kabookey
Petty Officer 3rd Class
- Joined
- May 12, 2009
- Messages
- 79
Note: I am a bit long-winded with the background so feel free to skip ahead to the good stuff.
Background: The purchase of my 1987 Seville 175 19" came about by pure luck. Playing darts at a local pub one night, I randomly mention to my buddy I was thinking about buying a boat. The guy playing next to us turns around and says "hey, a friend of mine is selling his boat. 1980's something, Seaville Ray, Stingray, some sh** like that. Can't remember. I can ask him about it for you." Sure, why not, so I grab his number and continue playing. Few minutes later he taps me on the shoulder; "Yo. I talked to my friend and he sent some pics. Check it out."
Knowing nothing about boats, I tell the guy I am interested in checking it out and I will give him a call tomorrow. Next day (after enlisting the help of my buddy John who has extensive knowledge on boats, mechanics, etc) we make the short trip to go give her the look-over. Ring the bell, make our introductions, and the guy points us to the boat. "Go check her out, she is under the canopy. Can't walk out with you though, house-arrest" pointing to the bracelet on his ankle.
Upon inspection, boat looks pretty good (but what do I know). It seems this bowrider had been converted into some sort of fishing vessel; tons of wood, bent rusted drywall screws sticking up from the deck, and a gray bumpy substance covering everything but the helm. The Shorelandr aluminum roller trailer she was sitting on looked to be in excellent condition though (aside from old tires and a worn keel roller). From his doorway he yells "not sure if she runs still, but everything is solid. I think there might be an ignition issue." We turn the key and the engine cranks a bit; John turns to me and says "We will have to do some work to her bro, but if the price is right you should buy this puppy."
Heeding his advice we walk up to the door and tell the guy I am interested. "What are you looking for her?" I ask. "$1400 including the trailer." I tell him, "I have $900 cash, do we have a deal?" "Eh" he replied, I really needed to get a least a grand." I explain to him I might be able to come up with the extra hundred but I could not make any promises. He stood there for a second, rubbed his chin, and stuck out his hand. "Deal" As he is signing over the title he tells me, "By the way, I am the original owner; all of the paperwork and manuals are in the glovebox. She is a great boat, you will enjoy her." Nodding in agreement I hand over the cash, hook up the boat, and we head back to John's house.
Back at the house, we throw in a new battery, slap some muffs on the drive, and turn the key. Few pumps of the throttle and she fires right up...and she sounds good. Real good. My buddy turns to me and says "Damn man, you just got the deal of the century. Now lets get to ripping her apart."
That was the beginning to a year long restoration project. Most of the engine work was done by John; gimbal, bellows, timing, plugs, etc., while I handled the teardown and rebuild of the interior. I knew nothing about boats before I found this forum, but was able to a "complete" restoration with the knowledge I learned here. Not saying my work was perfect (far from, in fact) but it was a good introduction to the world of boat restoration.
Fast forward to a few months ago:
After an oil extracting container explosion (quarts of crude soaking carpet) and finding an almost completely collapsed motor mount, I decided to "re-restore" the Dirty Oar. Along with current pictures of my progress, I will also be posting "before-after-after" photos showing the things I did wrong and how I will go about fixing them. I hope this post will help some folks avoid some of the mistakes I made along the way; armed with more experience & knowledge than before, I am certain this go-around will be much better.
Of course any questions, comments, or suggestions are welcomed; I am here to continue learning as well as lending a hand to those who need it. Enjoy the show.
- Kabookey
Background: The purchase of my 1987 Seville 175 19" came about by pure luck. Playing darts at a local pub one night, I randomly mention to my buddy I was thinking about buying a boat. The guy playing next to us turns around and says "hey, a friend of mine is selling his boat. 1980's something, Seaville Ray, Stingray, some sh** like that. Can't remember. I can ask him about it for you." Sure, why not, so I grab his number and continue playing. Few minutes later he taps me on the shoulder; "Yo. I talked to my friend and he sent some pics. Check it out."
Knowing nothing about boats, I tell the guy I am interested in checking it out and I will give him a call tomorrow. Next day (after enlisting the help of my buddy John who has extensive knowledge on boats, mechanics, etc) we make the short trip to go give her the look-over. Ring the bell, make our introductions, and the guy points us to the boat. "Go check her out, she is under the canopy. Can't walk out with you though, house-arrest" pointing to the bracelet on his ankle.
Upon inspection, boat looks pretty good (but what do I know). It seems this bowrider had been converted into some sort of fishing vessel; tons of wood, bent rusted drywall screws sticking up from the deck, and a gray bumpy substance covering everything but the helm. The Shorelandr aluminum roller trailer she was sitting on looked to be in excellent condition though (aside from old tires and a worn keel roller). From his doorway he yells "not sure if she runs still, but everything is solid. I think there might be an ignition issue." We turn the key and the engine cranks a bit; John turns to me and says "We will have to do some work to her bro, but if the price is right you should buy this puppy."
Heeding his advice we walk up to the door and tell the guy I am interested. "What are you looking for her?" I ask. "$1400 including the trailer." I tell him, "I have $900 cash, do we have a deal?" "Eh" he replied, I really needed to get a least a grand." I explain to him I might be able to come up with the extra hundred but I could not make any promises. He stood there for a second, rubbed his chin, and stuck out his hand. "Deal" As he is signing over the title he tells me, "By the way, I am the original owner; all of the paperwork and manuals are in the glovebox. She is a great boat, you will enjoy her." Nodding in agreement I hand over the cash, hook up the boat, and we head back to John's house.
Back at the house, we throw in a new battery, slap some muffs on the drive, and turn the key. Few pumps of the throttle and she fires right up...and she sounds good. Real good. My buddy turns to me and says "Damn man, you just got the deal of the century. Now lets get to ripping her apart."
That was the beginning to a year long restoration project. Most of the engine work was done by John; gimbal, bellows, timing, plugs, etc., while I handled the teardown and rebuild of the interior. I knew nothing about boats before I found this forum, but was able to a "complete" restoration with the knowledge I learned here. Not saying my work was perfect (far from, in fact) but it was a good introduction to the world of boat restoration.
Fast forward to a few months ago:
After an oil extracting container explosion (quarts of crude soaking carpet) and finding an almost completely collapsed motor mount, I decided to "re-restore" the Dirty Oar. Along with current pictures of my progress, I will also be posting "before-after-after" photos showing the things I did wrong and how I will go about fixing them. I hope this post will help some folks avoid some of the mistakes I made along the way; armed with more experience & knowledge than before, I am certain this go-around will be much better.
Of course any questions, comments, or suggestions are welcomed; I am here to continue learning as well as lending a hand to those who need it. Enjoy the show.
- Kabookey
