Hi, here's our story. 2nd post to this forum after reading here a lot over the past month. I've been looking around at boats for about 6 weeks. We have 2 kids ages 7 & 5, like tubing, skiing, wake boarding, some fishing. Wanting something large enough that we can also use at the ocean on calm days, Sacramento delta/SF bay, San Juan Islands, etc. I'm tired of fixing up my in-laws old early-1980's Bayliner 16' Capri w/ smokey 2-stroke Force 120 outboard.
So... I'm now the proud owner of a 1993 Four Winns Freedom 180, OMC sterndrive, V6 4.3L. [FONT=Helvetica, Arial, lucida grande, tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif]Beautiful condition -- I thought. It was under a carport and boat cover for the past 3 years. Owner recently divorced, kids grown, downsizing. We checked it all over. No sun damage on the vinyl, a few small almost unnoticeable vinyl rips, good fiberglass, paint. Engine very clean -- looked almost new, oil was amber, outdrive missing some paint but no significant corrosion. [/FONT](Didn't see a Hobbs engine hour meter.)[FONT=Helvetica, Arial, lucida grande, tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif] Hooked up fresh battery and electrical seemed OK. Couldn't try the bilge pump though. Briefly tried the starter and it turned but I didn't want to start it w/o any water.
Agreed at $4000 w/ extras like neoprene life vests, various skis, kneeboard, 2 new props, ropes, towable (tube), etc. Put clause in Bil[/FONT]l of Sale that I would be able to check it out on the water. Good thing, too: took it to the local lake the same day and the engine started OK in the water, with a lot of smoke (presumably from winterizing fogging oil). Motor settled down in a few mins, smoke cleared, and idled smoothly without stalling. Shifted into fwd/rev smoothly. BUT the boat started to SINK !! I opened up the engine cover and there was already 4-5" of water and it was coming in fairly quickly around the outdrive. Bilge pump wasn't working, either! Arrgh! Wife quickly brought the trailer back and I pulled it out of the water. This all happened in front of the Sheriff. Took my "new" boat over to Water World for $90 check up. It turns out the seal between the outdrive & transom had gone bad from sitting so long -- costs $1000 to fix (remove engine & outdrive, reseal, put back together). *Seller* agreed to fix first & sell for *same price* as we originally agreed to. We're picking it up today and trying it out tomorrow. It would have cost $350 for complete tune/checkup by Water World anyway, including removal and greasing outdrive, etc.
Overall, I get a new looking boat, equivalent of complete overhaul by a boat dealer, and (hopefully) a good price!
Marcus
Grants Pass, Oregon
So... I'm now the proud owner of a 1993 Four Winns Freedom 180, OMC sterndrive, V6 4.3L. [FONT=Helvetica, Arial, lucida grande, tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif]Beautiful condition -- I thought. It was under a carport and boat cover for the past 3 years. Owner recently divorced, kids grown, downsizing. We checked it all over. No sun damage on the vinyl, a few small almost unnoticeable vinyl rips, good fiberglass, paint. Engine very clean -- looked almost new, oil was amber, outdrive missing some paint but no significant corrosion. [/FONT](Didn't see a Hobbs engine hour meter.)[FONT=Helvetica, Arial, lucida grande, tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif] Hooked up fresh battery and electrical seemed OK. Couldn't try the bilge pump though. Briefly tried the starter and it turned but I didn't want to start it w/o any water.
Agreed at $4000 w/ extras like neoprene life vests, various skis, kneeboard, 2 new props, ropes, towable (tube), etc. Put clause in Bil[/FONT]l of Sale that I would be able to check it out on the water. Good thing, too: took it to the local lake the same day and the engine started OK in the water, with a lot of smoke (presumably from winterizing fogging oil). Motor settled down in a few mins, smoke cleared, and idled smoothly without stalling. Shifted into fwd/rev smoothly. BUT the boat started to SINK !! I opened up the engine cover and there was already 4-5" of water and it was coming in fairly quickly around the outdrive. Bilge pump wasn't working, either! Arrgh! Wife quickly brought the trailer back and I pulled it out of the water. This all happened in front of the Sheriff. Took my "new" boat over to Water World for $90 check up. It turns out the seal between the outdrive & transom had gone bad from sitting so long -- costs $1000 to fix (remove engine & outdrive, reseal, put back together). *Seller* agreed to fix first & sell for *same price* as we originally agreed to. We're picking it up today and trying it out tomorrow. It would have cost $350 for complete tune/checkup by Water World anyway, including removal and greasing outdrive, etc.
Overall, I get a new looking boat, equivalent of complete overhaul by a boat dealer, and (hopefully) a good price!
Marcus
Grants Pass, Oregon
