New poster....... new boater looking for a Nineteenll

Bryant0086

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Joined
Jul 14, 2016
Messages
8
Hi !! I am Bryant from Alabama. I am new to boating and am looking for an Aristocraft Nineteen. Here is my story.......Out of the blue, I decided I wanted either a PWC or a boat for some fun family time. I actually spotted a Nineteen on Craigslist soon after acquiring the "boat bug" and thought it was one of the coolest looking boats I have ever seen. It faded quickly. I had even at one point started looking for a pair of Seadoo GTXs. After really thinking about it, I decided a boat would be more practical. I looked at your typical bowriders and this that and the other. I was even considering a fish and ski built on a bass boat hull at one point !! It was a Venture. Even though it was an older boat, I think I might have had to learn how to calculate the jump to light speed to get that one. Cool, but not really family friendly. I might kill all of us on that thing !! At the budget I can justify to myself, I would have to deal with a two stroke on an outboard....ehhhh.....
I did research. I found for ME, that a stern drive was the way for me to go. I can put an automobile engine together from a box pf parts and am even better electrically as I am a gearhead and an electrician by trade (though as an industrial troubleshooter/technician I have to do it all.) Unfortunately, I have never even had a can of fiberglass resin in my hand. I am clueless about that type of stuff. Rotting transoms, floors and stringers make me nervous. As an information junkie, I realized I was narrowing it down, as I was doing more and more research. I learned how to check the floors and tap on the transom etc.
Boom !! Another Nineteen appeared on CL. I recognized it. It was the boat I thought was so cool from the start. I then focused my attention on that craft as far as getting information on it. I went to Aristocraft's website, I found this forum and bunches of posts by Jim (Ziggy) and I was sold !!! I am 100% satisfied that the Aristocraft Nineteen is THE boat for me.
It is so cool that Aristocraft still has many parts and options available. I have seen the posts here as well from the owner. Seems like such a great guy !! I can't say enough about Ziggy. He is not only the best spokesperson on the planet for Aristocraft, but he is just an awesome resource for pleasure boating in general. He is so helpful to all. Great guy !!! I am so excited. I am only 100 miles from Atlanta, so I will find my boat. Although sold nationally, there is a larger concentration of them in this area. Looking for red, but it doesn't have to be. I hope this won't be my only post on the Aristocraft forum.

Bryant
 

ziggy

Admiral
Joined
Jun 30, 2004
Messages
7,473
I hope this won't be my only post on the Aristocraft forum.
I hope not too Bryant. sounds like ya've put a lot of thought into what you want and imho ya've come to a pretty good conclusion.

you did see the post right below yours. the one from capt. susie where she's thinking hard about selling her family's nineteen. while not a red one, it is a real pretty blue one. maybe ya can pm here via iboats and see if she's really made her decision to sell.

It is so cool that Aristocraft still has many parts and options available
cool is the right word for sure. boats that are 40+ years old and ya can get parts from the oem. wow, what service from AristoCraft. i just got me a new blower from Bill just yesterday. it was great doing biz with him. i talked with him on the phone and ask what i needed and said, sure we got one of them for ya. he told me to send him a check and he'd put the blower in the mail. said they'd probably cross paths in the mail. i think they did, it's been maybe three or 4 days since i sent the check and i got the blower.... kinda like doing biz with a hand shake. AristCraft is really a great oem with a real family history behind them.

hope ya find your Ninteen. imho, the only ones to be wary of will be if it has an omc drive. try not to get one of them as finding parts may be like pulling hens teeth since omc is long gone and done. and if it has the mercruiser 470 in it. while the 470 was the largest engine they put in them (170hp), that particular engine has know issues that fail about it. google it or search iboats. there's much to know about the 470 prior to getting one, imho.

watch for waterlogged foam too if ya can. i don't have a good way for ya to check that either other than weight. maybe how it sits in the water static. or how it comes on plane. which with two onboard and a 165hp i6 is pretty darn short order w/o to much bow rise. other than that. the deck is all glass and there's no stringers. (the ski locker/ice cooler up ft is the stringers). i still havn't decided it theres a panel of wood right where the drive mounts to the boat or not. i think maybe so. but that wood is not full width of the boat i don't think. so the transom is mostly glass too. lots of pluses for a AristoCraft boat....


good luck man. thanks for the nice compliments too. i've had the nice treatment from many folks here on iboats. these are a great bunch of folks that just wanna talk boats and help each other out...just because we love boats.....

have a great day
 

Bryant0086

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Joined
Jul 14, 2016
Messages
8
I hope not too Bryant. sounds like ya've put a lot of thought into what you want and imho ya've come to a pretty good conclusion.

