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Old 11-21-2016, 10:04 AM   #3
Wood Guy
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Join Date: May 2008
Location: Orange Beach, Alabama
Posts: 1,075
Re: first time boat buyer

Pretty big for a first boat. I'm not sure how much it weighs (probably in the 10,000- 15,000 lb. range loaded), but I would make sure you have a suitable towing vehicle.
The list above is a good one. I would add that you should make sure you test drive it, including launching and retrieving the boat. Take someone with you that knows boats, preferably as similar a boat as possible. Second choice would be someone who knows engines.
The boat shown would not be my first choice:
1. It's big for a first boat, and will present some launching, cruising, and loading challenges, especially for an inexperienced captain.
2. It's old. Not there's anything wrong with old (Hell, I turned 70 this year!), but problems come with age and this boat will have problems, just like all boats. The price is at your budget limit, which leaves no money for problems you find after the sale.
3. The configuration will be expensive. There's a reason new boats are mounting outboards. A marine inboard is fairly easy to work on, if it's accessible, but the transmissions and outdrives are not, and they are very expensive to have work done on them. There are lots of places to have work done on outboards. Marine transmissions and outdrives- not so much.
4. It appears to be a single engine. If so you are going to be offshore in the Pacific with a 40 year old engine with no back up.

My advice would be to look for a 22-24 foot center console with twin outboards. Look for the newest engines you can afford. Usually, the perfect scenario is an older boat that had been repowered, then wasn't used much, was used in fresh water only, and now is for sale. You might not find the perfect boat, but that's the target. They are out there, so be patient.
Good luck- let us know how the search goes.
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