New to forum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

[alamantia]

I grew up and still live in NJ about 20min from the hudson river. When I was about 10 my father bought a used 1974 sea ray 195 run about from a guy on greenwood lake. We quickly got bored of the lake and trailerd it to the hudson river, I grew to love that boat, But I really grew to like this brand new 1987 welcraft elete 222 that the guy at our marina had. About 3 years after my father bought the sea ray he sold it, we havent had a boat in the family for over 20 years. I miss boating. When I was 20 I lived in an apartment with no place to park a boat, when I was 25 I bought my first house and didnt have any money for a boat, When I was 30 I finaly had enough saved up for a boat and my girlfriend turned my boat money into an engaugement ring. Well now I am 35 and got a good christmas bonus and the other day, i decided to look at craigslist and low-and-behold there is a 1987 welcraft 222 elete for sale in what appears to be great condition. So I decided I have to have it. Maybe I am nuts to want a 25 year old boat for my first boat, but I am going to look at it Sunday. I pretty much know what to look out for but if anyone has any advise for me at what specific to look at, I am all ears. One question in paticular, in a 1987 welcraft, if it has a mercruser 260 is that a 305 chevy or a 350 chevy?

 

[r.j.dawg]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

That engine is a 350 or a 5.7. And no, you're not nuts for considering an older boat. Tons of them here. I'm not familiar with Welcraft boats but the Merc 5.7 is a solid engine. Easy to work on and lots of parts.
Good luck with your purchase and let us know how it goes.

 

[zopperman]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Less about brand, more about condition. Any soft spot is a deal breaker... wood rots.. it's cancer for boats. Where about in NJ are ya?

Welcome aboard

 

[alamantia]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Midland Park, next to Ridgewood. If the hull is fiberglass, where do I look for soft spots, the floor? Or is the entire hull reinforced with wood? How do I detect a soft spot, by pushing on the hull? Any certian spots? Thanks for the insight.

 

[zopperman]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

The hull is cored with a lot of wood. The deck is encapsulated in fiberglass... Press on the deck and the transom.. wooden components, also stringers (like beams under the deck) try digging into it with a screwdriver a little.

If it coincides with my schedule, I might be able to come take a look with you. Send me a PM if you're interested.

 

[cyclops2]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

You drive steer & do shiftings in open water. several restarts while tied up in the dock. Open ALL doors & hatches to look for patches or old leaks . REALLY spend some time with the engine hatch up & motor running at about 1200 rpm while using your flashlight to see any leaks, wobbles. Also smell the air for cooking rubber. Any rattling or clock - clock sounds is a possible bad engine. Check the tranny for noise or smells or leaks.

You WILL FIND IT HARD to be objective & critical about the boat. You LOVE IT. Try not to during the check out. There are others.

There is one in Clayton, NY for YEARS.

 

[Philster]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Odds are the core has problems. That Wellcraft is when they were all balsa core AND had a problem allowing water in via the deck joint (at the rub rail). Balsa core and water intrusion = high risk of rot and/or being water logged.

No guarantees this has happened, but the risk is moderately high to very high.

 

[26aftcab454]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Ask questions like "where do you store the boat?" it should be protected from rain & sun.
Ask about what kind of maintence has been done. Proud owners will tell you in detail--WALK on every sq inch of the floor--take a long #3 screwdriver with you, poke around the bottom inside the bilge-ski lockers , bottom of tramsome-stringers -motor mounts-if it is soft it is rotten. (be repectful and do not scratch anything up)
use the handle to bang on the stern top to bottom-if it sounds hollow =not good.
You'll need a compression test-all 8 need to be within 10percent of each other.
Ask when the bellows & water pump were replaced last?

Wellcrafts are great boats-but like any brand it depends on how it was maitained & serviced.
Water Pump?
Fuel Pump?
Gimble serviced?
offer to pay for gas-Take it on a 30 minute test ride -run at all rpms-start & stop a few times-
-WOT should be close to 4400-4600RPM.
There are lot of great used boats for sale right now-don't jump on the 1st one unless you can't live without it!
Good luck and pick a great one.

 

[island mike]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Check transom,deck-sole,tapping on your transom is a good indicator but a little tricky if you dont know what your listening for, you might want to have a professional take a look,Take a core sample of your transom from the inside by drilling in the lowest part,take a good look at the wood that comes out;If its dark and moist,Be prepared...You could be looking at a full gut job...if your transom wood is wet,Chances are your stringers are also.A soft spot on your deck is easily detected I would think....talk to the seller ask ask and ask,Was the boat protected when not in use,Ask for receipts if any repairs were claimed to been made..This is all I can come up with now.I am sure other I boaters will chime in later with more...
anyway,You are at the right place my friend There is (almost) nothing that cant be fixed here!
Oh,one more thing:Welcome to iboats!

