2006 C-22 question

[Coach T]

Hello, I am new to this site so I may be in the wrong forum area. My wife and I are looking to purchase a c-22 cruiser in the near future. I have been doing my research and I feel confident in my purchase but here is my dilemma. I see that there are many 2006 model in comparison to other years for sale on the web. Is there a problem or something I should know about the 2006 vs newer? Was there a change from 2006 to 2007 in manufacturing? Thank you for your input in advance.

[journey on]

I believe that 2005 and 2006 is the year C-Dory (whoever took over from Marbin,) was going to sell more boats than Bayliner. And their Sales VP (Steve?) was the guy who took a good shot at it. So there may be a lot of 2006's out there.

I have a 2005 25 made by the same guys and I certainly haven't any complaints about the build. Small niggling things, such as sealing the anchor locker, etc. overcome years ago, but the boat is a good one.

By the way, they didn't sell as many as Bayliner. C-Dory is still a niche market.

Boris

[thataway]

I have a 2006, and was visiting with another boater who lives in our area--Foley, AL and Pensacola/Perdido Bay.

There is no hull difference. My boat has the removable floor boards--the other C Dory 2006 had the fixed floor board, which makes the cockpit level. His boat has the modified seat forward, which slides back ward so it will face forward. His table is smaller and folds in half. There can be a difference in engines. The Honda 90 2006 has a carburetor, 2007 is fuel injected and has a considerably larger alternator.

Other than that, it is any accessories. Some time in the 2008 (?) era the molded interior became available. I prefer the wood, but that is certainly debatable.

I have no problem buying a 2006 22--there were probably more made that year than some other years, with the change of ownership of the company down the line.

No known problems with this era 22. If you want to come over and look at ours (right now we are dong several projects), we would love to show you the boat and discuss the differences of options and boats.

Welcome to the C Brat community!

[Coach T]

Thank you for your reply I was just worried that there was a possible problem with the 2006 in comparison to other years.
Thanks again

[Coach T]

Bob, Thank you for your response. My wife and I would love to come and see your boat and modifications. We were planning a trip to Wefings to see a 22 first hand but I think they sold it. I have been on a 25 in the Fairhope area but no 22's. I will message you for a convenient time to visit.
Thanks again and hope to see you soon.

[nscogin]

I'm one of those selling a 2006 22 and I can tell you I have no complaints about the boat. It has performed beautifully for me - I'm just not able to use it enough to justify the expense of maintenance, storage, insurance, etc. Looking to get something that is smaller and better for my purposes. If I had more time to use it I would not part with it.

[Sunbeam]

I looked into it before buying mine, because I always "have" to know the facts and features about a model's timeline before buying. I just like the details.

Anyway, I found that there is basically a gradual change of various features over the years. Some may be absolute desires or deal breakers for some people, while others may just be preferences. I ended up with my own list, but never found that there were any years that were across-the-board better or worse, or any definitive year that was or wasn't the one to get (unless one's specific feature preferences dictated it). There was talk about the earlier boats being better built, but for myself I found that all of the ones I looked at were basically built to "production standards," and all had their flaws and things I would have done differently -- both older and newer versions.

By the time a boat is a few years (or more) old, a lot comes down to condition and outfitting of the specific boat, to my mind. Also, for myself, any production boat needs some work done to get it to my liking (sealing core, for example).

Reading back over this it may sound like I think your question was silly, but if so, that's not what I mean at all. I had the exact same one! Who wants to buy an expensive item only to find out afterward that "Oh, six months later (or earlier) X was fantastic, but your model is a lemon." This can happen without research (not speaking of C-Dorys here).

So I would say that if you are the type who has specific detail preferences (say you only want the molded interior, or absolutely don't want it), then figure out which year(s) would work for you; but mostly look at individual boat condition and outfitting, which I think means more than year etc. in general.

Happy shopping,
Sunbeam

[JamesTXSD]

2006 and 2007 were big production years for C-Dory. There are simply more boats of this vintage out there than any other years, so one could realistically expect there to be more for sale at any given time.

Also, consider that there are ownership trends... having been in the car business many years ago, we knew that someone with a 3 to 4 year old car (the length of the typical loan back then) would be considering something different. While the trends are different with boats, and especially a niche boat like the C-Dory, I would expect owners of this vintage may be looking for a change, as well.

I have seen no evidence of a change in build quality through the years, just different management/marketing attitudes. For the 22, a significant change happened in 2007, with the fiberglass interior; and before that, the moveable forward dinette seat. I think the moveable seat is a great feature in the 22; the fiberglass interior isn't better or worse, just different. Some had concerns about it at the time, as far as being able to do modifications... clever owners haven't had any issues with that.

