Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

[VMaxhp]

I'm a total noob at boating. Ad says 248 hours on the boat. It's inland so unlikely near ocean. Owner is asking $6500 with wakeboard tower, speakers, subwoofers, newer radio with ipod hookup. Opinions of this boat?

Thanks much!
Rick

 

[cyclops2]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

17 years young.
Do any of the exposed metal parts including the painted ones.....Have whitish little spots on the part? Should look like glued on salt crystals.
Prop ,prop housing, Metal parts anywhere, Anything in the engine compartment or stuff nearby ?

Creampuff , average, beat but a good project boat ?

Most important can you test run the boat ?

Rich

 

[VMaxhp]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

Haven't seen the boat yet, it's about 400 miles from me. I do have friends / business partners in the area of the boat who can check it out. I'll pay to have the boat mechanically inspected before purchase. Any known issues with that year, make, model? IF the boat is in average to good condition and no salt water, does the price seem fair?

Thanks!

17 years young.
Do any of the exposed metal parts including the painted ones.....Have whitish little spots on the part? Should look like glued on salt crystals.
Prop ,prop housing, Metal parts anywhere, Anything in the engine compartment or stuff nearby ?

Creampuff , average, beat but a good project boat ?

Most important can you test run the boat ?

Rich

 

[ziggy]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

17 years young.

yep, that's 14.5 hrs a year. don't get out to much i guess. fwiw, leaving a boat unused can be as hard or harder on a boat than using it and maintaining it. speakin of which. i'd be more interested in what kinda maint. (if any) has been performed on it. since it wasn't used much. it may not of been maintained much too.

as for the wake tower, is that what you want. if it were me, i don't want one so it wouldn't be of much value, for me.
and the stereo system. again, big deal. stereo systems are a dime a dozen. when i got my boat, it had a stero in it. not what i wanted. so i put what i wanted in replacement. will you have to do that to have it meet your needs too....

check it good for wood rot. ya get a boat w/ wood rot and you won't be using the wake tower, stereo or anything else about it till the rot is fixed. to me, being sure ya don't got wood rot is above all else, if ya wanna go boating as opposed to working on your boat.

if ya can sea trial it. do so. it's most important to have a sea trail if at all possible. things can work proper in the driveway and fail when under load on the water.

 

[VMaxhp]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

Thanks. Good advice. The boat is in a VERY dry climate so I'm hoping no wood rot and I'll have that checked out. Here's the seller's description of the boat:

I'm selling my 1995 19.5' Celebrity Bowrider. Has a mercruiser 5.0 V8 I/O motor on it. Alpha 1 outdrive. Boat has had spring tune up and is ready to run. Holds 6-8 people comfortably. recently installed brand new flooring and
carpet last winter. serviced every year.

If the ad say serviced every year, the owner should have records of such.

yep, that's 14.5 hrs a year. don't get out to much i guess. fwiw, leaving a boat unused can be as hard or harder on a boat than using it and maintaining it. speakin of which. i'd be more interested in what kinda maint. (if any) has been performed on it. since it wasn't used much. it may not of been maintained much too.

as for the wake tower, is that what you want. if it were me, i don't want one so it wouldn't be of much value, for me.
and the stereo system. again, big deal. stereo systems are a dime a dozen. when i got my boat, it had a stero in it. not what i wanted. so i put what i wanted in replacement. will you have to do that to have it meet your needs too....

check it good for wood rot. ya get a boat w/ wood rot and you won't be using the wake tower, stereo or anything else about it till the rot is fixed. to me, being sure ya don't got wood rot is above all else, if ya wanna go boating as opposed to working on your boat.

if ya can sea trial it. do so. it's most important to have a sea trail if at all possible. things can work proper in the driveway and fail when under load on the water.

 

[Philster]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

Well, well, well... the floors were replaced, because they were rotten... and now you have to suspect that what was holding up the floor is rotting down there... which includes stringers, bulkheads, transom... etc.

New floors = ominous sign

 

[ziggy]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

and now you have to suspect that what was holding up the floor is rotting down there... which includes stringers, bulkheads, transom... etc.

New floors = ominous sign

agreed, be careful with that one.

fwiw. i inherited my dad's boat. he was a teacher, not a mechanic. his sole got soft in his boat (the one i grew up skiing behind). he just put a new sole down (cheap with money and didn't understand boats). left the rotten one + the rotten stingers in place. had a real solid sole, but when it came down to it. the boat wasn't serviceable because of stringer and transom rot. you couldn't see that till some of the sole was sawed up to see...
the one indication that gave it away might have been the fact that the motor mount lag bolt holes were rotted and gone. no bolt would have held the lag bolt as there was nothing to screw into. other than air and rotted wood.
point is, there's folks out there that do this. maybe because they're cheap, or because they don't know better. either or. it will become your problem if ya buy it if something like this has occurred...

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

Rick where are you specifically in Colorado?

Think about your wants and needs are, do you have kids are you single etc. tell us about yourself, the boat your looking at is pretty specific for a boat that is not going to have a long and happy life, its going to get the crap beat out of it but would make a pretty good first boat with some serious limitations, as well as possibly some serious issues structurally.

I think your crazy if you don't think we can find you something here in Colorado that we can go look at firsthand

 

[VMaxhp]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

No kids, 51 years old. Looking for something fun and fairly fast for occasional use. Skiing required, wakeboarding optional but a nice to have. I'm about 25 miles SE of Denver. The tow capacity on my vehicle is 3500 so that's a consideration in boat.

I don't mind traveling a bit to find the right boat. Say a 500 mile radius from Denver. I'd like to keep the boat under $10k.

Thanks for your insight!

Rick where are you specifically in Colorado?

Think about your wants and needs are, do you have kids are you single etc. tell us about yourself, the boat your looking at is pretty specific for a boat that is not going to have a long and happy life, its going to get the crap beat out of it but would make a pretty good first boat with some serious limitations, as well as possibly some serious issues structurally.

I think your crazy if you don't think we can find you something here in Colorado that we can go look at firsthand

 

[Philster]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

At 8500-10,000 dollars, a boat in good condition at the weight/size you want should be plentiful, and you should have no trouble avoiding rotting boats or deteriorating mechanicals.

You should be able to score one that requires very little reserve money for repairs, instead of going down to the 6500 dollar range which increases risk substantially.

Stay up near 9-10 grand and you'll find nice boats a lot easier and will get more value. That's an underused word in boating: Value. Most people just add up the pennies. 6500 dollar risky rig versus really nice 9,000 dollar rig? The 9,000 dollar rig might be cheaper to get on the water and return more happiness, believe it or not: score one for VALUE.

Keep looking and posting!

 

[Philster]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

Considering your tow limits, I've tried to keep the size within reason:

http://www.boattrader.com/listing/2005-Regal-1800-101655687

http://www.boattrader.com/listing/2002-Wellcraft-190-Excalibur-101655692 <--- good fit

http://www.boattrader.com/listing/2005-Glastron-Mx-175-100468630

http://www.boattrader.com/listing/2004-Glastron-Sx-175-101660285

Whether these boats matter to you, this demonstrates a step up to something so much nicer and within your budget, and are all from this millennium.

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

http://denver.craigslist.org/boa/2830424999.html

Check this out

 

[VMaxhp]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

Hey..we're both in Doug county.. and both ride scoots too. I'm in the Pinery. You?

http://denver.craigslist.org/boa/2830424999.html

Check this out

 

[VMaxhp]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

Thanks! I see I may need to bump my spend a bit and get closer to the 10k, or slightly above. I'd like to see an 18' Bowrider. My impression is the open bow area is a little cramped. But I could be wrong. I spotted a couple of Larsons. Reading some reviews however gave me an impression Larson looks nice, but not the best workmanship in manufacturing. Thoughts?

Considering your tow limits, I've tried to keep the size within reason:

http://www.boattrader.com/listing/2005-Regal-1800-101655687

http://www.boattrader.com/listing/2002-Wellcraft-190-Excalibur-101655692 <--- good fit

http://www.boattrader.com/listing/2005-Glastron-Mx-175-100468630

http://www.boattrader.com/listing/2004-Glastron-Sx-175-101660285

Whether these boats matter to you, this demonstrates a step up to something so much nicer and within your budget, and are all from this millennium.

 

[NYBo]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

Let's not automatically eliminate the Celebrity. "Flooring" may not mean the sole ("floor") itself; it could be vinyl or some other coating, with new removable carpet.

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

Hey..we're both in Doug county.. and both ride scoots too. I'm in the Pinery. You?

I'm in Castle Rock Near DCHS, that's why I asked, I can't see going to texas for a boat that can be had here pretty easily, you know?

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

Let's not automatically eliminate the Celebrity. "Flooring" may not mean the sole ("floor") itself; it could be vinyl or some other coating, with new removable carpet.

I agree NYBo the problem I have is driving 400 miles to find out it does have a rotten core...

I wished you had more truck, this is right next door and has been sitting closed up for almost a year now, its gorgeous..

http://denver.craigslist.org/boa/2824781817.html

 

[VMaxhp]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

I have friends and business partners in ABQ so I could have it checked superficially for a 6 pack

I agree NYBo the problem I have is driving 400 miles to find out it does have a rotten core...

I wished you had more truck, this is right next door and has been sitting closed up for almost a year now, its gorgeous..

http://denver.craigslist.org/boa/2824781817.html

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

To be honest I bought my first Boat in Arizona then hauled it back here so I understand the ideology, I still think we can find you something here though, judging by whats going on outside right now there's no hurry LOL

 

[Philster]

Re: Considering a 1995 Celebrity 195 Bowrider with Merc 5.0 and Alpha One

If my budget was 10 grand, my searches would be up to about 12 grand. Who pays full price on boats -- new or used?