you did see the post right below yours. the one from capt. susie where she's thinking hard about selling her family's nineteen. while not a red one, it is a real pretty blue one. maybe ya can pm here via iboats and see if she's really made her decision to sell.

good luck man. thanks for the nice compliments too. i've had the nice treatment from many folks here on iboats. these are a great bunch of folks that just wanna talk boats and help each other out...just because we love boats.....

have a great day

I have been reading this forum and saw her post. Unfortunately, I think she is in NJ. That would be 900 miles or so for me, one way. That is just not feasible. The good news is that I am about 100 miles from Atlanta. I am also within an hour's drive of four lakes that range between 300 and 880 miles of shoreline. There are boats everywhere in "my neck of the woods." While I certainly can't expect one particular model of a forty year old boat to jump in my lap, I think I am in a prime place to find one. I am scouring all online resources I can find. My goal is to be ready to be on the water next year.

Bryant
 

ziggy

Admiral
Joined
Jun 30, 2004
Messages
7,473
That would be 900 miles or so for me, one way. That is just not feasible.
if she really sells. maybe she'd meet ya somewhere half way. a one owner nineteen is likely hard to find (think i'm third owner of mine and second owner owned it most of its life) and it may be worth the trip. sounds like capt. susie has had her boat cared for well....
fwiw. i drove about 550 miles to get mine. imho, it was worth it. lincoln, ne. to rapid city sd. i did my trip by myself. maybe ya could get two drivers. maybe that'd help. i agree 900 miles is a long way though..... but nice Nineteens seem fewer and further in between these days.
The good news is that I am about 100 miles from Atlanta.
that is good news. right down there next to alpharetta where Aristocraft originates at. surely if there's some Nineteens around, that'd be the place. have ya called up Claude, Bill or Scott (AristoCraft) (inventor, son, grandson), maybe he knows where one is at...
 

Scott Danforth

Grumpy Vintage Moderator still playing with boats
Staff member
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Jul 23, 2011
Messages
47,297
The Nineteen is a great looking boat.

Regarding fiberglass, if Frisco Jay can buy a boat, end up repairing it ant then write the definitive guide to fibeglass repair from knowledge gained on this site (in the stickies), you can do it, and we all will help

Regarding distance. I bought my SeaRay 3 states away because it was a great deal. Don't be afraid to burn a tank of gas or 3 for your dream.

Good luck on your search, welcome to the site, and happy boating
 

redneck joe

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Mar 18, 2009
Messages
10,200
hey Bryant I'm in middle TN and drive around a lot. I'm in the STL area this week, Little Rock next, Springfield MO over the weekend. Expand you search you never know and I can look and tow. I also drive to AL, MS and the rest about in your area.

Only thing I see form your post is make sure you use marine parts where you need to use marine parts.

Welcome to the forum.
 
Last edited:

retrovoice

Cadet
Joined
Aug 1, 2013
Messages
6
Bryant, I noticed a Nineteen in Huntsville, on Whitesburg Drive. They just put a for sale sign on it this week. If you're still looking for one, and Huntsville is an option, I can try to get more information.
 

Bryant0086

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Joined
Jul 14, 2016
Messages
8
if she really sells. maybe she'd meet ya somewhere half way. a one owner nineteen is likely hard to find (think i'm third owner of mine and second owner owned it most of its life) and it may be worth the trip. sounds like capt. susie has had her boat cared for well....
fwiw. i drove about 550 miles to get mine. imho, it was worth it. lincoln, ne. to rapid city sd. i did my trip by myself. maybe ya could get two drivers. maybe that'd help. i agree 900 miles is a long way though..... but nice Nineteens seem fewer and further in between these days. that is good news. right down there next to alpharetta where Aristocraft originates at. surely if there's some Nineteens around, that'd be the place. have ya called up Claude, Bill or Scott (AristoCraft) (inventor, son, grandson), maybe he knows where one is at...

I will have to go on hold for a search for a couple of weeks (well not hold but limit it to semi-local.) I have to work this week, then I am taking the family on vacation to Florida for a week. Wish I had a nineteen to take with me....ha ha ha.
I did see some pix of her boat from an older post. It looks great. Would definitely be hard to find one that clean and well maintained. I haven't contacted the guys at Aristocraft just yet, but I will.

Bryant
 

Bryant0086

Cadet
Joined
Jul 14, 2016
Messages
8
The Nineteen is a great looking boat.

Regarding fiberglass, if Frisco Jay can buy a boat, end up repairing it ant then write the definitive guide to fibeglass repair from knowledge gained on this site (in the stickies), you can do it, and we all will help

Regarding distance. I bought my SeaRay 3 states away because it was a great deal. Don't be afraid to burn a tank of gas or 3 for your dream.

