About a month ago I decided I wanted a boat. I shopped around for about two weeks and learned what I could about them. I found one on e bay that looked pretty good. A 76 Thundercraft with a 71 Merc 650. Although it is an older boat and motor, it seemed to be well taken care of. I went ahead and bid and bought it for about $900. Of course, I knew I would have to pay someone to haul it out here to Montana but didnt expect it would cost $1700. That was the first nightmare. These boat brokers are like used car salesmen. This guy I used sells his service on e bay and claims he runs his own equipment, hes not a broker, has hydraulic lift trailers, and the list goes on... Turns out this guy is just another boat broker who takes a deposit and sets me up with the actual "hauler" who doesnt work for him at all.. Im sure this guy doesnt even own a truck and trailer.. So we settle on a price and I contemplate backing out of the whole deal because of the cost., but since Im a man of my word I went through with it. Well, the boat got here today, supposed to be hauled on a hydraulic lift trailer, yeah right! It took both of us three hours to jury rig ramps and winch it off the trailer it was on. SO finally we get it off, now its time to look at it more closely. I knew that there may be a problem with wood rot on a boat that age so I checked the floor, seems fairly solid, it does give a little in some spots but doesnt crack or give too much, no big deal.. I looked under the starboard seats and found that the seat support was completely rotted away, thats not too hard to fix I guess, After all, the boat was sold AS IS..Overall, I guess the boat looks ok, cushions arent torn but I havent tried starting the motor yet. It may turn out to be a project boat, it was dark when I got it so Ill have a better look at it in the morning... I have learned much in the last month, I expect Ill make a more informed decision next time.. Sorry for the long winded post but I just needed to vent, Live and learn..
