Hello, I would be very happy if I could get some practical advice from you Burger experts. I am looking for a nice and well maintained Burger from 65-80 feet. The boat must have a strong hull and be in good mechanical condition. I am planning to import it to Norway and renew its interior if nessesary. I have seen several boats on the internet. There is one 81 feet Burger from 1971 for sale, asking price is USD 395 000. Is there something spesial i have to be ware of and look for before bying an old Burger? Is the whole boat made of aluminium or is it only the hull. Is the teak deck lying on aluminium or wood? Is it possible to get a well mentained boat for USD 500 000? Thanks!
Greetings, Welcome to Yacht Forums. There are several very nice Burgers on the market right now. I was aboard one Friday at the Palm Beach Boat show. She is a 1969- 64 footer named "Little Princess". As I recall, the asking price is $529,000. This boat is in beautiful condition, and the teak decks are only a few years old. They were previously over wood, now after the old was stripped back to the aluminim, the new teak was installed. Exterior condition was an 8+ or a scale of 10, interior was very nice, updated, but quite conservative. She is powered with GM 871N's. There is a 1971- 64 footer in New York that I have not personally seen, but should be a quite nice yacht. She is reported to have recent paint, and the engines are the more modern Cat 3406's. She is priced at $500,000. and her name is "Ambrosia" A friend of mine in the Yacht Brokerage industry has been recently aboard a 1963- 63 foot Flybridge with cockpit located in the Florida Keys. She is priced at $525,000. and he reports that she is in A-1 beautiful condition. Her name is "A Bientot" Another pretty nice boat is a 1970- 67 foot with Flybridge called "Cherish" She is located in Ft Lauderdale. I have been aboard her on several occasions and found her to be in very nice condition. The interior decor needs a bit of updating. She is currently priced at $599,000. I have been aboard a number of other Burgers that are in the lower asking price range. Without naming names, I cannot recommend any of those other boats. The 81' that you reference at a low price is, I believe, a bank reposession case and may perhaps be best avoided. Unless you are planning to accomplish a complete top to bottom refit, it would be best to purchase the nicest, best maintained Burger that your budget will allow. These are complicated yachts that will require a major investment in time and resources to "bring one back" from poor condition. To keep a nice boat nice, is a daunting task in and of itself. You should be able to buy a nice boat for your $500,000. number. I would suggest that you align with a good yacht broker, and look at several boats. Good luck in your search.
Thank you for your reply. I have looked at the boats that you recommended on the internet. They look great all of them. I really prefer a pilothouse yacht. Katarina 67 feet from 1974 looks really great. It is a bit over my budget so I think I have to keep on looking. My biggest concern at the moment is that I have to provide a CE-approval for the yacht, to be able to import it to Norway. Do you know if the Burger manufacture have the possibility to CE-classify an older yacht? I know that they have to have CE-classification on every new yacht that is going to Europe. This comes in addition to all the other Norwegian regulations that I have to struggle with. For example engine tax and other taxes. Thank you.
And for my USD 500 000 the Burger must be over 24 meter long to be able to import it to Norway without CE-approval.
Katerina was sold through John Todd at Burger Yacht Sales (I think!) about 2-3 years ago. The number I heard (don't mark my words) was under $500k. I heard the owner put another $100k into it, but I can't confirm this. I saw Katerina at the Palm Beach Show a couple of weeks ago. She still looks good, but the wood trim needs attention. She could use a strip & varnish. I didn't go onboard her, but I've been aboard before with someone who was interested in buying her. She's a nice old Burger. One of the finer remaining examples, but be sure to get a survey. Also, try to get some history on her too. You never know... she coulda been raised from the bottom at some point!
Given your parameter of price, configuration and length- Your choice is quite limited. The only yacht currently available seems to be the 1971 81' in Ft Lauderdale that is a bank reposession.
Katerina is a nice boat. I have been aboard her at several boat shows in recent years. A previous inquiry to the broker suggested that the owner was entrenched at or near his asking price. She is also not big enough based upon the buyer's CE certification parameter. How many feet is 24 meters? My calculations say 79' but I'm not a math whiz.
The seller sent me about 80 pictures of the 1971 81 feet Burger. I think that yacht needs a lot of work and money. Are there any quality difference between Burger and Broward? There are a Broward 80 feet from 1977 for sale in Ft Lauderdale. I talked to the seller today and asked for some more information. The asking price is USD 599 000. Any advice? Thanks
Broward is a high quality, well regarded yacht builder. Personal opinion: The Burger has an understated elegance that is unrivaled. In automobiles, Bentley has the same type of feel. But, perhaps that's just me. Both Burger and Broward are yachts that will likely serve your needs quite well. I would again make the suggestion that you may perhaps benefit by representation of an experienced yacht broker to act in your behalf, between yourself and the Owner's agent. A broker with bopts on the ground here in the US will save you time in sorting through the prospects.
Hi There, Just wanted to let you know that the new awaited Burger was launched today! In Wisconsin. Once I get a bit more info I will post.
Old Burgers = Huge Restoration Make dang sure you survey the vessel quite well. Pay particular attention to the shaft tubes. Replacement can be a huge undertaking in removing the tube. They may be welded to each baffle of the fuel tank and you will have to cut out the floor to get to it. The area under the chain lockers typically have a few hundred gallons of goo that is covering rotten plates. The water tanks almost always rot out. Not to mention the decks under the teak are almost always rotten. Oh yes, the aft deck usually rots. Not to mention the plating around the sea cocks usually are bad. If you don't strip the paint and bondo down to bare you won't catch the bad plates but they will catch you. The typical anchor plates on the hull always cover corrosion. The old wiring is a horror to deal with. All this for some style. IMHO they suck at sea and are only for the extra rich to waste their money to impress friends. They don't impress this bilge rat one bit.
Wow! That sounds like the voice of (bad) experience. On another thread someone was downplaying the need for a surveyor. I hope they see this because even a good captain wouldn't have found most of what you describe much less a "knowledgable boater".
