Damaged aluminum boat - worth fixing??

[andrea819]

We recently purchased a used Princecraft 162 pro for $5000. Last weekend, my boyfriend got into a car accident on his way home from a fishing trip, and the boat sustained some damage. Unfortunately, we had not insured the boat...we weren't sure if it was worth it for the price of the boat...well apparently it would have been!

Anyways, here are some photos (copy and paste into your browser, sorry the hyperlink feature wasn't working).

http://s1373.photobucket.com/user/andrea8190/library/​

The damage is on one side of the hull and most on the upper half. There a larger dent near the front, which I find the most worrying. There is also a scratch near the middle, and the entire rim of that side is wavy. Is this boat worth saving? The trailer is damaged but saveable - probably $500 of work to be done on it. The motor, a 50 HP evinrude, is in pretty good shape, just a few wires that would need to be changed. Is it worth putting money into this hull, or would it be wiser to just find a new boat?

 

[GT1000000]

Personally and in my opinion, I would attempt a repair...then again I do collision work for a living and might be able to get it looking pretty good...
Depending on your boyfriend's skill level at learning new things, it might be repairable...
The first thing that would need to be done is remove as much as possible, any structure, including the rub rail and anything inside that would cause resistance to trying to straighten out the hull...
Then using a combination of come-alongs, rubber mallets, wood, some other odds and ends tools and some kind of anchor [ like a tree, or other such solid object with which to securely hold the hull against the force of pulling on the damaged area]...the hull could be secured, then using the above mentioned, start applying pulling pressure on the inside of the dent and some friendly persuasion with a rubber mallet...
Scratches and minor dents we'll deal with as needed...
It may never look perfect again, but it would be completely serviceable for many years if done up right...
Let us know what you want to do and post lots of pictures of all the damage from all possible vantage points, both before and after removal of parts...
I will do my best to walk you through it...
Best of luck,
GT1M

 

[lckstckn2smknbrls]

Was the accident your BF fault? Are you sure the boat is not covered by you auto insurance policy when being towed or your home owners policy?