Re: Possible 1st Boat - Looking for opinions
The upholstry is pretty bad. It looks moldy, dirty and seams are ripped, which is from rotted stitching. Upholstry gets that way from sitting exposed to sun and rain. That along with the broken ski locker door (listed in the ad) is a real warning sign that the floor and possably stringers and transom are probably in early or advance stages of rot.
Bring a cordless drill (smaller the better) and a 1/4" drill bit with masking tape wrapped around it about an inch from the tip as a depth marker. Drill into the inside of the transom as low as you can and inspect the wood shavings. If wet and dark, I would pass on the boat because that is advanced stages of rot. Do the same in the ski locker, drill into the stringers on each side, both low and high.
If the dealer has a problem with you drilling holes, then have a screw driver and an awl or ice pick as backup. Look for screws on the outside of the transom you can remove as a mini inspection port. Look for water leaking out, stick the awl in the screw hole and see how soft the wood is. Look for rust or tannin stains around the outboard mounting bolts. Look for sealer or the lack of sealer around the outboard mounting bolts. Probe the transom from the inside with the awl and look for soft wood.
Also pull up the carpet where possable and check the floor. Is it glass covered or bare wood? Does it show water damage? Are the seats solid or do the bases rock?
BTW, upholstry is expensive. If you can do it yourself, then it is much cheaper, but you will still be paying $8 and up for marine grade vinyl, and its heavy so shipping is costly.
Another thing is the gear case has a lot of paint scratched/worn off. Looks odd to me, never saw one like that before. But then again I boat in salt water and don't usually run the gear case into the ground or other objects. My skeg shows wear, but not the gear case.
Seeing as this is a dealer, be sure to take it out for a test drive!!!
Don't let the excitement of getting a boat trick you into buying a project boat if you don't want a project.
I would keep looking for a boat that was garage kept. That one does not look garage kept.