Price of small boat ownership.

[Kml]

43 mins ago, Bigred78 said:

Yeah so I can afford to pay around 7 ish for the boat. Still trying to figure out what I can do annually. I’m going to hold off till winter when everything gets cheaper and see what I can afford then. The reason I was leaning towards the sub 20’ is fuel economy and maitnance cost. Plus whatever I’m buying is gonna be old. I’d much rather replace a 40 horse than a 100 plus.

Things will get cheaper at the end of the season. People will want to get out of the boat before paying for winterizing an opening back up in the spring.

[CapeDave]

Find a 17 Boston Whaler Montauk, yea the prices are unreal but make offers.

If you ever want to sell it you can get your money back.

I paid $5,000 for an 81, put a brand new 90hp on it for $7,500 but that was back in 2006.

Maintaining it is just parts I do all the work. Still ticking.......

As the tec said when he fired up the new engine, when you and I are dead someone else will be bolting a new engine on!

[Mountain Brookies]

There's some great advice in this thread especially @CWitek. 

 

If you are looking for something older and for a deal, budget an extra 1500-2500k (maybe double if you want a trolling motor) for repairs, and outfitting the boat like you want it. Batteries, fish finders, rod holders, etc it all starts to add up add in what ever you need in terms of stuff to keep the boat legal safety wise. Even rare mint 20yr old boat that's sat in a garage will probably have problems (trailer tires, fuel system)

 

I don't know the used boat market in your area but something like a sea nymph GLS could be a pretty good boat for you.

[foxfai]

On 9/10/2023 at 12:49 PM, Bigred78 said:

I appreciate all the responses! I would love to just get an aluminum boat but I don’t think that is really an option for me. I cannot store it where I live. I can store it at my dads house but if I want to go out it adds an extra stop and a ton of extra time. It doesn’t really seem practical to me with my situation. That’s why I was leaning towards the slip. I’m used to with the kayak being able to do whatever I want and go wherever and not having to deal with googins. I usually go out once a week most of the time on weekends but I will go out during the week quite a bit during the striper run. Kayak makes this a pain in the ass because I have to break down load and unload the boat every time and drag it to and from the backyard. I don’t know much about fiberglass hulls I was going to bring my buddy who is knowledgeable on working on boat to make sure I’m not buying a lemon. I think I was a little unclear on the money thing before. I’m not looking to see if it’s cheaper than party boat runs or not the price is absolutely justified with the freedom alone for me as this is what I love to do. I’m just trying to figure out if I can afford it.  I really wasn’t thinking about the comefort of the ride that’s something I’m going to have to consider more. I am concerned with the motor. I’m pretty confident I would be able to work on the outboard myself and with the people I know but you can’t fix something if you can’t get parts for it. Most of the stuff I was lookin at has outboards from the 80s to early 2000s

I might get flamed for this, but you can consider an inflatable boat that can easily be stored, transport. It will take a bit of time to get setup but you won't need to tow/trailer, need a slip, and still fish with 2 comfortably with a 10' SIB. You can go out and not worry much about wind condition (to a point).

 

I've fish on a SIB for 5 years now, doesn't go too far out but to where kayak usually do.

[Flip n Dip]

57 mins ago, foxfai said:

I might get flamed for this, but you can consider an inflatable boat that can easily be stored, transport. It will take a bit of time to get setup but you won't need to tow/trailer, need a slip, and still fish with 2 comfortably with a 10' SIB. You can go out and not worry much about wind condition (to a point).

 

I've fish on a SIB for 5 years now, doesn't go too far out but to where kayak usually do.

I fished on a small Zodiac a few times and it was a very good boat. 

[Bigred78]

2 hours ago, foxfai said:

I might get flamed for this, but you can consider an inflatable boat that can easily be stored, transport. It will take a bit of time to get setup but you won't need to tow/trailer, need a slip, and still fish with 2 comfortably with a 10' SIB. You can go out and not worry much about wind condition (to a point).

 

I've fish on a SIB for 5 years now, doesn't go too far out but to where kayak usually do.

That may be an option. I could probably store that inflated in my backyard and just toss it in the bed of my truck. No issues with hooks or sharp fins?

[foxfai]

2 mins ago, Bigred78 said:

That may be an option. I could probably store that inflated in my backyard and just toss it in the bed of my truck. No issues with hooks or sharp fins?

Hooks no, fins yes. You just have to becareful when bringing fishes in. I have a few patches already on my SIB over the past few years lol.

[Bigred78]

6 mins ago, foxfai said:

Hooks no, fins yes. You just have to becareful when bringing fishes in. I have a few patches already on my SIB over the past few years lol.

Patching it is fine but what do you do when your 2 miles out when that happens

[foxfai]

14 mins ago, Bigred78 said:

Patching it is fine but what do you do when your 2 miles out when that happens

LOL. No, you won't sink right off the bat when it's poked. The leak lasted for about 2 months (5 more trips) before I spend sometime this summer to patch it. There was a video I saw a while back from a training exercise  that this group of 5 people deflated one side of the boat and cruise back to the dock with no issue. These don't sink.

[chisler]

As summarized above: buying a boat to pinch pennies is a misguided approach, buying to increase opportunity is logical.

[squidder 329]

I picked up a carolina skiff with less than 20hrs on the motor with trailer (both 2019) for $21,000. It rides fine and serves all my needs and has adequate sidewalls. With a flatter bottom it's a tradeoff between ride and stability. It's a wet ride when I have a side too wind which you initially think is no biggy but gets old fast. It's a cc with storage bow and stern so any moving about is calculated beforehand. I restricted it to one guest to keep it comfortable. It's not self bailing so for extended rains I use a trickle charge. I lucked out with finding storage for the trailer in the summer ($100) and free storage in the winter. I had a 14' aluminum boat years ago and always had my head on a swivel for boat wakes. I was rigging it for a bilge pump when I got an offer and sold it. Just some things to consider.

[ermghoti]

On 9/10/2023 at 12:49 PM, Bigred78 said:

I appreciate all the responses! I would love to just get an aluminum boat but I don’t think that is really an option for me. I cannot store it where I live. I can store it at my dads house but if I want to go out it adds an extra stop and a ton of extra time. It doesn’t really seem practical to me with my situation. That’s why I was leaning towards the slip.

 

You can keep an aluminum boat in the water. Slap an anode, or better yet, have a bracket welded on to support an anode so there are no new holes in the hull, good to go. You won't be hooked up to shore power, so you'd just has a slow toll of galvanic corrosion. A removable solar powered bilge pump would keep it on the proper side of the surface without grounding to the hull. Yes, the salt will eventually eat the boat, but fiberglass hulls eventually die too. You're talking decades, not years. If you can stash the trailer at your father's place (on its side?) you can occassionally pull it out, drive to a self-serve car wash, and give it a rinse.

 

If I thought I could get a slip for $1800/season I might throw mine in the water.  It's closer to double that in MA, but the point is moot because the wait lists mostly exceed my life expectancy.

[Lateral Line]

Boat ownership is good, mostly. 

Good advice here.

I've purchased older, used boats and motors with good results.

But, I've learned... older used boats use wood in construction. Look carefully for any soft spots, transom spider cracks, etc. Wood rot under fiberglass is a common problem in old boats. I'd research boats made with no wood in construction. 

Check compression and look for discoloration on the powered head from overheating. Check lower unit oil. Milky is not good. If the oil is perfect and new, great! Put that boat in the water, run it wot and check it again.

Good luck.

[Bergallmaster]

Also on a smaller boat, dont shy away from a older 2 stroke. 40 hp 2 stroke evinrude is about 50 lbs lighter than a 4 stroke. The fuel savings between the 2 is at most 1 gallon per hour. Its not until you get to about the 90hp range where the fuel usage starts to make a difference between 2 stroke and 4 stroke. 

Those older evinrudes are easy to work on when something goes wrong, especially if you or someone you know is mechanially inclined, and parts are cheap. 

The downside is you have to mix gas and oil. They smoke and especially in cold weather they can be hard to start.

[Bigred78]

So I’m not too worried about working on the moter as I am somewhat mechanically inclined and I love to learn lol. What I do not know anything about is fiberglass work. I’ve been reading some more and I keep seeing quite a bit about rotted transoms and stringers. That’s making me a bit worried as it seeems way above my pay grade to fix