Neophyte Seeking Sage Advice and Wisdom (Please Help)

[64osby]

The 1960 looks good in the pics. Check your local laws on the trailer, does the trailer need a title? Here in MI smaller trailers are only registered, not titled.

My primary goal is to learn and satisfy the desire to take on the restoration of a vintage project boat. Fishing hard to reach places in some local lakes is secondary.

Your secondary goal is to end up with a fishing boat. Personally I look at the Malibu as a runabout, not so much as a fishing boat. It would also depend on how you like to fish, and what fish you are chasing.

I tend to stand or lean most of the time when fishing, therefore I like a hull with high sides.

Fishing skinny water can be done in almost any tin boat. The draft on my 21' hull is 10", skeg is at 24", trolling skeg is about 18".

Restoring a boat is fun, can be hard and it is rewarding. Doing all that work and ending up with a boat that does not fit your needs can be frustrating when it is all said and done. Or it leads to redoing another boat.

I still like the Medallion.

 

[WeatherEye]

Unfortunately, Texas laws are so strict they require a title on each item; boat, motor and trailer. When I lived in Michigan 30+ years ago, I bought fairly new boats in the winter (when no one wanted to make payments) and sold them in the Spring...after I used them a bit. I do not recall ever having to register or license anything but the bigger trailers. I seldom had a boat for more than a year. Had a good friend who was a marine mechanic who kept my outboards and snow mobiles running. He was my fishing partner and shared any profit on the boat sales.

The Medallion is a worthy project, but the seller won't come down on the price. He still wants at least a grand for a boat I would feel more comfortable buying at a 1/4 of the price. I would still have to replace the Force 40 on the Medallion after all of the work the boat needs.

I use a kayak or a canoe in skinny water. The Gulf of Mexico is about 1 hour 45 minutes away. To bay fish...and a runabout is perfect. I have friends with bigger boats to fish outside the protected bays.

Acquiring a fleet of different size boats that were once projects does not bother me. I've had a small fleet before...mind you...the boats I bought were much newer. By far...the boat I used the most for fishing inland lakes and some bays on Lake Huron was a 14 foot Mirrocraft 3/4 V. with a 10 HP Honda. I even rigged some Cannon downriggers to a 2x10 bolted to the holes for the oar locks so I could get down to the right depth for walleye.

BTW...I like the Medallion too...but the price is not quite right...yet.