Who has a boat ?

[firefighter3931]

Just as the title says ; how many of you guys/gals own watercraft ?

I'm looking at a few 19-20ft bowriders at the present time. Prices are good due to the end of boating season so I want to pick something up before the snow flies. 

The two i'm considering are : 1993 SeaRay 200 & 1995 FourWinns 190. Both have 5 liter inboards but the newer boat seems to be in better shape.

All opinions welcome 


Thanks, Ron

[skip68]

Both are good boats.   Just make sure you walk in them to see if the floors are spongy.  check the transoms for signs of rot.  Have they been in fresh water or salt ?   How many hours on them ?   

[4cruzin]

I have a couple boats and living in Michigan  . . . there are a ton of lakes everywhere.  I live 3 houses from a 300 acre all sport lake and my mother has a waterfront home on the same lake. 

1991 Supra tournament ski boat that I bought new and is still in really good shape.  351 ferd motor.

2004 kawasaki 1500cc jet skis . . . 3 seaters and they go like hell.

I also have a 20' spectrum pontoon boat with a 40 horse outboard. 

I never learned how to golf and always would rather just go to the lake anyways. 

[last426]

Water and gas don't mix -- get a Hobie cat if you want to have some fun and exercise.  Spent a year at Lake Tahoe sailing and scuba in the summer and skiing in the winter.  1981 was one fun time.  Kim

[moparguy01]

Mine is powered by canvas. I've got a 21' McGregor cabin sailboat.

[nvrbdn]

we live on a lake. got a small sail boat,and a ranger bass boat. used to ski and stuff, but now im more laid back and enjoy the lake (except when i know there is a fish at the other end of the lake to catch) then its 50 mph to get there first.

[chargerman67]

I have a 95 aquasport. I enjoy it but don't take it out much. As skip68 says take a look at the transom for rot. I am in florida and mainly use it in the rivers. The salt can be harsh to the boats if not taken care of properly.

[mikepmcs]

Just as the title says ; how many of you guys/gals own watercraft ?

I'm looking at a few 19-20ft bowriders at the present time. Prices are good due to the end of boating season so I want to pick something up before the snow flies.  

The two i'm considering are : 1993 SeaRay 200 & 1995 FourWinns 190. Both have 5 liter inboards but the newer boat seems to be in better shape.

All opinions welcome  


Thanks, Ron

I've owned a few over the years.  The 2 you listed are great boats.  I'd probably lean towards the Four Winns myself. THat salt and fresh water question would definitely be a big question to me as well.
Unless they had uncanny maintenance records, salt would scare me because you just don't know the maintenance practices of the previous owner(s)

[RECHRGD]

Been there, done that........Boats are money pits.........I say that and own a '68 Charger, go figure!  Stay away from salt water boats.   Bob

[b5blue]

  Hey Ron, I'd stay away from I/O drives, now if they are true "inboard" engine boats (Just a prop sticking out the back/bottom) that is much better. I/O's have what looks like the bottom 1/2 of an outboard coming out of the transom, in Florida they are notorious for internal corrosion problems and a REAL PIA to repair, the exhaust manifolds get the used cooling water pumped into them (to help cool) and they tend to corrode internally and foul the flow leading to "other problems". Go true inboard or outboard only as an I/O system was developed as a compromise between the other two, shorter overall length than a inboard allowing more deck area inside the boat and no motor showing in the center of the transom allowing rear access and usable space in that area. The resulting compact package is very appealing until you try and repair the "more prone to fail" system. Most I/O's the last time I checked had NO saltwater rating...it voided the warranty on even a new rig.
  The best definition of a boat I ever heard was: "A hole in the water...you fill with money." The 2 best days of boat ownership are: "The day you buy it and the day you sell it!" Don't get me wrong I LOVE boats and boating, I was boating, fishing and skiing before I was a teen. I've worked on everything from houseboats down to a 5 foot dingy and love them all!
  Check for any blistering of the fiber glass, even tiny blisters in the gel can indicate bigger issues coming and tapping or knocking on any laminated areas like decks, stringers and transom along with pushing or pressing hard could tell of rot or de-laminating starting. Keep in mind (I don't know how much boating you have done) both I/O and outboards use "thrust vectoring", if the motor or drive fail you got nothing, no control. An inboard at least leaves you a rudder, there again an outboard, usually cable steered, leaves you some steering and an I/O is power assisted so it's an unresponsive bear.              

[firefighter3931]

Thanks for the info guys 

I should have been clearer in my description ; it's an I/O or stern drive setup....pretty common. No salt water usage...it's (FourWinns 190) always been in lakes (upper New York state area) so corrosion should not be an issue. I'm leaning towards this boat because it's in great shape and has enough power to do what i want. If I decide that i need more steam i can allways build a stroker for it 

The best definition of a boat I ever heard was: "A hole in the water...you fill with money." The 2 best days of boat ownership are: "The day you buy it and the day you sell it!"
           

