To Keep/Repair or Junk it? 1985 Bayliner Capri 1400

[GearAdd1ct]

Hey Friends, I just bought this 1985 Bayliner Capri 1400 for $1100. My first boat!

Some backstory: Did as much inspecting as i possibly could before pulling the trigger and it looked fine to a novice (first mistake ). It's got a SeaRay 100ELR 115hp outboard on it and needs some work. Hull is otherwise in perfect shape and its got a BITCHIN trailer.

Major Issue: when my buddy who's very into boating came over to check it out in the garage, he found a pretty substantial crack on the interior of the transom that runs about 2ft wide. I don't know how i didn't catch it! It doesn't penetrate the back fiberglass. also there are 2 cracks down the sides of the transom mount (in pictures). I'm fairly certain that this gorilla of a motor is the reason for cracking

Question: Is there a cost effective way to fix this and keep the boat or should i junk the hull, sell off the motor and trailer, and start again?

I appreciate all your input! Thanks a ton from this noob

 

[matt167]

The motor is roughly twice the hp that it should have. It was rated for either 50 or 75hp. However that is likely not why the transom failed.. That era Bayliner is known to rot. They were built with cheap materials and slammed out as fast as they could during the 80's boating boom

There is nothing cost effective about restoring a 14' bowrider unless that is your perfect boat, and even then, Bayliner makes a 15' Element at this point, and the Element floor plan makes better use of limited space than a straight up bowrider.. I think the Element 15 sells for around $20k, trailer and outboard included... Your 14' would need $5k+ in restoration as well as a smaller outboard

 

[GearAdd1ct]

The motor is roughly twice the hp that it should have. It was rated for either 50 or 75hp. However that is likely not why the transom failed.. That era Bayliner is known to rot. They were built with cheap materials and slammed out as fast as they could during the 80's boating boom

There is nothing cost effective about restoring a 14' bowrider unless that is your perfect boat, and even then, Bayliner makes a 15' Element at this point, and the Element floor plan makes better use of limited space than a straight up bowrider.. I think the Element 15 sells for around $20k, trailer and outboard included... Your 14' would need $5k+ in restoration as well as a smaller outboard

yeah man, thats what i was afraid of but completely expected. So not worth putting any more time in and move on? The end goal is definitely a 21-22' boat for the fam but starting with a smaller boat to get some experience and hopefully not too much TLC is what i was aiming for. Thanks for the info, Matt!

 

[matt167]

I bought a 14' boat because it's easier to tow long distance and cheaper to run and I can take it out far more than I could if it were larger. My use case was fairly specific. I actually have a 18' as well. If you think you might want something larger just buy larger.
If you are boating in fresh water, consider something aluminum.. Much cheaper and quicker to whip back into shape than a 'glass boat

My go-to little tin boat, I have about $8,200 in it now after re doing it all including new trailer and new outboard. That was a tin boat that was lake ready when I purchased it but rougher around the edges than I liked

 

[H20Rat]

Yeah, not even close to worth putting in the cash and countless hours to get that on the water safely. Honestly I have never seen/heard of a Searay outboard. The cowl looks somewhat like a merc, maybe... If so, at least you can sell that off and make your money back. If it is the common force/chrysler outboard that bayliner threw on everything, it isn't worth much.

 

[racerone]

Mercury built some " SEARAY " motors to package with some SEARAY boats.-----Correct , just a Mercury painted white !!

 

[Scott Danforth]

yeah man, thats what i was afraid of but completely expected. So not worth putting any more time in and move on? The end goal is definitely a 21-22' boat for the fam but starting with a smaller boat to get some experience and hopefully not too much TLC is what i was aiming for. Thanks for the info, Matt!

if your aim is for a boat with not too much TLC, you need to buy a boat that is between brand new and 5 years old.

not be looking at 37-38 year old bayliners with rotten transom/stringers/deck

the real reason the transom cracked it the wood on that boat started to rot out in about 1990 and was gone by 1995

 

[GearAdd1ct]

Yeah, not even close to worth putting in the cash and countless hours to get that on the water safely. Honestly I have never seen/heard of a Searay outboard. The cowl looks somewhat like a merc, maybe... If so, at least you can sell that off and make your money back. If it is the common force/chrysler outboard that bayliner threw on everything, it isn't worth much.

That's what i was thinking. Got an offer for $900 for just the trailer, so i think im gonna part out the motor, dump the hull, and sell the trailer. a loss but nothing egregious at this point.

 

[GearAdd1ct]

if your aim is for a boat with not too much TLC, you need to buy a boat that is between brand new and 5 years old.

not be looking at 37-38 year old bayliners with rotten transom/stringers/deck

the real reason the transom cracked it the wood on that boat started to rot out in about 1990 and was gone by 1995

my end goal is a nice 21-22' Yamaha for the whole fam to go on. Unfortunately, we dont have the space at the house and we live in southern California where freshwater fun is few and far between! justifying a payment and storage fees to use it a couple times a month at best isn't in the cards momentarily. someday in the near future maybe!

 

[GearAdd1ct]

Mercury built some " SEARAY " motors to package with some SEARAY boats.-----Correct , just a Mercury painted white !!

from what i can tell, you're totally right. looked up some parts at a marine parts place and Merc parts kept popping up with the model numbers and such. time for the great parting out! haha

 

[Scott Danforth]

my end goal is a nice 21-22' Yamaha for the whole fam to go on. Unfortunately, we dont have the space at the house and we live in southern California where freshwater fun is few and far between! justifying a payment and storage fees to use it a couple times a month at best isn't in the cards momentarily. someday in the near future maybe!

then maybe join a boat rental program

 

[racerone]

Cheaper to rent one.

 

[roscoe]

Don't part out that motor until you check it out.
It may be a perfectly good motor.

I would check it out, and if good, I'd keep it, at least for now.

Part out or junk the hull.

Possibly keep the trailer if it has proper paperwork, registration is up to date, and its in good shape.

Then go boat shopping again.

You can always sell the trailer and motor in the future.

 

[GearAdd1ct]

Don't part out that motor until you check it out.
It may be a perfectly good motor.

I would check it out, and if good, I'd keep it, at least for now.

Part out or junk the hull.

Possibly keep the trailer if it has proper paperwork, registration is up to date, and its in good shape.

Then go boat shopping again.

You can always sell the trailer and motor in the future.

from what i can tell, the starter solenoid is bad and when i go to start it by key, it doesnt engage the flywheel. and being that its a big honkin 115hp, ive tried to rope start and can barely crank out 2 spins consecutively! Worth rebuilding the starter if needed or no? taking it to Napa to test it today actually.

 

[matt167]

I would get a motor like that running. A 115 Merc can be worth your time to get your money back. An electric motor place should be able to rebuild it.

 

[Scott Danforth]

Most likely bad connection. Probably the starter to block ground