[DavidK]

Dear Friends,

It does appear that after Bertram was sold/taken over in 1989, the quality has suffered substantially. On this sight I looked at photos that showed a late model, 63 foot Bertram that had the hull delaminate! This is very scary and I wanted to ask the informed members if this is a common occurrence with the post 1989 Bertram's???

The reason I ask is due to the fact that I am looking seriously at a 1995, 60 foot Bertram convertible and do not want the slightest chance of this happening!

Many thanks in advance for your advice.

[Bayside Bert28]

Certainly the photos and video of that late model 63 foot Bertram sitting on the ocean floor are haunting. I have not heard any defininitive proof that this was caused by a manufacturers defect or did they hit something?

I think there is a photo of another big Bert with a massive flap of delamination on the side of the hull.

This type of thing could likely happen to any production or custom boat due to individual mistakes in resin formula, climate control etc.

My 1984 Bertram 54 is solid but I wouldn't hesitate to own a 1995 if the price were right. I suspect it is?

[DavidK]

Originally Posted by Bayside Bert28

Certainly the photos and video of that late model 63 foot Bertram sitting on the ocean floor are haunting. I have not heard any defininitive proof that this was caused by a manufacturers defect or did they hit something?

I think there is a photo of another big Bert with a massive flap of delamination on the side of the hull.

This type of thing could likely happen to any production or custom boat due to individual mistakes in resin formula, climate control etc.

My 1984 Bertram 54 is solid but I wouldn't hesitate to own a 1995 if the price were right. I suspect it is?

Many thanks for your reply!

[RT46]

search this on Yacht Fourm: "Catastrophic delamination on a new Bertram 63'"

The boat in the pictures appears to have some serious issues.

I would not condem all Bertrams based on one failure.

Bertrams are a high quality boat and there are many of them in service with thousands of hours on them.
Many Bertrams are constantly "abused" by their SF operators/owners running hard off shore fishing in heavy seas without any serious issues.

Regardless of the delam issue above, Bertram is still a major contender and holds spot in the "Big Three" (Bertram, Viking, Hatteras)

[DavidK]

Originally Posted by RT46

search this on Yacht Fourm: "Catastrophic delamination on a new Bertram 63'"

The boat in the pictures appears to have some serious issues.

I would not condem all Bertrams based on one failure.

Bertrams are a high quality boat and there are many of them in service with thousands of hours on them.
Many Bertrams are constantly "abused" by their SF operators/owners running hard off shore fishing in heavy seas without any serious issues.

Regardless of the delam issue above, Bertram is still a major contender and holds spot in the "Big Three" (Bertram, Viking, Hatteras)

I would certainly lean towards a used Bertram,prior to the Italians taking over the firm.

[Manny]

it's not after 1989 you should be worried about. it's after 1999. a 1995 60' bertram is a great boat, especially if it has CATs.

[Capt J]

Originally Posted by Manny

it's not after 1989 you should be worried about. it's after 1999. a 1995 60' bertram is a great boat, especially if it has CATs.

I think so too, 3412's are great motors. I friend of mine ran a 2000 60' Bertram, I cannot remember the power, but it ran very very good and cruised around 32 knots I think.....if I remember right......

[Julianna Rose]

I am a big fan of the '60 - '80's Bertrams. I question the boats built in the '90's, I think the company was really struggeling then. They may have been bought out by a foreign company partnering with Diaship. The good news is that the 60 Bertram is a stretched 54 which we all know is a great boat. As far as the reputation of the 2000's, I was recently looking at a 2000 51' Bertram and I was amazed. The boat was beautiful. It looked like a brand new boat! I know that doesn't mean it is a well made boat, but it sure looked like one.