I have a serious case of MBS and need some help. My Dad passed away a little over a year ago and left 3 fishing boats behind. If I fix one, I would use it for fishing on local lakes in Michigan, and I wouldn't mind fishing on the Great lakes a couple times a year. They are all stored at my Mom's house and all need work. There are two 2001 Yar-Craft 1895 storms, one with a cracked up transom and one with a rotten deck and stringers. The third boat is 15 foot Sylvan Sea Monster with a rotten deck and transom. Here are the pros and cons to each:
White 2001 Yar-Craft 1895 storm. It has all electronics mounted and engines are in reasonable working order. It has a 2001 Mercury Optimax 225 and a 2001 Mercury 4-stroke kicker. Both engines were run last year, and the optimax was occasionally cutting out under full throttle, about every 10-15 min. The gas had sat for a year without any stabilizer and may be the problem. It has an off-white gel coat and very little exterior work would be required. Where I drilled into it, the transom seemed solid. But it would need the whole deck replaced and the stringers are rotten too, at least where I could see them at the back of the bilge. I think the foam is saturated as well. There is also more family drama associated with me taking this boat as my own, but I mostly have that worked out.
Red 2001 Yar-Craft 1895 storm.The stringers and deck are solid, at least as far as I could tell by looking in the bilge, but the transom has several major cracks and the wood inside came out a light brown powder instead of normal wood shavings. as far as I could tell, the foam is dry. The transom cracks would require some exterior repair, and the boat is red metal flake in clear gel coat. I could paint the transom portion black, or just paint the whole boat, or try and blend the metal flake. This boat has a 2001 Mercury Ficht 200 HP that is bolted on, but the controls are disconnected. The engine was used for about 2 seasons, and then sat for 10 years. I don't know if the engine runs.There is no kicker currently. There are currently no electronics on the boat, but I can buy them, or get them off the white boat.
Blue 1989 Sylvan Sea Monster 15. This aluminum boat has a 2004 mercury 40 hp 4 stroke that hasn't been run in about 5 years, but was running great last time we used it. The boat has a rotten deck and I'm sure the transom is rotten too. It is smaller than the other two boats, so I think I can fit it into my garage, the others would have to be outside. It could use a paint job, and I would guess the foam is water logged too. This would work well for fishing on local lakes, but it is a bit small to take out on the Great lakes.
Any help or advice about which to fix is appreciated.
White 2001 Yar-Craft 1895 storm. It has all electronics mounted and engines are in reasonable working order. It has a 2001 Mercury Optimax 225 and a 2001 Mercury 4-stroke kicker. Both engines were run last year, and the optimax was occasionally cutting out under full throttle, about every 10-15 min. The gas had sat for a year without any stabilizer and may be the problem. It has an off-white gel coat and very little exterior work would be required. Where I drilled into it, the transom seemed solid. But it would need the whole deck replaced and the stringers are rotten too, at least where I could see them at the back of the bilge. I think the foam is saturated as well. There is also more family drama associated with me taking this boat as my own, but I mostly have that worked out.
Red 2001 Yar-Craft 1895 storm.The stringers and deck are solid, at least as far as I could tell by looking in the bilge, but the transom has several major cracks and the wood inside came out a light brown powder instead of normal wood shavings. as far as I could tell, the foam is dry. The transom cracks would require some exterior repair, and the boat is red metal flake in clear gel coat. I could paint the transom portion black, or just paint the whole boat, or try and blend the metal flake. This boat has a 2001 Mercury Ficht 200 HP that is bolted on, but the controls are disconnected. The engine was used for about 2 seasons, and then sat for 10 years. I don't know if the engine runs.There is no kicker currently. There are currently no electronics on the boat, but I can buy them, or get them off the white boat.
Blue 1989 Sylvan Sea Monster 15. This aluminum boat has a 2004 mercury 40 hp 4 stroke that hasn't been run in about 5 years, but was running great last time we used it. The boat has a rotten deck and I'm sure the transom is rotten too. It is smaller than the other two boats, so I think I can fit it into my garage, the others would have to be outside. It could use a paint job, and I would guess the foam is water logged too. This would work well for fishing on local lakes, but it is a bit small to take out on the Great lakes.
Any help or advice about which to fix is appreciated.