Kids' 1st OB boat advice

[Nico2112]

Re: Kids' 1st OB boat advice



First time ever I checked how much a used old BW 15' was selling for!!!

Outrageous...perhaps, but as many people all around the world say "it's a Boston Whaler"

For $4,000 and if I lived up there, I would buy a brand new 15' aluminum V hull boat with a 25HP OB

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Kids' 1st OB boat advice

Boston whaler or clone if you find one and jump on it quick. Otherwise you can't beat Carolina Skiff for cheap, stable and durable. PLus they are so light and flat you can go for a much smaller engine (I run a 50 on my 19'). A j-14 or j-16 is perfect for the boys. Call Vince at Sandpiper Marine in Accomac Va if you want new and tell him a Cedar Island guy sent you!

 

[jdlough]

Re: Kids' 1st OB boat advice

I hadn't considered the Carolina Skiff because every one I've ever seen was flat bottomed. My area is usually a bit too choppy for a completely flat bottomed boat.

Then I checked their site. They have several models (all with "V" in their names) with a shallow V. They look a bit like Whalers.

So, Carolina Skiff V models are now added to the search.

Thanks,
Jim

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Kids' 1st OB boat advice

flat bottoms are bumpy when choppy, but very safe. since it's just teenage boys getting bumped, buy the flat bottom and let them sit on a cushion.

 

[jdlough]

Re: Kids' 1st OB boat advice

I just bought a 1985 16.2' side console Wahoo with a 1995 85HP Yamaha with tilt/trim. The boat's rated for 90HP. Motor checks out strong for compresson, spark, lower oil, PTT works great, starts in less than 1 second.

The local Boston Whalers under $5k are all heavily/dubiously modified, and are just not worth it. And times-a-wastin, so I got this Whaler-clone for $2300. He asked for $3800.

Needs a bit of work, the seats are shot, needs Walmart replacements.

Has a 10 gal tank built in to the port side of the seat bench. Gauge for it doesn't work. The deal includes 2 extra 6 gal tanks. Motor runs fine on a yard test for all 3 tanks.

Nav lights need a bit of work, stern works, bow doesn't. Trim gauge and speedo do not work, but I have some indications that they will, with a bit of futzing with them.

It has an extensive pvc deck drain system, needs about $4 of Home Depot fitting fixing.

Deck and transom are solid. No gel cracks. Nice rub rail. Nice Stainless Bow and Transom rails. Mud-wasp nest knocked about $300 off the price right there.

One major difference between this boat and a true Boston Whaler - this boat has a bilge. BW's have a flowed in foam, Wahoos left a 1" air gap above the interior hull, and a drainable bilge, so the foam is less likely to saturate. I think it should have a bilge pump. It doesn't. So I'll be adding one.

The boat's quite usable as is, but may also be a nice project for step-dad and kids. The 15 an 13 year old drive my 21' Seaswirl 175HP Johnson boat quite well now, so I think with a bit of watching, they could use this one for tubing, skiing just fine.

Thanks to all, and if anyone has any additional advice/cautions, let me know.
I'm not yet sure if this is a 'diamond in the rough', or a decent-enough boat for the kid's summer boat while I search for the guy with the Boson Whaler, who needs more room in his garage, and just needs to clear some space.

Jim

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Kids' 1st OB boat advice

Can you be my dad?

 

[Nico2112]

Re: Kids' 1st OB boat advice

Nice boat mate.

I'm sure the kids are going to enjoy it

 

[Landscaping Wiz 808]

Re: Kids' 1st OB boat advice

Congrats on the Wahoo! Those are some lucky kids!

BOB

 

[jdlough]

Re: Kids' 1st OB boat advice

Well, I guess I'm an official boater now. And the kids got luckier.

I'm broke.

After rethinking all the problems of the kids tieing to a 4-point dock in the Nanticoke, tidal, sometimes stormy open water, I panicked and just ordered their own boatlift.

Last year, my little skiff sank at the pier in a storm. Cheap boat, not a great deal. This year, I bought me a nice boat, and got me a nice boatlift.

If I couldn't keep my skiff safe with fancy 4-point spring lines and all, I guess I can't expect them to either.

So, I found this cheap lift - needs only 2 pilings. Magnum Mini Mag 2800.
Quick check online, the lift itself looks like it costs about $2900. Installation should be simple, elec power is already out there.
I think another lift was inevitable, so might as well do it now, at pre-sinkage rates.

http://www.magnumlift.com/mini2800-08.htm

With their boat on a lift, I'd feel so much more relieved. Plus, I can put off fixing the Wahoo's self-bailing deck drainage plumbing issues and lack of bilge pump for a bit.


Jim

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Kids' 1st OB boat advice

be sure the boys carry a bailer then. Should anyway.

