Good Morning Steve: I have a 98 Valiant 42. I’m selling her and moving to the trawler mode. Most trawlers are just ugly–too high off the water, too much windage. I’ve found the Dieselducks designed by George Buehler and built at Seahorse Marine in China. Please look over these and let me know what you think. Here is their website: http://www.seahorseyachts.com/ Go to the dieselduck 44 and take a look at them. Please let me know how you feel about steel boats and if the design is sound. I respect your opinion more than anyone out there. Thanks again, Roy
Hi Roy: I would take extreme care with buying a boat in China, as there is little legal redress in case of a problem. First, I would use a letter of credit for the full contract price, with the exercise of the L/C based on your acceptance (usually with a surveyor involved). Second, make sure the specifications are detailed, and cover everything you expect and how it is to be accomplished. The price sounds very attractive, so there’s some room for cleaning up problems, but you want to be sure the basic boat is sound. There’s a lot of detail on this subject in our Offshore Cruising Encyclopedia towards the back. If you go ahead, let us know how it turns out, and good luck. – Steve
Posted by Steve Dashew (November 30, 1999)
