Beware

[wmfdff67]

Just wanted to put my story out there so that other new boaters don't get burned as bad as I have. I recently purchased a 1987 Ranger Bass Boat 373v. It is a beautiful boat, and the 80 year old gentleman that sold it to me assured me that everything worked and the boat had no problems. My first mistake was not taking the boat out with the gentleman. My second mistake was not getting everything he said in writing. Today I took my boat into a shop to find out why it was taking on water among other things. Come to find out, the transom is pulling away from the boat itself is the way I understood it. In another words, it is going to cost more to fix the boat than what I paid for it. I just post this so that others can learn from my $3,600 mistake. Happy boating everyone!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[jbcurt00]

For New Members Needing help buying a boat. A Buyer's Checklist.

All of the Iboaters know that we frequently have new members checking in and asking about wether or not to purchase this that or the other boat. After speaking to a Mod (Thanks BobVT) I have decided to use a previous post to create a check list of things to check when purchasing a new boat...

forums.iboats.com

Would have been helpful, pre-purchase

 

[Chris1956]

In general, 20+ year old boats can start to have structural problems. It is not unusual.

Motors can have issues after less time than that.

People who do not want to work on boats should not buy older boats.

The good news is that there are lots of Utube videos on how to repair a rotted transom.

 

[briangcc]

My advice....make sure you and the shop are on the same page as to what work is being performed for $3600. Boats rot from bottom up, not top down, so more than likely your stringers and floor are garden mulch. To get to this point your foam is probably water logged.

Make sure that while they're in there doing surgery that they take of these other potential issues.

 

[hugh g]

Rule of thumb when buying a boat- insist on a sea trial. If the seller balks, walk away.

$3600. for a new transom is not imho a bad deal considering the cost of materials & labor these days.

 

[Starcraft5834]

back when i bought our 1987 Cuddy, (had it for 5 years and sold it in 2019), i had a local marina assess it. it was fine, we enjoyed it for 5 years, i upgraded to new toon. never take the word of a gentlemen.. some of them are just looking to get rid of their problem

 

[Captain Caveman]

I'll catch some heat for this, but it's also possible that at 80yrs old he just didn't notice it. My father at near-80 never notices all of the dents in his car fenders until someone points them out.

Everyone is right though - there is lots of great boat-buying info on this website for people to follow. Good luck.

 

[JimS123]

How does the old saying go? Age and treachery beats youth and wisdom every time.

 

[25thmustang]

That's a shame, but any older boat you purchase needs to be inspected for structural issues. If you can inspect, perfect. If you aren't comfortable, hire a surveyor. Did they explain how the transom is causing water to get in?