1986 Sea Nymph 15' fish and ski

[dub A]

Im looking to purchase a boat for fishing. With my budget, was just gonna find a small aluminum tiller. However, I came across a 1986 Sea Nymph 15' fish and ski, with a 1986 60hp Mercury for $1400, talked down to $1000. The problem is, the owner admits it has been sitting uncovered in the weather for some time. Bad carpet, seats, says the floor is ok, but im guessing the foam is probly soaked. My real concern is the motor. Being a carpenter i feel comfortable restoring the interior, but i am by no means mechanically inclined. I honestly dont even understand how to do a compression test. Am I getting in over my head, with what the repairs might cost me?

 

[TerryMSU]

Re: 1986 Sea Nymph 15' fish and ski

Forgive my ignorance, but is that an aluminum or fiberglass boat? If it is a fiberglass boat, I would probably forget it. Even though you are a carpenter, the materials (fiberglass, etc.) may still drive the overall system price out of your budget. Are you willing to spend your fishing time working on the boat, especially given that you spend your days doing carpentry? Aluminum is generally a lot easier to fix than aluminum.

As far as the motor, compression tests are quite easy to do. Pull the plug and screw in the tester. Crank the motor and read the result. Repeat on all cylinders. If it is a little low, I think you can squirt a little oil into the cylinder and repeat, but there are people aropund here who know much better than I.

Also, check the lower and see if the lower grease has any issues (water intrusion, for example)? Again, pretty easy to do. If you are uncomfortable with this stuff, get a knowledgeable friend to help you.

Take your time buying a boat or you may buy twice. I did (buy twice).

TerryMSU

 

[dub A]

Re: 1986 Sea Nymph 15' fish and ski

Thanks Terry, you brought up a point that I was already considering. Im not so much a boat enthusiast, as a fishing enthusiast, I really just want to get on the water, and probly wouldn't "enjoy" the restoration. It is an aluminum hull, but I have a feeling the boat is pretty beat from the pictures the owner sent me. The boat's about 3 hours away from me, so it would be a long drive just to go check it out. He did say that it ran the last time he had it out, and tried to start it just to see if it still did, but had problems with the ingition. I dont know if this meant he couldn't even turn it over... ie, could i still do a comression check? I have a feeling I would be getting over my head. But, the price seemed right, and had potential for being a very nice fishing boat.

 

[5150abf]

Re: 1986 Sea Nymph 15' fish and ski

I have a 1981 Sea Nymph, as long as the hull is in good shape this is a killer deal, aluminum never rots.

The mechanical side isn't too hard either, if it ran last time he had it out it probably just needs the carbs cleaned and you are good.

If the plug was out of the boat you may be okay on the foam, mine got soaked btu I left the plug in on a long weekend and we got an epic 3 day storm that got mine.

It is certainly worth a look.

 

[BWR1953]

Re: 1986 Sea Nymph 15' fish and ski

Sounds like too much money to me for a boat with a non-working engine. I paid less than that for my 14.5 foot aluminum 1989 Sea Nymph with a working 25hp Mercury with remote start and steering.

 

[TerryMSU]

Re: 1986 Sea Nymph 15' fish and ski

To put things in perspective price-wise, I bought my most recent boat, a LOWE 15ft aluminum bass style boat, with a 40HP Evenrude and trailer, all 1990 vintage, for $2500. It needed new seats and had no trolling motor. This was about 2 years ago. Based on recent craigslist prices in the area, I think I got a good deal. However, mine has an aluminum deck and was kept outside, but covered. The foam was definately dry. I assume that this is a console style boat. To me, IF the motor is good and IF the foam is dry and IF the deck is solid or better yet, aluminum, that is a pretty fair price.

Bad motor, then no way.

TerryMSU

 

[ezmobee]

Re: 1986 Sea Nymph 15' fish and ski

If the motor can be fixed up it sounds like a decent buy to me. Even if the transom and deck are rotted, it's not a major project to replace them. Should be a great boat for what you want to do with it.

 

[osborn159]

Re: 1986 Sea Nymph 15' fish and ski

see if you can work him down further, not knowing what may happen as you go along can add to your frustration and expenses.