my first boat, what do you guys think?

[13 BOXERS]

Hello to everyone, Im new to the boating world but I love fishing and the freedom of the outdoors, anyway, heres my project. A 1982 Ranger bass boat that needs a lot of work, it needs a new deck and carpet, seats and tires for the trailer. I bought it last weekend from a seller in craigslist for 400 bucks (hopefully its woth the cash) and he told me it has a 115hp engine but that its been over 3yrs since he used it, this is my first boat and I don't know anything about boat engines so I guess I need to find a mechanic to help me find out whats wrong with it.

Here are some pics of the Ranger (are the cracks on the bottom normal?) please let me know what you guys think.


I have more pics but I can only upload 5.

 

[Friscoboater]

Re: my first boat, what do you guys think?

Looks like a cool project. Looks like the first thing is to replace the tires on the trailer. They need to be trailer tires not radials. They seem to be very strict here in Texas about that.

 

[Boss Hawg]

Re: my first boat, what do you guys think?

As for as looks you made a good deal
I think i'd address the motor before the trailor tires
Those boogers on the keel don't look to bad & can be addressed AFTER you have the motor checked out
Good luck - I had a ball redoing my '83 Ranger 375V

BTW- I'd be glad to give you the $400 back for it

 

[13 BOXERS]

Re: my first boat, what do you guys think?

wow this forum is awesome!!! thanks for the advise, I feel more confident about it now. I would never sell my Ranger its my first boat so it has a sentimental value but thanks for the offer, can you post any pics of your boat?

 

[Boss Hawg]

Re: my first boat, what do you guys think?

wow this forum is awesome!!! thanks for the advise, I feel more confident about it now. I would never sell my Ranger its my first boat so it has a sentimental value but thanks for the offer, can you post any pics of your boat?

Notice the keel

Sorry, pic too big :redface:

 

[Bifflefan]

Re: my first boat, what do you guys think?

Looks like a nice one. Has a little dock rash but for 400 looks good to me.
Should be fun..

 

[Fisherball]

Re: my first boat, what do you guys think?

Buy a service manual on the motor. It'll pay for itself 100 times over if you keep the boat for a few years. It'll stop you from having to get rid of the boat cuz the motor needs something too expensive. I've learned how to do things to mine that would have cost $1,500.00 more than it cost me to do it myself over a six year period. The very first thing I fixed with it would have made me sell the boat if I had to pay a shop to do it.

 

[amanphoto]

Re: my first boat, what do you guys think?

Nice looking boat. What's her name?

 

[thedukeryan]

Re: my first boat, what do you guys think?

For all you know the engine may be fine. Three years is a long time to sit but I have seen engines fire up with little effort that have been sitting for some time. I had a 85hp Mercury that had probably been sitting for a couple years. Put new gas in it along with some sea foam. Sprayed some starting fluid in the carbs and got it to fire in a matter of minutes. From that point I just hooked it up to some muffs and let it run for a while. Many would probably disagree with my strategy but hey it worked for me. Don't worry at all about what you paid for it. In my opinion you got a steal assuming it doesn't require anything major. Truth be told you could probably put another $1100 into it and still have a great deal at $1,500. I will say this. Start with the major things and then work your way down the list. If the seats and what not are functional you can always put those off.

 

[WAVENBYE2]

Re: my first boat, what do you guys think?

Nice looking boat, I hope it does well for you!!

 

[scpf1]

Re: my first boat, what do you guys think?

Nice boat! Keel pic reminds me of my first. Will fix up nice. Good luck!

 

[ezmobee]

Re: my first boat, what do you guys think?

I just acquired a 90 HP evinrude from the same year. Had been sitting a while. Once I cleaned some mud out of the fuel fitting it fired right up. Needs a little tweaking but runs great otherwise. Good looking boat. On a boat like that, best way to fix all the wood components is to separate the cap and hull. Welcome to iboats and make sure you head down to the restoration section. You'll get LOTS of help with your project there.

 

[13 BOXERS]

Re: my first boat, what do you guys think?

I ended up taking the boat to a shop, anyway, I was told that the engine has a compression of 95-115 but one of the pistons has "0" and they told me that it can be that the piston is broken or that it needs new rings in all of them, Its going to cost me about $1200 to get it fixed.

why do engines lose compression?
is it worth getting the engine fixed or should I just forget about it and find another engine?

 

[roscoe]

Re: my first boat, what do you guys think?

If the rest of the engine is good, get her fixed. Not gonna find a better one for less money.

engines can lose compression for several reasons.

failed water pump causes an overheat, which blows the head gasket.

someone forgets to put the oil in the fuel which causes all kinds of damage

broken or stuck rings, often due to poor maintenance.

 

[ziggy]

Re: my first boat, what do you guys think?

my first thought is that sure is a snazzy looking boat. she's a real looker for sure...

my second thought is a soft deck, + picks of caulk or the likes around what i reckon are bait wells or the likes. why is the caulk there? a water leak? a soft (rotten) deck. hows the transom and stringers? that'd be my first question. then i'd worry about the engine and everything else.. just imho...

one good thing i think i see, is no rot juice stains out of the boat drain hole. that could be a good sign. ya got three screws there to the starboard side. take one out and stick a awl in there. see what ya get, how easy it goes in... look like rotten wood or a nice fresh board... if good reseal the screw..