private midcabin. The fact that it even has a midcabin. Extended swim platform. One foot more of beam and a few thousand pounds. Lots of reasons why the 290 is a better overall choice.

As long as the rest of the boat checks out, with the price point you are at you could buy a new trailer and still have equity. What about renting one for the few times you need it?

Good luck tomorrow. Don't let your emotions cloud your judgement.

Yes, that is an autopilot.

 

[AFD]

Survey went well

One of the scary things i found was the engine hatch (center one) has delaminated some and was quite bouncy but the worst part is the support that it hinges on under the transom locker was separated from the bottom of the transom locker. turns out the screws have pulled out of the brackets in the bottom of the locker and it actually hangs from those brackets not the way you would think but is easily fixed and the seller stated it will be done by the end of the day.
could not get the main cabin lights to work, thought they might be 120 volts only but did not come on with shore power. not sure if it's a bulb thing or not but i'll soon know and swap them all for low voltage LED's anyway
depth sounder doesn't work anymore, might be the display or the sounder
no plotter, stolen.
lights at galley don't work
lights in aft cabin don't work
the rear seat was not re-vinyled so the seller has the frame but no cushion on it. does have the sunpad for the rear so i need to get the seat done so it can be used.
no hot water heater, not a big deal, not that expensive to buy and not difficult to install.
trim sending units do not work or gauges are dead
no idea if the fuel gauge works
boat has a macerator with overboard discharge which i feel is a + because i do plan on one or two fairly long trips a year without holding on to the stinky's. (I am aware of the laws)
no speedometer, just thought that was strange I honestly had no idea how fast we were going but the boat was capable of 4800 RPM's - anybody want to guess what the speed was?
cruise was running at approximately 3200 RPM's and real steady
the seller took it across a bunch of wakes from other boats at different angles and speeds to see how my wife liked it, she is pregnant and was asking how it was going to be out at sea because she doesn't want to sit out this season if I want to go out. apparently pregnant women have uncomfortable things going on and bumps make it more uncomfortable...thank god i'm a man.
boat does have some dock scars but they are all shallow but some are large.
batteries are all junk
big problem...no canvas.
also no bows either so all of it needs to be fabricated except it does have the glass (go figure). the bride and I have decided to get a bimini at least front and back. over the winter we will put probably a fast back on and the next year a camper. i know it would be cheaper to do it all at once but we are going to be broke after all the things this boat needs so we decided to make a list and just go slow and put a priority on each thing we need and purchase them in that order.

great news though... both engines ran beautifully. temps held perfectly, smooth as can be and super quiet. for such a heavy boat she acted pretty nimble. came up on plane very quickly, shifted very smoothly. I was very impressed and even the owner told me i was going to enjoy driving it. you wouldn't know it was as large as it is. it really handled like a smaller boat. I was very happy how it performed.

now we just need to decide on a final price and agreement but the seller seems very easy to deal with and has even offered to throw in other things before we talked price. bumpers, all dock lines, life jackets, flares, anchor with chain and line.
seller even offered a slip for a month to get the boat where we want it before we take it away. also said he would pay for storage until the winter if we wanted to hold off this season and do work on it on dry land. the seller runs a fairly large business out of the marina and everyone there knew him.
I do a lot of custom carpentry so i just need a customer to order up some mahogany or teak so i can use the left overs and build myself some tables. all these custom tables have got me itching to build my own.

 

[AFD]

BTW, magstang1. what is that on the radar arch in your signature picture on the port side? cant see it clearly.

 

[magstang1]

That is a GPS antenna from my old raymarine stuff. It's no longer used and will be removed soon.

I would move slowly with this one. Don't assume the seller is actually going to do the things he agreed to. Let him fix the things he said he would before any money changes hands. His idea of fixed and yours may be two different things.

 

[magstang1]

There are 3 switches in the center of the picture. The switch on the left is the 120v light switch. It turns on the 2 large round recessed light fixtures overhead. One port, one starboard. One of which you can see just at the top of the picture. The center switch controls the 12v overhead lighting. It turns on those same two light fixtures as well as the two small fixtures you see at the top right of the picture near the storage cabinet. The two large (port and starboard) fixtures that are controlled by both switches actually have 2 different light bulbs in them. One 12v, one 120v. The third switch is for the exhaust fan.

