New guy looking at a boat

[cormech]

Hi everyone. I have foiund a used Grady that I am going to go look at. Can you tell me something about this boat and what to watch out for besides the normal stuff......compression wiring and soft floors. I am unable to find any info on this boat. Here is the link
http://norfolk.craigslist.org/boa/940648356.html
Incase it doesn't work it is an 1980 tounement 12/22 with a 305 and mercruiser outdrive. Thank you for your help and info

 

[cormech]

After a little more reasearch the boat for sale is what apears to be a 201 marlin. If it is a 1980

 

[wahoo33417]

Cormech: If you haven't seen it already, here is a link to Grady's 1980 catalog:


http://www.gradywhite.com/customer/catalogs/

I think you're right on the model. Sorry I don't have more to offer ...

Rob

 

[BobP]

Depends, what are you expectations of a boat you intend to buy that is 29 yrs old ? Any boat? Any brand?

 

[cormech]

Well a boat that old for that price I am expecting a lot of wiring problems and if it hasn't been covered and sitting outside for the floors to be soft. As long as the motor and out drive are good and the hull is in decent shape the rest, to me, is just small stuff. I have just never had an I/O before and don't really know what to check on them.

 

[BobP]

Presuming you are a DIYer, rewiring the small boat is easy stuff.

I/O motors are easy to check out too, or cheap to just replace with a new one. The outdrive is not so cheap. However, rebuilts are sold.

Since all Gradys are built with wood, lots of it, if the wood is shot (as in wet and or rotted), you will have your hands full doing such work, by far the biggest of the projects with a 29 yr old boat. Solf decks is only the beginning.

In the worse case, you may spend every weekend for 1 yr to restore the boat. As you can see, even getting the boat for free isn't much of a deal, unless you know and accept the repair scope.

If you don't know how to evaluate the hull's wood elements, hire a surveyor with experience in older gradys. If the motor starts and runs, that's plenty good.

 

[gerrys]

On this old a boat, stringer rot is a big issue. Do a visual under the deck in as many places as you can. Get the owners permission to take a screwdriver or ice pick and try to find rotten spots in the stringers. Carefully inspect the rails where the engine mounts. Have someone outside the boat lift up on the lower unit and look for movement in the engine mounts. Also, check around the lower transom for soft spots and rot - both on the inside and out.

 

[cormech]

Thanks guys. I will have all this on a pad when I go to look at it this weekend.

 

[cormech]

Well the boat was in good condition but he wouldn't budge on his price. Maybe after stiper season he will be more motivated to sell it. Until then the search continues

 

[bc282]

are you new to boating?

i would not recommend an old boat for a new boater. you will spend more time fixing and not boating.

The boat you're considering could have a whole can of worms you've not expecting, so unless it's next to free and you can ditch the project with minimal loss of $ and time invested if it comes down to it, i'd look elsewhere.

i say look for a newer boat with little to no problems and get boating and fishing, perhaps pay more but you'll pay anyways to fix an old boat too.

lots of used boats in todays market to choose.

 

[dlevitt]

I don't necessarily agree with the idea of staying away from an old boat. However, some excellent points have been made. I bought my first boat 2 years ago and it was an '81 Grady Bimini 220 with a '93 Evinrude 200 with a 2003 trailer. I had a limited budget (less than ($10k for boat, repairs, electronics, etc.).

I found this boat and had a successful survey of both hull and motor. In fact, it was local, so I went to speak with the mechanic who worked on the boat in the past. Did I need to throw some money into it... absolutely. I had to have the carbs rebuilt and install a fuel/water separator plus some other minor things. Since the mechanic was working on it, I had him change the water pump and go over the engine. It was and is running great.

The hull was structurally sound and needed a good cleaning, which I did. I did need to do some work on the transom, but it wasn't that big of a deal. I also did some minor repairs like replacing the thru hull fittings and tubing as well as the bilge pumps.

I fished this boat for the past 2 seasons and had a great time. More important, I have 100% trust in the boat ( I also have boat usa towing so that I don't get jinxed, but never needed it).

My point is that a well taken care of old boat may get someone into boating without too much financial risk. If I decide to sell this boat, it has already depreciated almost as much as it can. In fact, it is better today than when I bought it, so I should get all or most of my money back - even in todays market.

Of course, if the boat looks neglected, it probably was. If it has noticeable problems, like a tired engine. I would run away and look elsewhere.

There is some good advice here, but I wanted to give a different perspective. Maybe I was just lucky, but an old boat doesn't scare me one bit. In fact I'm looking at a "new boat" now. It is only 15 years old...

If I decide to take the plunge, you may even see my "gently used" 28 year old grady for sale...

David

 

[bc282]

if a guy enjoys fixing stuff like cars, boats, etc. and is resourceful, then a older and fixer-upper could be fine.

But if a new boater buys an older boat to primarily save money and fix it himself to save $ is great potential for disaster. There is a lot to learn in fixing and troubleshooting problems in boats that can be expensive, timely and very frustrating if not experienced.

The boat in question is not large, but not a punt either (which would be easy to fix up and hang a new motor and be done). A guy needs to know boat structure, fix rot, fibreglass, wiring, mechanical, and know something about I/O engines (and its sub systems like cooling, exhaust, mounts) and parts.

Unless you enjoy it, spend your precious leisure time doing what you enjoy and not cursing bad decisions.

 

[Tommyboy]

Buying old boat

I agree with BC282 .... As a new boater this boat sounds like it could be more than you bargain for .... every used boat has it's problems, ... But A boat that old with an I/O engine would scare me away ....(Hell a NEW I/O engine would scare me away! )

 

[cormech]

Well I would say I am a bit on the mechanical side, I work on jets for a living and fix older cars and trucks for fun and spare cash. I can lay fiberglass and am good with wood work. There was always a boat in the family growing up. That was all fresh water minus one lake in Oklahoma. I am looking for something that I can take my kids out on when I have them for the weekends and let them fish and maybe some tubing. They just aren't to comfy on the kayak with me.

Like I said the boat was in good shape. The floors didn't budge, the stringers I could get to were solid, and the engine ran and the outdrive tilted and steered as commanded. I was expecting a little worse shape then it was. Of course I would have more then likely ended up going through it all just to check things out, but I like doing stuff like that. Ohh well. Maybe if he decides to come down on the price i might pick it up.

 

[BobP]

As far as the hull goes, you most certainly are a DIYer, otherwise a restoration for hire, worse case, may be $15K or more. As long as you know what you have to work on and getting into, and have the time. Some of us DIYers are very time limited, like me.

For safety reasons, I don't see the members here advising to ignore transom and stringer/bulkhead rot. I've seeen some advise elsewhere - to ignore it. Ignorance is bliss, I guess.

You may not have properly evaluated the structure/transom of the boat fully, if you didn't, a biggest mistake you will regret a long time.

Older boats are perfect for DIYers only, otherwise they will break the bank. No different from old cars.

People who are not DIYers are better suited to a like new boat just a few years old, preferably still under warranty.