Boat Buying Grumpage
 

I've been seriously looking hard for something in the 19-21 foot range. Searched a lot of used-boat sites ,<including CL, HT, etc, eye-balled them in person etc...I just can't seem to pull the trigger.
Having confidence in a private-owner telling me "it runs great" to only learn that it had a "sleeping" problem that of course waited until I purchased it, to raise its ugly head. Or that "tic" that the former owner could never get a handle on and neglected to tell me about. OR the dealer who doesn't offer any kind of warranty as you hand him $15K for a 10 yr old boat....I know they're money-pits, I know they all break-down...I just can't seem to pull the trigger on things I've looked at.

In saying all of that, I recently visited some NEW boat dealerships...:shocked::shocked::hang:....had to go home and change my diaper. I could not believe the price tag on these things. 20 footers all well-over 30K.

Bassballer had a nice rig for sale but it wasn't really what I was looking for. I see pix of his new boat and think, wow....must have cost an arm and leg.

How do I get myself to pull the trigger????

I need to talk to Bob,,, maybe he can build me a 20 footer...:wall:

what if you only bought the motor new

same thing budget-wise?

Trying to convince the wife I need to sell mine,, and buy a bigger set of problem

When you find one that fits,,, go back a couple of times alone if possible , dig deep

Have the eng checked out by a qual mech

Watch a couple of sport fish vids

Pull trigger. :)

Good luck, Gup

I just sent her an edible arrangements bouquet along with a full day spa treatment. I signed the card "Goose"....

Just park your boat up on the right and leave the key bro. Check is in the mail.

I actually seen one identical to yours, looked a little beat up but I may go take a closer look. I'd have no problem pulling the trigger on yours...whatever you do, don't wait for me to buy something else then decide to sell yours, ...:smash:....I'll take you right off my Christmas card list if you do that.

Tony .did I see [My Wife] ???:love:

A survey of any used boat you are seriously considering is money well spent.... I paid for a couple surveys on boats I ended up not purchasing because of what surveys revealed.

Ross,

If you don't mind me asking, what kind of prices did you pay when getting them surveyed?
What did they check? Compression/Hull/etc....what kinds of things do they look for?
I shot some emails to some local companies and got some pricey quotes, I haven't circled back yet as I still haven't found anything I want to pay to get surveyed...but as much info as I can gather, the better off I am.

Thanks ~

yo Mike,:call:

Ross had the boat I've always wanted.

G, have you seen the Regulator in Warwick?

bloo- its not all bad. I bought my hyrasport 21ft cc when it was 4 years old. I never had any major issues. First time I put it in the water, it was leaking, Zachs helped me out - it was the garber plug, cheap fix. For 7 years I never did anything major to the motor except maintenance and a water pump. I didnt see a boat being a major $ pit. I juts reserved $1k a year for maintnenance and went from there. A lot of folks take good care of their boats. You could have had mine for a song a year ago, I was looking to sell quickly when we moved and the guy that bought it got a great deal and a great boat.

Gil,
They run about 300-500 if I recall correctly. He will sound the hull to make sure it is solid, or been previously repaired. Big area to know about is whether the transom is solid. Two boats I almost got had wet transoms that I did not want to deal with. Will check engine for compression of all cylinders, tilt, steering, electrical systems, batteries, lights, electronics, pumps, fire extinguishers, safety gear. Usually give an opinion on the trailer as well. I had Bob Gallagher out of Beverly do the surveys, and when he finished the last one, he said if I did not buy that boat, he would.....

Damn Jimmy, I sing a mean dixie too. If only I could bring back time

Ross, that's the kind of pricing I got....one gave me a per/ft cost, the other gave me an hourly rate, the 3rd said he was booked for the rest of the year :confused: >>never thought that could be such a booming business<< :hs:.... Based on my questioning, it ($$) wasn't far from what you listed. I know it's probably money well spent, but dang...dishing out 4-bills to NOT buy the boat must hurt like hades ~

The quest continues, I have 2 more to look at this week.
18.5 and a 21

Perhaps I'll stop at a watering hole to get me trigger happy -

Ross, forgot to mention....I'm not slipping it and am limited to size/trailering-load. Would like to stay under 5K#s...so I don't see me floating on anything bigger than 21, but what do I know. Seems even if I do pull the trigger, the dang chamber is empty...:smash:....back to the corner, pimpin' ain't easy

If you're willing to go to $27K, I have something you might be interested in.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Wrong time of year to be looking for a boat unless its a dead restore.

Make sense, is late winter/spring the best time? I would imagine people are looking at the boat and thinking "what's this gonna cost me this year?" where as in the fall, people are like "what a great season with my boat, I would never sell!"

Winter is usually the best time to do shopping, people look back and say "gosh, that costs me too much money, so much that i never used it last season" or its been for sale all summer/fall and now they're in a rush to get rid of it.

Especially if they are going to have to pay storage charges.

Putting a down-payment on something now....:hang:

Nothing fancy, nothing big....but here we go agaiiiiin!!!!

Good luck with her....bloo

Yep, when that rolls around late fall, people go ape and try to move things.

Or if they store it at home, wife is sick of staring at it and promises to sell it. Which was the case of my boat. :hihi: