Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

[KFS]

Deleted. (Sorry. Is there a way to do that totally?)

---

New possibility (waiting for response and hoping it's not "Sorry it's sold." Why do people not remove their CL ads after sale? Grrrr ...)

http://grandrapids.craigslist.org/boa/3120110475.html

I'm not planning to run off willy nilly to look at every boat in all 48 contiguous states but we are trying to be realistic that the perfect boat is unlikely to just land in inland NE Ohio within 100 miles of our very rural location.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

Maybe you can get the mechanic at the rack storage place to give you an inspection. Maybe he has a trailer to sell, too.

Also, get the guy to fax/email a copy of the title to see if it's a scam. That way you can see if he owns it, that's he's the first owner, etc.

I can't speak to the price of that boat, but a well maintained one-owner boat 10 years old is the start of a great deal. Might be worth paying extra.

Note that he has learned that the style of boat is not very practical. It's not unusual for people to start with that type of boat and replace it with a better style. So a lot depends on your use; personally I wouldn't get that type boat. But you may have already gone through that process.

Travel? Ohio to New Jersey? I'd travel to buy one but not to look at it. Get someone on the ground in NJ to do your tire kicking. If you are not familiar with that type of boat, they are a dime a dozen where you are so you can compare that aspect (size, function, storage requirements, etc.) with samples in your home20.

 

[louiefl]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

If it was in rack storage, why would the bottom need painting. Sounds like it might have spent a bit of time in a slip as well. I'd check for all the usual issues with waterlogged foam, rotting transom / stringers, bellows. Looks really clean. This is probably one of those situations where it is worth hiring an independent (local) surveyor to check it out to save you the time and expense of coming from Ohio.

 

[KFS]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

Thanks for the replies! I already deleted the link (and apologize) because I got ahead of myself and failed to note "no trailer."

We are currently awaiting a reply on this one http://grandrapids.craigslist.org/boa/3120110475.html

Not sure about that wakeboard tower. We are tubers (pulling a Big Mabel with teens/adults).

What is the opinion on wake towers? Worth it or needless flash?

Thanks!

 

[BlkY2k]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

From what I`ve read on here you dont want to pull a tube from the tower anyways. It puts the center of gravity to high on the boat. Tow tubes from the hook on the transom thats whats its there for.

 

[RotaryRacer]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

Are you specifically looking for a Four Winns or just any 18' boat?

The one in the GR craigslist looks nice and all but not a great bargin. In my opinion if don't want or "need" the tower, I would find a boat without one.

 

[KFS]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

From what I`ve read on here you dont want to pull a tube from the tower anyways. It puts the center of gravity to high on the boat. Tow tubes from the hook on the transom thats whats its there for.

And this is why I come here! Thank you!
t

 

[KFS]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

Are you specifically looking for a Four Winns or just any 18' boat?

The one in the GR craigslist looks nice and all but not a great bargin. In my opinion if don't want or "need" the tower, I would find a boat without one.

We are looking for an 18-19' Bow Rider with at least a 4.3. Inboard or I/O. (Husband is about done dealing with fuel mix on outboard). I am leaning towards the Four Winns because so far it's the feel/look I like and my (limited) research says it's a good quality. We are not wedded to Four Winns, however, and would consider anything clean, well maintained and in great condition. Friend has a Chaparral that I think is to die for but he maintains it so impeccably that he could make a paper mache boat look good.

 

[RotaryRacer]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

For the money, this looks like a better deal than the 18 footer:

http://grandrapids.craigslist.org/boa/3132709853.html

Bigger boat, bigger motor.

 

[RotaryRacer]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

More options:

http://lansing.craigslist.org/boa/3054514752.html

http://limaohio.craigslist.org/boa/3099038718.html

 

[BonairII]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

I wouldn't pull the trigger on ANY used boat (in those price ranges) without having a marine survey done.

 

[MarkSee]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

We are looking for an 18-19' Bow Rider with at least a 4.3.

You have half the information by saying a 4.3
There are at least 3 common variations using that engine size depending on the year and maybe even different between Merc and Volvo as it could be a:
2 barrel carb
4 barrel carb
Merc mpi

Mpi should be 220 hp and I believe the 2 barrel 175 hp so that may make quite a difference in what you want to do.

I'm finding that some folks selling their boats with the non-mpi engine are not bringing the fact up that they have lower hp engines to potential buyers only disclosing that information when asked.

Mark

 

[KFS]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

More options:

http://lansing.craigslist.org/boa/3054514752.html

http://limaohio.craigslist.org/boa/3099038718.html

Is it wrong to say "I love you!" (in a purely platonic way?) Thank you!!!

I have a Google Alert set up but somehow it did not find these. I see you are a Four Winns owner - so is it safe to say I'm on the right track with one?

 

[KFS]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

You have half the information by saying a 4.3
There are at least 3 variations using that engine depending on if it's a:
2 barrel carb
4 barrel carb
mpi

Mpi should be 220 hp and I believe the 2 barrel 160 hp so that may make quite a difference in what you want to do.

I'm finding that some folks selling their boats with the non-mpi engine are not bringing the fact up that they have lower hp engines to potential buyers only disclosing that information when asked.

Mark

Thanks Mark! I am a poor typist on a tiny mobile screen (and what I know about motors you could stuff in an olive so ...)

From husband/boat friend
Would like 4.3 190 minimum. (winging it here).
Have heard Mercruiser is the more affordable to repair and maintain but FW seem to commonly feature Volvo engines? (Have a call into local marina that maintains for us to see what they think. We love the look/style of FW but don't want to get something that no one in our region works on kwim?)

 

[KFS]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

I wouldn't pull the trigger on ANY used boat (in those price ranges) without having a marine survey done.

That's great advice - and my main concern with buying an out of our (comfort) region boat. We have no connections there. Do you just look for the best rated local surveyor (is that what they are called?) and go from there?

Sorry for all the NOOB questions.

Our last boat purchase was a sort of comical "hey it's a blue boat! Let's buy a blue boat!" We ended up buying the Edsel of the boating world ('88 Bayliner Capri with an 85 hp Force) and funny enough, we love the darned thing! Granted we also bought it for the equivalent of pocket lint and what our daughter had handy in her "Hello Kitty" purse so our risk ratio was much smaller.

 

[RotaryRacer]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

I see you are a Four Winns owner - so is it safe to say I'm on the right track with one?

Four Winns makes a really good boat. Are they the "best", NO. Are they a really well designed boat that offers great value, YES!

I'm really happy with my 2004. I very specifically shopped for a boat with an outboard. It is a great boat.

 

[MarkSee]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

That would be the minimum you would want and should be the 4 barrel.
Personally, I'm spoiled as both my boats are mpi and I can not seeing going back to a carb boat.

If you are planning on having a shop do your maintenance, then having a boat power plant that the shop services is a requirement.

Some say Volvo are easier to maintain for DIY but I would need to leave that to folks that have used/worked on both.
Just no OMC since they are out of busniness.

As a general rule, any well cared for/maintained boat of most any brand is "better" than an ignored boat of a brand name.

Mark

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

That's great advice - and my main concern with buying an out of our (comfort) region boat. We have no connections there. Do you just look for the best rated local surveyor (is that what they are called?) and go from there?

"Survey" is a relative term; you would not typically hire a certified marine surveyor to look over a 15 year old 18' bowrider. As I suggested initially, you just need to hire a local marine mechanic to look over the boat for you (and trailer). Just be specific about what he is to check and how much it will cost; he's looking for serious problems or flags in hull condition and motor/drive performance, not cosmetics or perfection.

He (and you) should know, however, that a boat in bad cosmetic condition is more likely to have serious problems, as it shows a lack of either maintenance or durability. This is especially true for the type of boat you want; they simply do not hold up unless they are babied, unlike other types of boats. So his comments in that regard will be useful, too.

Of course, you won't really know how good the guy you hire is. Just part of the risk.

Keep in mind, too, that the good deals are gone in a couple days, and a seller doesn't have to bother with all the extra work you may want him to do: sending you docs, letting someone inspect, etc. Buying your type of boat from a distance, because it is riskier, is a whole lot harder than some boats that are bought sight unseen.

 

[jkust]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

You have half the information by saying a 4.3
There are at least 3 common variations using that engine size depending on the year and maybe even different between Merc and Volvo as it could be a:
2 barrel carb
4 barrel carb
Merc mpi

Mpi should be 220 hp and I believe the 2 barrel 175 hp so that may make quite a difference in what you want to do.

I'm finding that some folks selling their boats with the non-mpi engine are not bringing the fact up that they have lower hp engines to potential buyers only disclosing that information when asked.

Mark

They haven't offered a 4bbl carb since a few years prior to 1999 right around the time when the heads went Vortec (1996) and the hp was rated at the crank not the prop at 190hp. Earlier engines HP were rated higher than had they been prop rated not crank. MPI engines were preceded by EFI engines and MPI was starting in 2001 for 2002 model years. MPI is 220hp for mercruiser and 225 for Volvo. Nobody would need to denote whether they have MPI, EFI or carb if they included a picture since each looks so different and or depending on the year of the engine. They'd be stupid not to denote that they had MPI because it is such a big upgrade but generally I expect it has a carb if it doesn't say. Small boats didn't have MPI nearly as often as larger cruisers as the option was tremendously expensive compared to the 25k price tag for a little boat vs the much more expensive, larger cruisers. My point is the info above is not complete and would be confusing if you were to use it for a 1999 or newer boat as you wouldn't see a 175 hp engine or a 4bbl carb. Now days carbs have been outlawed by the EPA in new boats when the stock of carbed engines runs out.

 

[MarkSee]

Re: Can someone smart take a look at this ad? I'm tempted to make the road trip

Nobody would need to denote whether they have MPI, EFI or carb if they included a picture since each looks so different and or depending on the year of the engine. My point is the info above is not complete and

Don't think I ever stated what I was indicating was complete in any way, shape or form hence why I used the "at least 3 common variations" and even indicated a difference between Merc and Volvo.

You think a newbie boater has the knowledge to look at a picture and know what hp it has or the induction system?
Maybe in your part of the woods, but everyone that has come to look at my Maxum had no clue of the differences in hp ratings of a "4.3 v6"; so I educated them.
So using these real life experiences, I offered to the OP to not just think about cubic inches alone.

Using this information, and that the OP indicates "at least a 4.3" (which maybe means a v8 which also has various hp ratings), OP might have a little more info while searching.

Mark