David Bartlett
Recruit
- Joined
- Jul 11, 2010
- Messages
- 2
All right guys..... I NEED YOUR HELP!!! Where do I begin? I'll give you my background and my little story about my first boat. I have been boat hunting for some months now. I was simply looking for something to fish out of. A little two or three man aluminum was what I was looking for. I didn't want to shell out much money, really just needed something that floated and would allow me to get my line wet 
I've never owned a boat, but have fished all my life. My grandfather/fishing buddy just passed, lost him to cancer. My search for a small fishing boat had turned into a desire to find a "Project" to do in his memory. I wanted to find a boat that was cheap that I could restore and turn into or fix up into a legitimate fishing boat. Just after my new fire had been lit, I came across an old boat under a tarp that looked like it hadn't been moved in a long time. So..... I ask the guy, what the story on the boat was and if he was looking to get rid of it. After we sat and bull****ted for awhile I got him to pull the tarp off and let me look inside. What was sitting there was a 1961 RedFish Inland. I was told "I don't know if the big motor runs and I think the small one does". "It hasn't been in the water for 6 years, and its been sitting in my garage for the past 5." The gentleman asked me if I wanted a glass of water on this hot Colorado summer day... and of course I replied yes. Unbeknownst to him... his young daughter came out and said "are you gunna buy our old boat?" "my daddy has really been wanting it gone for along time now." Little did she know she just gave me the haggling gold that we all desire on this sort of find. He came back outside with the water, and we immediately began to discuss how much he was looking to get out of it. Now let me remind you, this is a 14 foot '61 Redfish... originally a ski boat.. has no body damage, no leaks... and has a 40HP Evinrude Lark III and a side mounted little 3HP Sears and Roebuck trolling/back up motor, all with a trailer. The original interior had been ripped out and a new floor put in that had two basic fishing seats in it. He said that he needed to talk to his wife about the price, he had no idea and that no one has ever asked him to sell it. I told him to pull it out, pull all the tarping off and clean it up and I'll come back when he had a better idea. Leaving it like that was really hard to do, especially knowing what the young daughter had told me earlier. I left his house and found my self to antsy and excited to wait. So I drove back over there and told him that I need to know what he was asking because I had found another one I was interested in, (a slight bluff) I told him the details of this other fictitious boat and what I was going to pay for it. He quickly jumped and said I want $500 for this boat. I laughed and said, well .... I'll give you a hundred bucks and take it right now as is. ANNNNND to my surprise, he shook his head, looked down at the ground and said TAKE IT! I was soooo happy, I now have a new project .... and I only spent $100 !!! I am still excited and now have a huge task in front of me. I need your brains, expertise, wisdom and experience with ANY info you can give me. I have many many many ideas and many directions I could go on this. Please feel free to ask me any questions and give me any advice. I plan on repainting it, building a new interior catering to a fishing boat layout getting both motors running (if possible) and installing whatever I can that will make this a GREAT fishing boat -all the while spending the LEAST amount of money. I cant wait to hear what any and all of you have to say. I have pictures of everything and will be posting pics as the project comes along. If you have any ideas and need pictures of a specific part or place on the boat, just ask! I want this to be a group project Here is to you Grandpa.
I've never owned a boat, but have fished all my life. My grandfather/fishing buddy just passed, lost him to cancer. My search for a small fishing boat had turned into a desire to find a "Project" to do in his memory. I wanted to find a boat that was cheap that I could restore and turn into or fix up into a legitimate fishing boat. Just after my new fire had been lit, I came across an old boat under a tarp that looked like it hadn't been moved in a long time. So..... I ask the guy, what the story on the boat was and if he was looking to get rid of it. After we sat and bull****ted for awhile I got him to pull the tarp off and let me look inside. What was sitting there was a 1961 RedFish Inland. I was told "I don't know if the big motor runs and I think the small one does". "It hasn't been in the water for 6 years, and its been sitting in my garage for the past 5." The gentleman asked me if I wanted a glass of water on this hot Colorado summer day... and of course I replied yes. Unbeknownst to him... his young daughter came out and said "are you gunna buy our old boat?" "my daddy has really been wanting it gone for along time now." Little did she know she just gave me the haggling gold that we all desire on this sort of find. He came back outside with the water, and we immediately began to discuss how much he was looking to get out of it. Now let me remind you, this is a 14 foot '61 Redfish... originally a ski boat.. has no body damage, no leaks... and has a 40HP Evinrude Lark III and a side mounted little 3HP Sears and Roebuck trolling/back up motor, all with a trailer. The original interior had been ripped out and a new floor put in that had two basic fishing seats in it. He said that he needed to talk to his wife about the price, he had no idea and that no one has ever asked him to sell it. I told him to pull it out, pull all the tarping off and clean it up and I'll come back when he had a better idea. Leaving it like that was really hard to do, especially knowing what the young daughter had told me earlier. I left his house and found my self to antsy and excited to wait. So I drove back over there and told him that I need to know what he was asking because I had found another one I was interested in, (a slight bluff) I told him the details of this other fictitious boat and what I was going to pay for it. He quickly jumped and said I want $500 for this boat. I laughed and said, well .... I'll give you a hundred bucks and take it right now as is. ANNNNND to my surprise, he shook his head, looked down at the ground and said TAKE IT! I was soooo happy, I now have a new project .... and I only spent $100 !!! I am still excited and now have a huge task in front of me. I need your brains, expertise, wisdom and experience with ANY info you can give me. I have many many many ideas and many directions I could go on this. Please feel free to ask me any questions and give me any advice. I plan on repainting it, building a new interior catering to a fishing boat layout getting both motors running (if possible) and installing whatever I can that will make this a GREAT fishing boat -all the while spending the LEAST amount of money. I cant wait to hear what any and all of you have to say. I have pictures of everything and will be posting pics as the project comes along. If you have any ideas and need pictures of a specific part or place on the boat, just ask! I want this to be a group project Here is to you Grandpa.