Good boats, but like any used boat, condition and the care the boat has had is more important that age.

[Sunbeam]

[colobear]

We have a 2006 with nearly 1150 hours on the engines and have had no problems with the boat. Yes that was the period when C-Dory decided to really ramp up production and forced small dealers out of carrying the boats because the factory demanded they have several on the floor and mom-pop dealers couldn't afford it. I believe this was as a result of hiring Tom Latham from Bayliner, I think as CFO. He was going to make C-Dory another Bayliner . He also was, AFIK. the driving force behind the ill-fated C-Dory 29, known in these parts as either "Latham's Folly" or "The Beached Whale".

[hardee]

One of the '06's that is not on that "For Sale" list is mine. SleepyC is an 06 with the sliding seat, the wood/decragarde interior, a folding table and no floor boards on the cockpit sole. It found it's way to California, for a few weeks then back to the PNW where it is home. It's not on that list, and I like it that way. I am happy with the boat and have found no major flaws. Sunbeam is right, it is a production boat, with an attitude...salty, sturdy and seaworthy. And every time I fill the gas tanks two things happen. 1. I get a lot farther for my $$ than most of the boats in the marina, and 2. I always have somebody coming over to look and talk. Guess neither one of those are too bad.

Think I'll keep keeping her.

Harvey
SleepyC

[Coach T]

Thank you all for your input. I see that a model year 2006 is just a high production year which is why it has a higher percentage of for sale ads.
This helps me narrow my options for purchase. I plan to get a marine survey but do most surveys look for water intrusion into the balsa core? This is one of my major concerns with a boat purchase along with engine problems.

Thanks again.

[katkt]

If there has been water intrusion problems, a good surveyor will find it. It'll sound different when you thump the hull.

[Sea Wolf]

Suggestion:

Someone (or as a group effort on a thread) should write a Buyer's Guide to Purchasing a Used C-Dory and make it a sticky document that could be referenced from the top of the C-Dorys For Sale column.

(Or do we already have such a thing?)

Joe.

[Sunbeam]

A good surveyor who knows what to look for would likely find any problems; but some might not (might not look; might not look thoroughly enough; might not know what to look for). What I am saying is not to just blindly assume all surveyors are equal and all would find a problem. (I realize you are not blindly assuming or you would not be asking!)

My background in this is in buying a small boat long-distance, many years ago. I looked up a qualified surveyor online (NAMS or SAMS certified, I forget which), contacted him, and explained what I was looking for in a survey. The two things I was most concerned about were hull blisters and core damage. The survey came through with flying colors, and I bought the boat. Drove cross country to pick it up only to find... yep... hull blisters and obvious evidence of deck core issues. Being a bit younger and more innocent (and having recruited a friend to drive down with me), I went ahead and bought it. The one good thing I can say is that I learned a lot about working on fiberglass boats; but I was actually looking to go boating! Nowadays I would have requested more detailed photos and etc., but this was early days online (and in my long-distance fiberglass boat buying experience)

Now I often find that on a relatively simple boat I am my best surveyor (and if I were less confident in my abilities I would still do my own survey in addition to hiring a pro). There are things you can check yourself if you are so inclined, and no-one cares as much as you.

As far as I know, none of the C-Dorys were built with specific core protection (which is the same with most production boats, so not picking on them). So what you find will be dependent on owner maintenance or improvements, storage method (or climate), and some luck. My guess is that most of the boats don't have catastrophic core damage, but many have some (that can be relatively easily remedied). By that I mean a bit of damp core around certain hatches and that sort of thing.

The main cored areas are the transom, the hull bottom (forward to around the helm bulkhead), and the decks. There is some additional core in the "walls" and some boats have core in the cabin top (in varying places). Obviously it's where there are penetrations that are of most concern, especially beneath the waterline or on the sole (where water can collect).

A good set of eyes looking for telltale signs is great; a good moisture meter can help; and the ultimate is actually looking at the core (removing fastener or fitting).

Anything that gets bedded/caulked is something that needs periodic renewal (hatches, deck fittings, through-hulls, etc.). As built, if/when the bedding/caulking fails then the core in a cored area can take on water. Many of us go on to seal or close out the core (in a variety of ways). After that, water that gets past bedding is a leak that needs to be taken care of, but should not get into the core.

I hope this wasn't more info than you were looking for! Also, in case I wasn't clear about it above, there are some excellent surveyors. Just don't assume all are equal.

Sunbeam