Re: convince me its still worth it
.... I'd suggest you read through some of the posts here carefully, make sure you know what you're committing to. To get a working boat will take you months, and it won't be comfortable or easy work. When you're done you will have a decent boat, but you're not going to get the money back you put into it.
If you really like this particular boat, beyond just not wanting to give up on your "great deal" then it's another story.
Putting this another way: There are lots of boats out there needing this kind of work. You could spend your repair time on any of them. Is this the one you want to spend that time on? Or would a bigger/smaller/different brand of boat be more what you want?
If nothing else you could use this one for training... do the resto using less expensive materials than top of the line, and learn how for your next project........
Erik
I think another way to put it is that no matter how much work you put into this boat, its not going to raise its value much to anyone else. It's still going to be an old Renken.
Myself, I redone a lot of boats that I probably wished were something else, but after having completed them, found them to be a much nicer boat than I had hoped, but I also have done a few that were total disappointments on the water. The same goes for boats which I really liked then found out once on the water they weren't what I had hoped they'd be. The one thing they've done was make me good at fixing real messes. I've brought back a few that probably should have been crushed and forgotten and probably crushed a few that I wished I had saved.
The bottom line is it's only value is what its worth to you. Sit down, figure out what it will cost in materials including what every you already have in it and decide if that total would be what you would have paid for the boat if it were ready to use. Also, would you have bought THAT boat or looked for something different, bigger, smaller, or newer etc.
I also have found that MY ideal boat has changed over the years. If someone had asked me 10 years ago what would be my ideal boat, my answer would have been a 24+ ft inboard or stern drive boat with a flybridge and full cabin, today, I wouldn't even consider such a boat. I try to stick to boats in the 15 to 18' range and only outboards. Most of the reason for my change in boat tastes is driven by the cost of running a boat these days as well as I like to be able to trailer, launch and load my boat myself, easily.
You will never be able to get the money back out of a project like that, you may not even be able to get back what you already have in it. There are those that won't touch an OMC stern drive, and many that won't touch any stern drive boat, but their not that bad. For years it was all I knew.
They are a whole lot easier on fuel and if properly cared for and stored, they can be very reliable. They are heavier and they do take up more room in the boat. I suppose that's why so many were built as bow riders to free up some more passenger room.
I've had a few really nice older boats that were given to me lately that I just couldn't give away that needed very little work with no takers. Boats are dime a dozen and no one these days even seems to have a dime. I had one guy even want me to deliver a free boat to him over 400 miles away. That one went to the dump in the end. There are dozens of boats for free everyday on Craigslist, even more if you check out the local marinas. Of course, one mans junk is another man's treasure, but it's getting harder and harder to find the treasure hunters these days.
