My new (to me) boat..couple questions

[itguy]

Hi - Well, after searching for awhile we finally found out boat. We drove a few hours to Lake Oconee to check it out. The owner was pretty nice and he sent multiple pics so we were ready to buy as long as everything checked out and it rode okay. It rained the whole time but we still took it out for a few minutes.

There are a few areas that I overlooked and I wanted to see if I'm overreacting or if they are valid problems that need to be looked at by a professional.

The boat is a 2002 ProCraft 180 combo with a 150 XR6.

First - The trailer has many rust spots...I guess I was concentrating on the boat that I forgot about the trailer. I've read numerous threads on this subject but is this common for a 6-7 year old trailer? The owner kept it in his garage but I'm guess the original owner left it out. My friend bought a 2001 Nitro and his trailer was almost perfect....I don't have any pics of this.

Second - There are some gelcoat cracks near the engine...are these okay?

This is the bracket that holds the swim ladder...it's cracked. Where might I find one of these?

Overall we are happy with the boat and understand it is 6-7 years old. He included so many items including jackets, skis, tubes, grease gun, oil, etc.. that we didn't have to buy anything. We feel we got a good deal, 9,500, since the low NADA is 11,500 from what I calculated. We plan on keeping it until we become comfortable with boating and want something larger.

 

[kg5388]

Re: My new (to me) boat..couple questions

every fall I scrape sand and paint the small rust spots on my trailer

the swim platform brackets should be able to be purchased from Iboats

the cracks don't look bad I have a few in those areas of my boat but they are only surface cracks yours look deeper and I will let someone with more experience tell you more about them

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: My new (to me) boat..couple questions

perfectly normal for a 7 year old boat. that is why i don't buy a painted trailer. they are pretty, but they are going to rust.

 

[kaferhaus]

Re: My new (to me) boat..couple questions

The cracks in the stern are from trailering the boat without the foot being supported. That allows the motor to bounce up and down while hanging off the stern on every bump in the road. They don't seem to be too bad at this point but I'd buy a support for the engine foot that connects to the trailer.

Painted trailers are a good bit less expensive than galvanized or aluminum trailers. Likely why the original buyer bought it. Penny wise and dollar foolish as you can see.

The answer as another poster said is to stay on top of the rust by brushing/grinding it off regularly and keeping a good coat of paint on it. I would brush it off real good and treat the rusty areas with any of the available "rust converters" and then paint.

I wouldn't have paid what you did for the boat. I think it was 1500-2000 overpriced.

The main thing though is that if you're happy with it then it doesn't much matter. A first and usually second and third boat purchase are always a learning experience no matter who you are.

Did you get a cover with the boat? If not that would be my first investment even if you plan on keeping it garaged.

ALWAYS make sure you have the front of the boat elevated and level as far as you can when the boat is being stored. That will keep moisture from collecting or sitting (and growing nasty organizims) in the bilge which will rot all the wood under the stern and transom. Those boats used a lot of non marine grade wood under the deck and in the transom. Not a big deal IF you take care of it as detailed above.

I'd also give it a thorough washing and wax the hull after removing any chalking of the gel coat. I wash my boats after every trip and wax the hulls 2-3 times a year.

 

[itguy]

Re: My new (to me) boat..couple questions

Thanks for the remarks and advice. The boat does has a support bracket and it was used from what I was told..again, maybe the first owner didn't have one. It also came with a cover and is being garaged.

I see a lot of comments being made about pricing and the pricing is always high or much more than what people would pay. I searched every online publication and local ad and this was actually the lowest price I could find. This wasn't why I chose this boat...He just spent 1k on it replacing all batteries, filters, oil, impeller, etc..compression test and such. He is a pilot and is a true believer in maintenance. I'm not attacking you but when someone states it's overpriced I would like someone to show me why it's overpriced so I can learn the next time. I researched comparable sales from private parties and dealers..I looked up the NADA value..what did I miss???

Enquiring minds want to know.

