I just became a member and wanted to share my new project (a 1976 Aristocraft 19' 165 with the hardtop).
Five years ago I bought a old boat (1989 Sunbird i/o 4.3 V6) and spend as much time on the lake (Lake Lanier, GA) as possible? I have 2 boys, wife and we love boating. But at the start of the summer (2009) my brother in-law (iboat name = ramblingreck) bought a 1977 Aristocraft 19 with a hardtop.
I immediately fell for the style of the boat and started looking for one. In November 09 I found one in Michigan, a 1976 AristoCraft 19. I called the owner and he sold the boat to me for $800. He sent pictures and he told me that the boat ran great, everything worked even the lights on the gauges, gel coat on the hull still shines great but it could use some TLC (new carpet, new vinyl, and some elbow grease). Fortunately a friend of a friend was driving down to Atlanta for Christmas from MI and he charged me $350 to tow it down. I received the boat a couple of days before Christmas, I washed it, moved it into the garage and now I have started to play. What I plan on first is carpet, vinyl, and shinning up the trim work (not fun, I have tried a number of different products and the aluminum trim looks a lot better but it?s not perfect). I?ve removed the kicker and fortunately whoever installed it did a nice job because they used some very thick sheets of rubber sandwiched between the mounting plates and outside of the wholes the fiberglass looks great. The previous owners also mounted different things on the transom and I plan on filling the holes and matching the color as close as possible. Also I hope to find a OEM ladder and reinstall it.
Oh well I think with new carpet, vinyl, rub rail, and detailing, it will be a nice looking boat.
Five years ago I bought a old boat (1989 Sunbird i/o 4.3 V6) and spend as much time on the lake (Lake Lanier, GA) as possible? I have 2 boys, wife and we love boating. But at the start of the summer (2009) my brother in-law (iboat name = ramblingreck) bought a 1977 Aristocraft 19 with a hardtop.
I immediately fell for the style of the boat and started looking for one. In November 09 I found one in Michigan, a 1976 AristoCraft 19. I called the owner and he sold the boat to me for $800. He sent pictures and he told me that the boat ran great, everything worked even the lights on the gauges, gel coat on the hull still shines great but it could use some TLC (new carpet, new vinyl, and some elbow grease). Fortunately a friend of a friend was driving down to Atlanta for Christmas from MI and he charged me $350 to tow it down. I received the boat a couple of days before Christmas, I washed it, moved it into the garage and now I have started to play. What I plan on first is carpet, vinyl, and shinning up the trim work (not fun, I have tried a number of different products and the aluminum trim looks a lot better but it?s not perfect). I?ve removed the kicker and fortunately whoever installed it did a nice job because they used some very thick sheets of rubber sandwiched between the mounting plates and outside of the wholes the fiberglass looks great. The previous owners also mounted different things on the transom and I plan on filling the holes and matching the color as close as possible. Also I hope to find a OEM ladder and reinstall it.
Oh well I think with new carpet, vinyl, rub rail, and detailing, it will be a nice looking boat.