Since this thread is about boats, I've had a bit of luck with a boat I purchased while in Maine. Nice story about good things happening vice the week we've all had with our retirement accounts.
I picked up a 1988 Mach 1 Challenger Cuddy Cabin 4.3l V-6 Merc Alpha I on a Load Rite galvanized trailer while in Maine, just before I came back to California this summer.The previous owner had had the motor re-built last year spending $4,200 ( he showed me the receipts) and only put a few hours on the rebuild before it hydra-locked on him and that finished him for the year. Hogasm explained this term to me as I'd never heard it. On the way home from wherever he'd been, he spun a bearing on the trailer and ended up having new stub axles and bearings put on both wheels. This spring, he bought a new boat and put this one up for sale. In order to sell it, he put new tires on the trailer and rewired it as well. He started out asking $6k but the boat was parked in the middle of nowhere Maine under a Maple tree. The sap from the tree very shortly had it covered and of course dust etc stuck to the sap. And so it was when my niece's husband brought it to my attention. The price was down to $4k at that point. I had the boat towed to my Mom's driveway and proceeded to clean the hull thoroughly checking for cracks and spiderwebs in the fiberglass. None. The interior needed a bit of work and I actually rebuilt the motor cover before I bought the boat. Figured if I passed, I'd done something for the guy's trouble you know. Anyway, I couldn't get it to start as the ring gear on the flywheel was stripped (this is what happens when a motor hydra-locks) The owner came by and got it to fire up and it ran like a Swiss watch. At that point, I offered him $2,500 and after some grumbling, he took it. I also got a new ring gear, starter and a pair of downriggers. A good friend of mine teaches Automotive shop at the vocation high school in Portland Maine and they took the boat in as a project for the students since they just started up course in boat repair (Maine being a state full of lakes ) Cut to the chase, the students pulled the motor, replaced the flywheel and starter, pulled the water jackets and replaced the gaskets, disassembled the lower unit (outdrive) and redid all the seals, gaskets etc. and installed a new automatic bilge pump. As I said, the previous owner had given me a new flywheel and starter he'd bought, so I'm on the hook for about $300 to the school for seals, gaskets and fluids. The boat needs new canvas and the rear jump seats remade. I figure I'll have $3,500 in it when everything's done. AND, the best part is it should be rock solid mechanically since the instructors double, triple and quadruple check the students work and grade them on it.
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Topic: CVO Pontoon Boat (Read 5598 times)