Neil's comment made me chuckle....i've heard the same quote many times about boat ownwership 

I'll post up some pics & details once the deal is finalized.



Ron

[bordin34]

I, well my family, has had a couple boats. We started with an 18ft 2003 Four Winns with an outboard and sold it and bought a 21ft 2007 Four Winns with a 5.0 Volvo Penta. The bigger hull on the 21ft makes a huge difference in ride quality, you cut through the waves instead of bouncing off of them. Personally I would buy the boat with less hours on it and if they have similar hours buy the sea ray because it is bigger.
Also around those years is when mercury went from carbs to fuel injection. Both of those boats should be really great boats and Sea Ray and FourWinns are equally as good. Just stay away from Bayliner, they tend to have thinner hulls and be lower quality in general.

[Nacho-RT74]

lot of ppl consider my Charger as a boat

[ITSA426]

We got rid of our boat years ago and I sold the Aeronca when it was worth a lot more than I paid for it.  When I worked in the light aviation industry, a cynical friend told me, "if it flies, f***s, or floats, it's cheaper to rent it.  I also learned the best two days in airplane and boat ownership are the day you buy it and the day you sell it.

The only reason to own a boat is because you want to.  Pick the one you like.  We're men, we can rationalize anything.

[b5blue]

On this topic I found a Chrysler 18' center console with 100hp Chrysler outboard in "MINT" condition on a cherry trailer for 1800.00 down here and didn't have the money!!! Man I'd have loved to tow that with the Charger! 

[dkn1997]

Just as the title says ; how many of you guys/gals own watercraft ?

I'm looking at a few 19-20ft bowriders at the present time. Prices are good due to the end of boating season so I want to pick something up before the snow flies. 

The two i'm considering are : 1993 SeaRay 200 & 1995 FourWinns 190. Both have 5 liter inboards but the newer boat seems to be in better shape.

All opinions welcome 




Thanks, Ron

Sea Ray is a better boat.. but that won't come into to much play unless you are putting it into some big water.   Four Winns is a good boat, but Sea Ray's are REALLY good.  I'm assuming both have I/O's.  I/O's in boats like this are pretty reliable if you take care of them.  When you start putting monster power to them..ie: big block merc racing power, they start to grenade.  I'd stay away from any I/O that doesn't have the name mercury on it though.  OMC cobra drives (four winns used them, at least on some liberators with 460's) were pretty good, but you can't get parts easily for them anymore because they haven't made them in a long time.  I never liked the Volvo Penta drives either. I don't kow about the 90's, but in the late 80's they had no power trim...just tilt.  meaning that you could raise it fully or lower it fully, but no in between.  to adjust the trim you had to raise the drive, then move a pin to a different spot.  That's no way to live.  It's nice being able to trim it in or out while under way based on passenger load, water skiiers, amount of chop, etc..

I know the Japanese make good drives now, but I don't think they were back then.

I'd stay away from outboards.  When they need replacement, HUGE CUBIC dollars!  with the I/O, the engine is basically the same as a car engine which you may know a little something about.  lol. 

Another thing to consider is induction... the years you listed are right about when the manufacturers starting going to EFI.  IMHO, EFI is a must on a boat.  Don't get me wrong, I never owned an EFI boat, but have boated on enough of each to form an opinion.   the last thing you need is to throw it into reverse at the dock and it stalls! 

[b5blue]

Good Luck Ron, it is a great relief to hear they a fresh water run! Down here it's darn near impossible to not have hit the salt at some time. 

[motorcitydak]

My  get one with a mercruiser setup with an alpha 1 outdrive, avoid that volvo/penta stuff like the plague. The merc stuff is way cheaper to fix. That being said, be ready to spend your purchase price about every few years in parts. Marine stuff is always stupid expensive and overly complicated. BTW, make sure the boat shifts properly before buying it (it has to be in the water to check this). If it does not shift from neutral to forward and reverse and back into neutral smoothly, just walk away.

[stripedelete]

Look for "spider web" cracking in the gel coat on the topside.  It can be a good indication that someone beat on the boat pretty hard.  Also, moisture (and therefore rot) can get into the stringer and transom through poorly bedded, or un-bedded, screw holes mounting anything in the bilge.  This can be tough to detect.  You might consider a good surveyor.   

I've had a wood boat for the last 15 years.  Theyr'e great.  If you ever consider wood, I suggest you stick your head out of a window and have your wife, or good friend, slam it shut, repeatedly.  Or, smash your finger in a car door.  If somehow you derive any pleasure whatsoever from either of these experiences then you may be right for wood.     