You need to have shore power connected and all the breakers turned on for 120v lighting. You need to have battery switches and breakers turned on for 12v lighting. There are breakers in the power panel in the cabin on the starboard side behind the 2 doors. There is also another push button breaker panel below the helm in the cockpit. You either didn't have everything turned on, a breaker was tripped, or you have a huge wiring problem.

I see a lot of electrical things not working in your report. If I was buying this boat, I would figure out why before I did anything else. Who knows, it may be loose light bulbs. Many of my non working lights were. Or, maybe it's an indication of greater problems.

 

[AFD]

agreed, the wife and I are taking it slow but we are confident from the survey. the seller has nothing to gain from offering the slip, he has several for his business and the dry storage has already been paid until winter.

I already told him we were confident going forward but we were going to sit down and make a list with our survey report as well as having a few minor things looked at by mechanics and fiberglass specialists and we would come back and sit down with him with an offer as determined by the survey report. he said he priced the boat according to the issues, i agreed he was close with his list price but we had other things that were found and i would sit down and present them to him with our offer. I asked if he would be wiling to throw in an anchor and bumpers as we were walking off of the dock at the marina and that is when he said he would have the boat ready to go with flares, life jackets, bumpers, lines and an anchor with chain and line. we also found an idle problem with the port engine and he said his mechanic wouldn't touch it until my mechanic came to look at it to find out what it needed and he would have his mechanic fix the problem. he didn't want me to feel like he was going to have his guy "fix" something. i then told him we wouldn't take ownership until we had a slip or trailer to transport it home as it needs some things done and obviously a thorough cleaning, carpets, vinyl, wash and wax, needs zincs as well. that is when he offered the storage or the slip our choice to get minor things squared away. he also offered to pay for the launch again if we wanted the boat dry to do any work on it.it would need to get pulled to do the zincs anyway as i don't feel like strapping on a tank and mask and fumbling with screws for zincs. they are cheap and i want to do it myself but not underwater.

 

[magstang1]

I forgot to ask, were the tables and legs all there? Those can be difficult and expensive to replace.

 

[AFD]

large table for the deck that stows in the engine room. triangle table/ V-berth filler for the cabin also a small oval table for the deck. i forgot to look at the table for the v berth. there was 1 maybe 2 extra poles for tables but it's been a long day and i can't remember does it support via an adjustable pole when turning into a berth or does it just slide into the notches and support itself ?

 

[AFD]

also has the same throw pillows that yours does.

if you go to your boat this weekend, can you take some pictures of the supports under your front bimini with the canvas and glass in place? I actually think looking at the pictures from page 3 of this thread that you posted that it may have the front bimini and that would save me a bunch of time. we tried laying out all the isinglass that was there and couldn't really figure it out without the canvas but after we rolled it all up my wife found a piece of canvas that looks just like your bimini top but it had zippers on 2 sides. Damn it i wish i could remember and wish i took pictures. i planned on taking pictures of everything but it was pouring in the morning and i put the camera away to protect it forgot to take it out again when we had the isinglass laid out in the berth.

does your bimini canvas secure to the arch with a zipper or does it pass into a track or does a seperate zipper section pass into the track and you attach the canvas to that? i hope that made sense.

 

[magstang1]

The small oval table is a bonus. I don't have that one.

You should have a table like this:

(Not my boat. Just a picture I found.)

It should have a long leg, as shown as well as a short (about 10 inches) leg to use the table as a sun pad. There should be a cushion the same shape as this table as well.

You should have a V shaped table for the cabin as shown in one of my earlier photos with its own long leg. This one just sits in a notch when dropped down to convert to the berth. It does not have a short leg. You should have a filler cushion the shape of this table as well.

There should also be another filler cushion about 10 inches wide and 5 feet long for when you convert the starboard sofa into a berth.