BARGAIN HUNTER

Serial boat refitter Ross Barrett promised he wouldn't start another project but the temptation of a Hershine 37 trawler yacht proved too hard to resist

- Ross Barrett

Regular readers might recall that in 2019 I bought a very cheap 1980s Fairline Corniche 31. It only cost me £31,000 but the wiring was a mess and the interior was very tired and dated. With neither the budget to afford a professional refit nor the expertise to do it myself, I had to learn how to do everything from scratch before getting stuck in.

After watching dozens of 'how to' videos and scouring Ebay and DIY shops for cheap alternatives to premium marine equipment, I managed to turn our dark and dingy old classic into a bright, modern, floating home from home for the princely sum of just £10,000.

In the years since then we've had some fabulous adventures on board but after a while a number of things started to niggle me. When the conditions were right it was a wonderful boat but in any kind of waves it was really quite uncomfortable and it burnt through fuel at a frightening rate. A single trip to Poole and back from the Solent cost me over £500 - that was 5% of my entire refit budget!

I also wanted to be more independent so we could stay at anchor for several days at a time.

As well as the cost of berthing in marinas, the whole point of owning a boat is to get away from it all, not just hop from one floating boat park to the next. However nice the boat was, it still felt a bit like we were staying in posh campsites.

TRAWLING THE MARKET