16 yr old Achilles Hypalon or new Pvc boat

[Kazkut]

I can get this year 2000 Achilles sg12-4 for $300, which looks to have been stored outdoors in our below Freezing winters, or a new Bris 10'8 (0.9mm 1100
Denier pvc) with free launch wheels for 850.

This will be my first Boat. I will be getting a 15 hp Johnson 1987+ for whatever boat I get.

What does everyone suggest on the boat choice?

Here's a link to the Achilles.

 

[Kazkut]

Oh yah my uses for this boat would be fishing on the weekends, and deflating it for storage when not in use.

 

[Sea Rider]

Achilles is a well reputed Jap brand that fabricates their own Hypalon fabric, if fabric is not dried out, hardened, still fresh and flexible, seams are still well glued along accesories, tubes doesn't leak air go for it. Can offer less money and see what happens. Is it a wooden or alum floor ? That nice Sib has faded color, needs urgent a fabric restorer to look mint cond.

Happy Boating

 

[gwozhog]

No Title

Go to a air conditioning part store and buy a bottle of snoop. It will cost you 13 bucks. It is 10 times more sensitive than soap bubbles. Inflate the sg124 and go over every seam on the boat. If it holds air for 300 bucks why not. I do ac work so finding leaks for the last 26 years is how I put food on my table. There is no better liquid leak fluid available on the market. I hope she works out. I just bought a 6 year old sg124 and love it. Here is mine. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XmpFMa9w6Z0

 

[Kazkut]

Nice boat!
Thanks for the responses guys.

 

[Kazkut]

Do you believe this boat has been stored inside its entire life? That's what the seller says. That kind of threw me off the path of even going to look at it.

 

[Kazkut]

Gwozhog, when you transport(ed) your deflated sg124, was it pretty heavy?
If I get this boat I'll have to take it up and down stairs and into my car every time I use it.

 

[gwozhog]

No Title

Taking it down will not be a problem. You can always push it down the stairs. Lol. Going up arghhhh! It's 105 pounds without the floor and its big. I keep mine rolled up in a garage so I only move it 2ft into the trunk of my SUV. My aluminum floor weighs another 70 pounds. Man I don't think I could haul it up the stairs by myself. Now you could buy an appliance dolly . The tank rollers on the back would make it a sinch to get up the stairs with some straps to hold the boat bag in place.

 

[gwozhog]

That would definately be the only way I could do it on a regular basis. You know the on thing about inflatable boats is that everything seems to be a PIA until you develop a system for everything you do from loading it to inflating it. Once you get a system in place it goes pretty smooth.

 

[mrdrh99]

That's why I temporarily left the inflatable world.... Went to fiberglass and then aluminum... Now I'm back to inflatable, but on a trailer.... So much better!

 

[gwozhog]

I vowed to never buy a trailer for an inflatable boat. Just made no sense. But now that I own two inflatables I'm going to pick up a utility trailer and install bunks on the sides so I can double stack my boats on top of each other and haul the engines and fuel tanks in the center of the trailer. Just too big of a PIA to inflate and deflate 2 boats at the same time at the boat ramp. I too left the inflatable world for a bit and bought a mastercraft ski boat. While it was fun to wakeboard and surf behind it was boring as hell to cruise around the river on. Nothing puts a smile on my face more than a dinghy ride.