 

[oops!]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

HI.......welcome to iboats....

one of the biggest things to look at in a used boat.........is the owner !
there is no such thing as a bad boat.....(well,....vangaurd wasnt to good...lol) but there is such a thing as a bad owner.

how was the boat kept....was it in a garage.... or was it out doors uncovered

read the other suggestions here....they all have merrit.

good luck.....
and post back with what you find before you buy.

p.s. if zop can help you with this.....it may save you a ton of headaches and money

 

[alamantia]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

This is all great information. The problem that I face is timing, nobody runs boats in the water in NJ, well, nobody that I know. Perhaps I should wait until summer. I have cash now and before I take a boating class I would like to get something home and into my garage so that I may tinker with it over the winter. Attaced are pictures of the boat. I dont know if it violates any forum rules to post pictures of something that I dont own yet, I didnt see anything in the rules section, if it is, I will gladly delete. Believe it or not, the engine is less of a concern for me as my father is a engine bulder by trade and I have a 383 I want to eventually finish and use one day anyway. I did ot know that about balsa, my friend works for viking and he told me older welcrafts had stringer issues, thats probably what he was talking about. I am glad I decided to join the forum, I am very mechainicaly inclined between working in my fathers shop when I was a kid and working on my brothers drag car, heres a link if anyone is interested www.mulliganmotorsports.com and being a mechanical engineer in a machine shop (which will probably come in handy with a boat) but as for the specifics as to what to look for in a hull, I apreciate all of your insight. Keep the comments coming. I am really excited to hopefully get this boat, it has been a life long dream of mine, I just hope I look at it from a practical standpoint and not get too excited when I see it. Thanks everyone.

 

[oops!]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

the boat looks really good......i do see some minor issues i dont like.......but over all she looks good

 

[alamantia]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

the boat looks really good......i do see some minor issues i dont like.......but over all she looks good

What are the issues that you see?

 

[lakegeorge]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

I would like to know what the minor issues are also, for the age of the boat I think it looks very good, so please enlighten us.

 

[mr 88]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

The only "issue" I see is the white collector tube with the electrical tape hanging loose at one end.Not sure if tube is heat rated but appears to be zipped into place along manifold.All hose clamps are aligned and looks like whoever did that and the battery switch with the cables also zipped cared about appearance, which is a good thing.As oops alluded to a owner that cares about details like that probably took care of the whole pkg.Like pulling up to a house to look at a boat and there is junk laying all over the place vs a place where everything is put away and clean looking.You cannot always judge a book by it's cover but in these cases it surely may tell a story.

 

[r.j.dawg]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

If you are concerned about the hull, get it surveyed. A surveyor armed with a moisture meter and a sounding hammer will be able to quickly find any moisture issues.

 

[the vision]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

It looks nice but ask about where it's stored, because I don't think that big boat will fit in the little garage door behind it.

 

[oops!]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

What are the issues that you see?

in my opinion.......the trailer is a little too short for the boat......at least the roller set up....the rollers should come a little farther up the hull....
they moved the post as far forward as they could, but the rollers need to be farther up the hull....but this is minor

another thing is see is the rust around the risers and the t stat housing on the block. the rest seems to be ok.........this looks to me that possible the motor was replaced at some point. ......but it would be an area of concern of the boats past.

the white cable is ok......that is just a wrapping of the main helm cable....however...it is mounted in the wrong spot, this should be at the rear of the motor.....again...this leads me to believe the motor was replaced at some point or other.....

i would really check that motor over good.

the hull looks good.......but stomp around the floor looking for soft spots......look in the ski locker at the stringers and bulkheads. you are looking for possible signs of rot.

another thing to do, is weigh the boat......take everything out of it......and note any gas in it......then weigh it against manufacturers specs.
this will tell you if the hull is water logged.

 

[26aftcab454]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Sweet Looking Rig--so long as the hull is sound. Sounds like you can handle any motor issues-The interior seems nice in photos-need to inspect in person,

the trailer has a bit of rust-and some rust from the inside out
the rollers seem close enough to the rear to me.

 

[Bamaman1]

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

Re: New toforum, buying my first boat this week, have a few basic questions.

You've received lots of dialogue from experienced boat people, but the Winter is a tough time of the year for pleasure boating in New Jersey.

Simply put: Wellcraft is a very premium boat, styling is timeless and the hull looks good. The white interior is so good, it appears to have been kept inside. Get a marine surveyor to inspect the hull, and put a water cuff on the outdrive--running the engine for 1/2 hour. Have him check the bellows, etc. and make sure it shifts properly. Then, check the compression. This boat's a keeper.

As far as putting a 383 hopped up engine in this boat: Mercruiser marine engines are cast with a custom iron mix, and car engines just don't hold up to salt water as well. Marine camshafts are ground for low down torque, not rpm's. You might get a little more oomph and top end, but it's expensive performance. Try the 260 hp engine--and you might have all you need already.