 

[Jeep Man]

Re: Kids' 1st OB boat advice

Well,

That 13' is gone. I dithered after finding out that they painted the interior and deck, and wanted more info on their prep work, so someone else nabbed it.

The 15' is still here. No surprise. Just from a quick night-time look with a flashlight I could see barnacles and enough mussels attached to serve two for dinner, extensive interior gel-cracks, multi-spliced wiring, control cable trip hazards, chunks of rub-rail missing, open screw hole H2O entry points from missing equipment, lumpy faded bottom paint, no teak - just a bare, jury-rigged hull. Here's some pics, but for some reason, boat pics ALWAYS look better than the actual boat. I doubt it, but I'm considering offering him $2K for the boat with the 2002 motor, and having a winter project with the kids.

I've got some lines on some Whaler-clone boats that may be ok, but KurtG wisely noted that if I find something Really good, some iboat's lurker may beat me to it, so mum's the word. Mum.

I don't want to waste the kids' summer waiting for the perfect Whaler (see, http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=300510 )so what other Whaler clones should I be looking for?

I already am searching for:
Boston Whaler
McKee
Wahoo
HenryD

If I find some decent 15-16' Trihull bowrider with a decent motor, that may be this summer's boat. I know all the trihull's faults, but it IS stable, and lots of us old folks (who couldn't afford BW's), have fond memories of our love/hate relationships with them. (At least they LOOK like a grown-ups bowrider.) When the BWs come out for sale in the fall, the kids may really appreciate them, and the old trihull can move on to the next owner.

Jim

Boat in the photos is rough, but can be brought back for the kids. That motor doesn't look to be a 2002.

 

[jdlough]

Re: Kids' 1st OB boat advice

Jeep Man,

You're right. There were a few boats it this thread I was considering with odd motors. The one I bought has a 1995 Yamaha 85 HP with power tilt/trim.

The boat's deck drainage is a bit weird, even if it worked as new.

A bunch of different deck drains, from baitwells, foredecks, whatever, are supposed to drain via pvc pipes to a deck-level sump at the stearn, which then drains out the transom, but that drain out the transom is underwater.

Meanwhile, the hull itself drains to a plug even lower on the transom than the deck plug. Basically, it's like a normal boat's bilge drain plug.

Most of the deck scupper drain pipes are cracked at the deck-flange fittings, so any deck rain water just drains to the bilge (like a normal boat).

I could fix all that, with much effort. But I don't see much advantage. If I fixed it, the deck water would still need to drain to the underwater plugged deck drain hole, underneath the motor.

This boat has a bilge. I'm thinking just let this boat's deck rainwater drain through the cracked deck drain pipes into the bilge (like a normal boat ski locker drains into the bilge). The inside-lower hull dry bottom area is about 1" below the foam panels, so the bilge water drains right to the stearn without touching the foam. From everywhere I could reach from the multiple access points, the foam is dry, even if the bilge has a couple inches of water.

So, I'm going to install a bilge pump at the actual, lowest point of the bilge, and ignore the busted deck drains, since they'll drain into the bilge.

Furthermore, this boat will live on a boat lift, and will be covered, so I'm hoping that should cover all concerns.

Any thoughts?

Jim

 

[jdlough]

Re: Kids' 1st OB boat advice

So,

The kids' boat now has a name. They're calling it the "Millennium Falcon," cuz it looks like junk, but goes real fast. (Starwars reference) Their only regret is that if it was an aluminum boat, they could call it "The Aluminum Falcon".

I was a bit nervous of this little boat with an 85HP OB, so I took it out myself, and tried to do all the stupid things a teenager would do. I attached the kill-switch-lanyard, buckled up the PFD, and basically tried to kill myself. Dang! It must be fun to be a brainless teenager! I took it to WOT (easily 40mph+) and locked the wheel port, then starboard. It felt like snow-skiing with a sharp edge. I felt zero lack of control, no 'skipping'. Then, at WOT, I cut the motor. Of course, a few hundred gallons of water crashed over the stern and filled the boat. I had a cigarette while I waited for bad things - nothing happened - so I fired up the motor and dumped ALL the water over the stern as I took off.

I took them out later and showed them what happens when you stop too quickly. I don't think they'll be doing that.

Since the deck drains to the self-bailing deck-sump are currently busted and drain to the bilge, for this summer I'm going to tape over the deck drains, install a true bilge pump, and let the boys enjoy the summer.

With all the gas tank weight in the stern, the boat stern seems to dig in deep when taking off, so I'll soon be installing some Smart Tab SX to level the boat out a bit, and stabilize the ride. Kinda like training wheels.

This fall we'll fix the deck drains and crappy seats.

BTW, I'm SO glad I got that Magnum Mini Mag 2800 2-piling boat lift. It's perfect. And since it's only attached at 2 pilings, it's easy for them to just pull up alongside and park.

Pics soon,
Jim