need opinions please

[joebear45]

im looking to buy my first boat, i just looked at a 17' 93 pro-line with a new"out of the box" 96 force outboard 120 hp, the motor has apox. 25 hrs, i saw reciept for the force and the owner paid 4,800.00 in july 06. the boat was not taken care of(lots of deep scratches) and only console cover. the outboard is almost brand new but its been sitting in a box in a wharehouse for 10 years, do the seals start to go bad after sitting so long? there asking 5000.00 with no trailer and i know i can buy it for 4500.00, please give me advice, i was told to stay away from force engines. this is all new to me and im having a tough time making a decision.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: need opinions please

Stay away from Force Outboards! Keep shopping.

I would turn down a new one at any price or just sell it.

 

[Monkaroo]

Re: need opinions please

I think you should look at some trailers for the boat first of all and get an idea how much it's gonna cost to buy one . Chances are your gonna have well over 6,000 invested by the time you give the boat a face lift , maybe more , after it's been abused like you said . You might find out that you can find a much nicer boat for what you'll wind up investing in the one your looking at . It's just now about to be the right time of year to start finding some good deals . I would be careful to weigh out all that's involved . And even with the motor being used very little , it's still a 96 model and will be valued as such . I haven't had any dealings with the Force engines myself . Maybe some of the old pros will key in soon , and give you the scoop on that type of engine .

 

[Monkaroo]

Re: need opinions please

Stay away from Force Outboards! Keep shopping.

I would turn down a new one at any price or just sell it.

There's one of the old pros allready . Bob sent that one while I was typing .

 

[joebear45]

Re: need opinions please

yes, i priced out a new trailer, it would be an additional 1500.00, so i would be spending about 6000.00 to 6500.00 i did like the boat because it was heavy and handled well in the water. i was thinking because the motor was "new" i could save myself problems from buying somthing that was a lot older in hours used. maybe its better to go with an older motor with a better name??

 

[Monkaroo]

Re: need opinions please

I don't know man . I'm partial to the Evinrudes and Johnson motors myself . I have noticed on e-bay that a lot of the boats with the Force motors , seem to sell cheaper . I think the Force is a knock off of the Mercury motors . I do stake a lot of confidence in some of the guys on this forum , and what they tell me . If you click on their name and look at their personal profile it's pretty obvious that they've been down the lake a time or two . Their number of posts says a lot too . I'm sure your gonna hear from some more of them pretty quick . I'm curious to see their opions too .

 

[kenmyfam]

Re: need opinions please

yes, i priced out a new trailer, it would be an additional 1500.00, so i would be spending about 6000.00 to 6500.00 i did like the boat because it was heavy and handled well in the water. i was thinking because the motor was "new" i could save myself problems from buying somthing that was a lot older in hours used. maybe its better to go with an older motor with a better name??

You will do far better with an older but well cared for motor with a beter brand name and reputation. Like said earlier, this is the right time of year to find a good deal.
Good Luck.