Thanks. With these DD ski boats, especially Nautiques and Mastercrafts, the value of the hull is in the $4 - $5K range most of the time. If you ever see one running for less than $4K it's usually a pretty good deal. Anything older than 1993ish, depending on manufacturer, is going to need a complete stringer and floor job, usually. There are the rare few exceptions.
One of my favorite iBoat threads is a rebuild of a Ski Brendella. Unfortunately the thread is kind of useless now due to the Photobucket issue.
To find a cheap DD tournament ski boat, you'll need to shop craigslist and be willing to drive a few hundred miles if/when the right opportunity presents itself. There's a few threads on the Mastercraft board, on correctcraftfans.com, planet nautique, etc. where everyone posts craigslist finds. I've seen some good candidates roll through periodically.
My uncle has a 1989 Bayliner that we skied behind for years and it's been a great family boat too. It just depends on what all you want to do with it. My boat is not great for cruising around the lake when it gets windy and/or choppy. But if you want to slay some glass...it's the right tool for that job.