Either way, make sure you take the safe boating course.  You owe it to your passengers.  No matter how much you think you know, you will learn something valuable.  Boating is one of those things that can turn from fun to life-or-death in a heartbeat.

[Iceyone]

I have an 18' Advantage jet boat, open bow powered by an Indmar (Chevy) 454. I haven't used it in years and would like to get rid of it.

[b5blue]

I am certain Ron would not be looking at much less posting about anything that was not cherry to start with.   

[b5blue]

 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7yfISlGLNU   

[68blue]

16 foot mahogany 1960 Century Resorter. Had a lot of fun over the years pulling kids on tubes and skiiing. The 327 Gray marine was pretty thirsty with the small tank of gas so we gould not get far from the marina. It did look great with all the chrome on the mahogany with forest green carpet. Engine sounded great too. I'll post some pics when I get back to the home computer.

[stripedelete]

16 foot mahogany 1960 Century Resorter. Had a lot of fun over the years pulling kids on tubes and skiiing. The 327 Gray marine was pretty thirsty with the small tank of gas so we gould not get far from the marina. It did look great with all the chrome on the mahogany with forest green carpet. Engine sounded great too. I'll post some pics when I get back to the home computer.

Like to see them.  Had a Gray in a 25 Lyman.  It was a great motor.  Parts are getting tough to find though.

[68blue]

Completly rebuilt mine a few years ago, replaced every thing but the heads, main caps, and block. I think I cleaned Duby Marine out of parts.

[firefighter3931]

Update : I bought the SeaRay 20 footer 

After researching both boats the heavier/bigger SeaRay will suit my needs better. I will be using it primarily on the St Lawrence river so it made sense to purchase this one. It's by no means a cream puff....more of a "driver" but overall in nice shape. The Mercruiser outdrive was also a better choice vs the now obsolete OMC outdrive that was on the other boat. 

Thanks for the opinions fellas....appreciate it ! 

I ended up having to replace the trailer because the stupid Canadian govt wouldn't let me import the one that came with the boat. The trailer registration listed it as a home made trailer despite the brand name being clearly labelled on the side. This happens when ownership is transferred from one owner to the next and the VIN sticker is illegible. Apparently boat trailers don't have a Vin stamped into the frame...just a sticker that undoubtably becomes unreadable after a few years of UV exposure. Not a problem for inter state transfers but our idiot govt won't allow home made trailers to be imported....even if it's quite obvious that the trailer in question was commercially built.

The new trailer is a nice shiny aluminum Venture single axle with mag wheels and surge brakes. The Marina in upstate NY gave me a good trade-in on the old trailer so it's all good. 


Ron

[mikepmcs]

WOOOT!  Looks great. You're gonna have some fun with that. Congratulations!

[skip68]

Nice job Ron....   Now get some guide poles on that trailer for easier solo loading and have some fun.                       P.S.  from experience, carry an extra prop and prop tool.       

[stripedelete]

Good Choice.  My first boat was a 1978, SeaRay SRV 198 (a.k.a 20 footer) with a 305 2 barrel.  There was NOTHING I disliked about that boat.

[nh_mopar_fan]

You can't go wrong with those makes but my advice would be to hire a profession surveyor to inspect the boat.

It's worth the cash up front to know what you're buying.

Here's mine. 2007 Monterey. We love it.

[dkn1997]

Update : I bought the SeaRay 20 footer 

After researching both boats the heavier/bigger SeaRay will suit my needs better. I will be using it primarily on the St Lawrence river so it made sense to purchase this one. It's by no means a cream puff....more of a "driver" but overall in nice shape. The Mercruiser outdrive was also a better choice vs the now obsolete OMC outdrive that was on the other boat. 

Thanks for the opinions fellas....appreciate it ! 

I ended up having to replace the trailer because the stupid Canadian govt wouldn't let me import the one that came with the boat. The trailer registration listed it as a home made trailer despite the brand name being clearly labelled on the side. This happens when ownership is transferred from one owner to the next and the VIN sticker is illegible. Apparently boat trailers don't have a Vin stamped into the frame...just a sticker that undoubtably becomes unreadable after a few years of UV exposure. Not a problem for inter state transfers but our idiot govt won't allow home made trailers to be imported....even if it's quite obvious that the trailer in question was commercially built.

The new trailer is a nice shiny aluminum Venture single axle with mag wheels and surge brakes. The Marina in upstate NY gave me a good trade-in on the old trailer so it's all good. 


Ron

Ron, I have been around boats all my life..and down here on the great south bay and ocean with salt water, they take a beating.  You just can't go wrong with Mercruiser or searay.  Both are quality.