 

[kaferhaus]

Re: My new (to me) boat..couple questions

searching "ad prices" tells you little other than what a "asking price" is. It has little bearing on what the boat is worth, sold for or may ultimately sell for.

The NADA book is as near worthless for boats as any publication I could imagine. Take your newly purchased boat to any dealer and see if you can sell it to him for anywhere near "low book". you'd likely not do better than low book even on a trade with the "new" boat at full MSRP.

Also the NADA book has been notorious for years as being well behind the actual market. The value of used boats is dropping daily and that depreciation will only accelerate (along with RVs, motorcycles etc.) in the coming months.

I just bought a boat in the past few weeks that "surveyed" at nearly $130,000 for right at $60,000. And a buddy of mine scored a even better "deal" a few weeks before that.

There are simply too many people out there with toys that have lost their jobs and need cash right now. The guys with leins or mortgages on their boats are the ones letting them get repo'd. Those who own them outright are taking what they can get.

You have to work for a deal....just checking classified ads or boat trader etc without TRYING to buy a boat at a bargain price will find you ending up paying "book" for it.

However a guy with a job who isn't hurting for cash.... he's not your prospect for making a deal.

People out of work or "estate sales" have always been the proper prospects.

The "grand" he just spent should mean nothing to you.... good batteries and impeller etc. are nothing more than routine maintenance and would be a condition of sale and a point to negotiate down on, not up.

You bought the boat while thinking like a "seller" and not a buyer.

The flats boat I bought not long ago was listed for $5,000.00 for over 2 months. I went and looked at it when he first advertised it and told him I thought the boat was well overpriced. He immediately produced a bill of sale (he was the original owner) showing what he paid for it and ran down all the extra equipment etc and what he paid for that... My reponse was to tell him that I understand that but it doesn't really mean a thing as to what the boat is worth. Now I did this in a polite manner and went out of my way not to be rude or sound like a jerk....he likely thought I was anyway. I left him my number and told him that if he had trouble finding a buyer to call me and I'd make him an offer, but at this point I'd just be hurting his feelings with an offer that I'd make. I knew the engine only needed the carbs cleaner, the issue is that 99% of the boat owners out there have no interest in finding out and are not capable of doing the work to begin with.

I ended up buying that boat for 2,000 and had it running properly within 2 weeks.... took about a day of actual work.

Also, don't be offended.... nothing wrong with buying the boat you want at whatever price you wanted to pay.

You seem to be happy with the boat (and no reason I can see not to be) and that is what matters most.

 

[superpop]

Re: My new (to me) boat..couple questions

there a lid for every pot.

 

[strokeoluck]

Re: My new (to me) boat..couple questions

Did you get a cover with the boat? If not that would be my first investment even if you plan on keeping it garaged.

Why do you think he needs a trailer if he's going to keep the boat in the garage? I'm not questioning your advice, just curious. We have a runabout in our garage but don't keep it covered.

 

[strokeoluck]

Re: My new (to me) boat..couple questions

I see a lot of comments being made about pricing and the pricing is always high or much more than what people would pay. I searched every online publication and local ad and this was actually the lowest price I could find. This wasn't why I chose this boat...He just spent 1k on it replacing all batteries, filters, oil, impeller, etc..compression test and such. He is a pilot and is a true believer in maintenance. I'm not attacking you but when someone states it's overpriced I would like someone to show me why it's overpriced so I can learn the next time. I researched comparable sales from private parties and dealers..I looked up the NADA value..what did I miss???

Enquiring minds want to know.

I've only purchased one boat, the one listed below; so I'm no expert. But I watched Ebay, CraigsList and talked w/some guys on the phone about their boats. I created a spreadsheet and tracked as much as I could about all the boats listed for sale: year, make, trailer or not, engine size, asking price, selling price, did it sell or not, etc., etc. I know that doesn't cover nearly everything, but it gave me a range. I then used that spreadsheet to help dial in my offer/purchase price. I agree buying any asset right now is like catching a falling knife, but I think I got a fair price for our boat at the time after doing some of this research.

 

[kaferhaus]

Re: My new (to me) boat..couple questions

Why do you think he needs a trailer if he's going to keep the boat in the garage? I'm not questioning your advice, just curious. We have a runabout in our garage but don't keep it covered.

I'm sure you meant "cover" instead of "trailer"...

The answer is simple, dust, bugs and critters. Dust turns to mud as soon as it gets wet. the dust will be in all the seams of the upholstery in every nook and cranny etc.

Bugs and or critters can easily get into a garage and make a home in the boat. They eat things or try to eat them, produce waste and die in the boat usually ending up in the bilge to clog up bilge pumps or drains which cause water to pool and stand in the hull and thus start the cycle of rot.

 

[capt sam]

Re: My new (to me) boat..couple questions

I wouldn't get to excited about the price, if you did your homework and feel comfortable with the buy then don't worry about what someone else thinks.

 

[NSBCraig]

Re: My new (to me) boat..couple questions

Looks like a fun boat.

One question- I can't tell from the pics but are the trailer bunks sticking out past the back of the boat. They should. Just letting you know another thing that could cause those cracks.

Good job getting all the extras. I spent $1,000 one day just getting lines, fire extinguisher, some cheap life vests, flares and some odds and ends. Funny thing about budgets.

What's the bottom look like?

How fast is it supposed to be?

 

[itguy]

Re: My new (to me) boat..couple questions

Wow..bunch of replies this afternoon!

I was pretty anal about the whole buying process or at least I thought I was. I too prepared spreadsheets and tracked purchases. I even went as far as finding five boats I liked and tracked depreciation over a four year period based on standard options...Of course, the only information I was able to use is NADA and I actually found that some of the "better brands" (Four Winns/Sea Ray) didn't depreciate as bad by about 3% than let's say a Tahoe or Bayliner. Of course, this is only using the information found at NADA. I feel good about my purchase. I felt the previous owner cared for the boat and had the records to prove it. He took the time to show me everything and has been readily available whenever I have any questions and some of them have been pretty stupid since this is my first boat! It even has a one year old 10 amp tripple bank charger. Like I said, it was well equipped for a newbie like myself.

I was able to purchase a new CD player with aux input this weekend and I also picked up a Lowrance 27C since I didn't have to purchase all the necessities. The 27C is a beast behind my dash and I'm waiting the arrival of my RAM mount so I can figure out where it's going to go.

We ran the boat at Lake Oconee the day we purchased it. The water was very calm but it was raining so we didn't stay out long. We hit 55mph according to the gauge. I'm curious to see what the GPS will say.

Okay, about the bunks...GOOD CALL! This is a factory trailer and the two inner bunks at the back only half support the back of the boat and the two outer banks are short around 5 inches.

The bottom of the boat is in pretty good condition from what I've seen. It's pretty dirty to be honest. Since it rained the whole way back it was nasty when we finally got home. I plan on cleaning it up really good in the next two weeks.

 

[strokeoluck]

Re: My new (to me) boat..couple questions

Why do you think he needs a trailer if he's going to keep the boat in the garage? I'm not questioning your advice, just curious. We have a runabout in our garage but don't keep it covered.

Ay-chee-wow-wah...what was I thinking?...TRAILER!?!? Hmmmm, can't imagine WHY he'd need a trailer in the garage.

 

[fishrdan]

Re: My new (to me) boat..couple questions

For the trailer rust, hit it with some Jasco Metal Prep (rust converter), let it work it's magic over night, then touch-up the paint.

 

[strokeoluck]

Re: My new (to me) boat..couple questions

For the trailer rust, hit it with some Jasco Metal Prep (rust converter), let it work it's magic over night, then touch-up the paint.

I'm new to this trailer rust thing, and have noticed a bit on our three year old white painted trailer. So are you saying I can spray this Jasco Metal Prep stuff directly on to the rusted/painted areas, and then the next day I just paint over it? No scrubbing, scraping, brushing, sanding, etc. first?