Mark, no matter what you paid in total, do you think you could have 1/2 the confidence in ANY boat you bought at that price? I doubt it, not knowing what we all know now. And that was my point.
And for that confidence and 'I did this' feeling, I think it's worth more then whatever the actual 'costs' were. If it isn't, we should find a different outlet for wasting our money.....
For me, here at iboats, 'helping' others, I know that IF the advise given is followed to the best of the re-builder's ability, AND they & subsequent owners take care of the boat w/ regular maintenance, numerous future owners can rest assured that they are in a safe craft NOT a hacked up, half arsed patch job that COULD be unsafe.
Until it really isn't safe, many of the problems that plague poorly maintained boats, don't manifest themselves and can be very difficult to find w/out destructive testing. Even seasoned boat rehab veterans get taken advantage of, Friscoboater's 2nd rehab project is a PERFECT example of that..