Good luck on your search, welcome to the site, and happy boating


Ha ha ha..... I have faith that if I NEEDED to do some minor fiberglass repair, I could do it. It is just that it would be more outside of my comfort level as opposed to electrical/mechanical/hydraulic/pneumatic (which I do daily as an industrial technician.) I have done some sheetrock repair and hated every second of it. That is probably as close as I have come to fiberglass repair.

Bryant
 

Bryant0086

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Joined
Jul 14, 2016
Messages
8
hey Bryant I'm in middle TN and drive around a lot. I'm in the STL area this week, Little Rock next, Springfield MO over the weekend. Expand you search you never know and I can look and tow. I also drive to AL, MS and the rest about in your area.

Only thing I see form your post is make sure you use marine parts where you need to use marine parts.

Welcome to the forum.


Thanks. I will keep you in mind.
I did read where marine gaskets, brass freeze plugs etc. need to be used. Before I do any parts replacements, I will certainly do my homework as well as have a Mercruiser manual in hand.

Bryant
 

Bryant0086

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Joined
Jul 14, 2016
Messages
8
Bryant, I noticed a Nineteen in Huntsville, on Whitesburg Drive. They just put a for sale sign on it this week. If you're still looking for one, and Huntsville is an option, I can try to get more information.


That is pretty awesome !! Unfortunately, as I stated to Ziggy, my hands are tied for a couple of weeks. I have camping reservations in Florida the first week in August. Huntsville is only about four hours from me,
You probably won't believe this, but when you made the post I was in Cullman Al. I just got home late Sat night. I was camping at Smith Lake Park along with visiting relatives. Hate I didn't check the board, though I was rather busy..... mostly taking the kids swimming and fishing etc. As you can tell we like camping out. I would certainly like info on the boat, but the truth is, I hate to put you out of your way, as well as myself getting excited over a Nineteen, but there will be no way for me to do anything about it for a couple of weeks.

Bryant
 

redneck joe

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Mar 18, 2009
Messages
10,200
i'm in Ft Smith tonight, then Little rock tomorrow and memphis thursday eve / fri wouldn't have too much time other than a drive by to make sure it is not completely rotten.

Home for a week then B'ham and Montgomery. I've got a retired boating friend I can have look at the one in Huntsville if he is not at the gulf in his new boat. Or maybe my guy in my Madison shop but he's not a boater.


This is?

https://nashville.craigslist.org/boa/5649038491.html
 

Bryant0086

Cadet
Joined
Jul 14, 2016
Messages
8
i'm in Ft Smith tonight, then Little rock tomorrow and memphis thursday eve / fri wouldn't have too much time other than a drive by to make sure it is not completely rotten.

Home for a week then B'ham and Montgomery. I've got a retired boating friend I can have look at the one in Huntsville if he is not at the gulf in his new boat. Or maybe my guy in my Madison shop but he's not a boater.


This is?

https://nashville.craigslist.org/boa/5649038491.html


I did see that listing. It looks decent, but I am going to hold off on it. Being in the "mecca" as it were of where the highest percentage of Aristocraft boats should be, I want to get a "feel" of what is out there. It was only recently I decided that the Nineteen is THE boat for me, so I want to see how often they pop up. I am not going to wait forever, mind you. If a red one with a 165 in pristine shape pops up, it is mine...... but my goal isn't to be on the water this year, but spring or summer next year. I wish I had a Nineteen in the yard right now mind you, but I need to feel out the supply before I settle on one that isn't what I want. That one in Nashville has the four cylinder. I really prefer the 165 I6. Red is a preference, but power is a higher one. I don't need to go 60 mph on the water, but I have a family of four. My kids weight right now probably equals one adult, but they won't stay that way for long. I really need the horsepower and given the issues with the 470, I prefer the 165.

Bryant
 

redneck joe

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Mar 18, 2009
Messages
10,200
I've been in a couple boats with the I6 and kinda rough imo. I'll be cruising Thursday Nashville Thurs or Fri on the way home if you want me to stop for a looksee. Pm me a link.
 

Bryant0086

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Joined
Jul 14, 2016
Messages
8
Bryant, I noticed a Nineteen in Huntsville, on Whitesburg Drive. They just put a for sale sign on it this week. If you're still looking for one, and Huntsville is an option, I can try to get more information.
Would it be this one ? This popped up on CL. 00r0r_1q1TX5mEyt2_600x450.jpg
 

hadaveha

Petty Officer 1st Class
Joined
Mar 17, 2009
Messages
389
im not sure if u are still looking but theres a place in pellcity the does seat work on boats he has a cpl of them one blue top one red hes been trying to sale
 
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