Carver Santego 3867

[vineyardgray]

Hi all,

I have been fixated on the largest of the Santego's - the 3867.

The one that I like is the one with all the wood inside and the large galley island.

I went to look at this one and even put in an offer.

http://www.ontariomarinebrokers.com/1988Carver3867SantegoOntario.html

The engine bay scares the hell out of me! Not sure whats up with all the rust and paint cracking on the 454's, but I see dollar signs flying out of my bank account. Maybe the paint cracking is common?

There was also some bad mildew on the carpeting surrounding the stateroom windows (portholes?) that was concerning.

I like the boat though. Does anyone have experience with these?

Thanks,

Matt

[RGrew176]

Welcome Aboard. Generally from the pictures you posted it does not look all that bad. As to the mildew around the portholes there probably was some leaking at some time and perhaps even still. That can be cleared up as long as any leaking is taken care of.

As to the rust in the engine compartment I only saw a little bit in the pics you posted. What I saw would not bother me. If there is more unseen then it needs to be checked out.

Obviously if you decide to make an offer to purchase it would be dependent upon a successful survey and sea trial.

What you posted does not look that bad. It's a nice looking boat.

[vineyardgray]

So I went ahead and bought the 3867, pending the successful resolution of an overheat condition on the starboard engine. The sea trial was cut short due to that engine overheating. Then we took her out again with a mechanic on board who, after taking temperature measurements of various engine components under load, diagnosed a gunked up heat exchanger.

So assuming that is rectified this week, I take possession on the weekend!

[waybomb]

Good for you!

[Viper]

Congrats. Hope it all works out. Get the other cleaned also.

[tomschauer]

any update?

[vineyardgray]

So, the 3867 I bought:

(photos still on the brokers website at [url]http://www.ontariomarinebrokers.com/1988Carver3867SantegoOntario.html
[/url]
She is a nice boat. Brought her on a long voyage from where she was purchased (Trenton, Ontario) to where she is now (Port Credit, Ontario). Nice trip. One of the transmission/oil heat exchangers under the port engine started leaking but did not blow out fully, so we made it. Slight overheating issue when pushed, but there are no strainers on the fresh water intakes so I suspect everything has crud in it.

She's winterized now, so I've had the opportunity to look at upgrades/repairs.

On the list:

Water pump (existing inop)
Charger (existing leaking current and tripping shore power gcfi)
Inverter (never had one originally)
Battery Bank (existing deep cycles are fried - most likely due to the faulty charger, and it is a split two battery system that I think makes little sense for a house battery setup)
Water Heater (leaking current too & tripping the shore gcfi; suspect bad element)
Ice Maker (found a much newer one to replace the existing. No real reason, just 'cause)
Trim Tabs (suspect inop)
Stripe removal (original stripes are way far gone) and compound and wax (if the hull is too far gone - lots of dock rubbing and oxidization - paint may be the only remaining option but I'm not adverse to it)
Electrical panel lights replace with LED
All other lights replace with LED
Norcold fridge is operational but old an inefficient - will be looking at replacement
Stereo needs replacement - looking at JL audio and multi zone

So basically, I bought a shell with power plants. Genny is a Kohler and runs nice. Engines are 454's and run nice. Transmissions are Velvet Drives and are smooth as budda. V-drives are Walter and appear to be good. Interior is good. I get to build the boat the way I want it which is a great opportunity.

Cheers,

Matt

[Cooler]

Hello vineyard. I replaced my fridge/freez with a Norcold DE - 0061. Good fit, runs really quiet - super efficient, and does not build up freezer frost very much at all. I would recommend it. Check the trim tab reservoir before anything else. Those are probably Bennett's and almost bullet proof. It is very likely the PO never used them so the fluid is low or empty. I bought my Mariner last spring, and the PO said he didn't know why the tabs did not work because he never used them. The screw that holds the cover down was still taped to the inside of the cover. Never was filled when purchased new as both PO's did not use them. Filled the pump and voila,------started working like new, because they were. Water heater elements go bad frequently. The good news is Carver did place a lot of access panels throughout the cabin/cockpit. I always liked the Santego's. That is what I was looking for when I happened across a 330 Mariner with 311 hours on Crusader 5.7's. Got a swinging deal because the seller was getting out of boating, doing some traveling to grandkids! Last year was a soft market for twin engine cruisers around here. Good luck with her! er

[H2oaddict5435]

Always get a professional survey done!

[ColRon]

Matt,

Last summer we replaced the refrigerator on Escape Plan, our 3867 Santego with a Nova Cool. It fit like it was made for the boat. It's a 7.3 cubic ft. refrigerator/freezer with the freezer portion is located at the bottom which makes it more efficient. If memory serves me correctly the model is an RFU8220, but I will need to double check that if you want the model number. It automatically switches between AC and DC power, with the default power source being AC when available. It is not however frost free, so we do have to defrost the refrigerator from time to time, but other than that the admiral loves it.