A rough 1993 Ski

I did see a complete drop in pcm 351 closed cooling with a transmission 1.23 on the ass, on e-bay, the buy now was 3k..remeber it had all the ornaments hanging on it ie: rwp, alt, brackets   the stuff that adds up

Here's a complete-to-bellhousing PCM 351 out of a 93 for $2100

The buy it now is $2600 but this guy has had it for sale and relisted it about 10 times that I've seen, so $2100 should take it.

I've already tried to bring him down from $2100, but maybe you'd have better luck now that it's 2 months later. He said he could part it out for more than what the starting bid is, so he wouldn't budge.

Even if that motor were in CA and you were in Maine it wouldn't cost anywhere near that to ship it.

I bet normal freight would have that to you for well under 500. Heck, I have gear motors shipped from Germany via air freight for 500. Granted most gear motors I buy are about a 5th of that size, but when crated up probably only 3 gearmotors would take the same space as a crated v8.

Eric - good point...

What about putting a modern engine in it, then you could go the Zero off route. Hear that there is some sort of option or route that you can go, heard a top level skier did that to one of his old boats. There is a warranty re-use program that some one is doing, makes it a bit more affordable. Would love to do this to my 92 Nautique to get the Zero off on that classic boat

... the purple boat? don't say ugly too loud, Marty Mabe has one of those IMO, 6900 is too much for the boat, while clean, and looks to be well taken care of, it is a consignment boat that the owner won't budge on. worth checking out if you could get a motor for 2600, but a lot of work for the 3-400 that you would save on the swap.   do check out PN, they are nice guys, and pretty honest about what something is worth.   BTW, the seller of the blue boat offered me a trailer yesterday, he said one of the cross members was bent?   and wanted 1k for it.   Honestly, I think the package is worth about 1500 trailer and hull included.   then you would have some room for working out the kinks.

Here is where I was at on the blue boat -

hull and trailer - 1500
interior (cheap!)- 1500
Motor             - 3000
trailer repair    - 500
skeg and prop     - 500
transmission      - 1500?
Misc Gel rework   - 500
misc gotcha's     - 500

total -    $9500?

add your time and you end up with a 2500 hr hull for 9500, and you'll have spent 400 hrs putting it together.   the only advantage here is that you could stage the build over time.

BH - I am starting to realize that you are probably right....   for 20 yrs I have wanted one of these boats, but getting a house and starting a family were more of a priority.... now it's hard to pony up the 10k to get what I want.... Back to saving for a little while longer and I be there, just tempting to buy now and have it in the garage.

horkn wrote: I barely consider my 78 a classic, although if using car terms it is a classic.

Tom,
Your 78 isn't but it's getting closer every year!!

Historic: A boat built up to and including 1918.
Antique: A boat built between 1919 and 1942 inclusive.
Classic: A boat build between 1943 ans 1975 inclusive.

Hang onto it and soon......!!

...third to last sentence... "IT" sure needs a lot of help. :)

KRoundy wrote: It sure needs a lot of help. I assume you were emailed the same pictures? I wonder if he is lurking on here reading what you and I post.

I totally agree :), yes, I was emailed some pics too.      I think there is some value in the hull as a receiver for a rotted 90 - 92 interior, trans and motor.... or if you could pick up a crushed salvage boat for all the parts, it could be worth while.   I too feel that while I am handy and not opposed to the length of the project, it just doesn't make sense unless you could get the whole deal for a song.

BTW once you post, you can use the post options drop down, and "Edit Post" to fix anything you find :)

Thanks TX.... perspective is always good :)

Kevin,    Someone here may want to look at this deal as a parts boat, but I don't think they would steal in on your deal if you're still in negotiation.    I am going to attempt to post pics, but will wait for you to post seller info if you've decided you're out.   

Personally, I would bite on that boat for $1k IF it had a trailer. Maybe go a little more. Without a trailer Id be looking to spend less- that alone might cost you $1k or more. Of course, I love working on these boats as much as I like skiing behind them. By the time I was done, I could probably break even on the boat- not including my time, of course. Its no money maker though- you might be astounded to find out how much time, effort and money it takes to take a non-functional boat and make it water worthy. Its also worth pointing out that I also have plenty of functional boats at the ready, so a new project will never keep me off the water. Slaving away on the boat in the middle of a hot spell when you'd rather be at the lake can be extremely disheartening.

If your goal is to get on the lake for cheap, and dont know FOR SURE how much you will like working on the boat, then I would echo those above who are telling you to save your money and buy the nicest functional boat that you can afford. Being able to go boating right away is huge, both for your own ego, as well as convincing the family that this whole boating thing is a good idea. Being a slave to the garage without any immediate benefits will quickly turn the boat into an object of hate in the eyes of many around you. Many people also find that they do not have the time or skills to see a project to completion, and give up part way through.

Just make sure youre ready to dive in, and dont be fooled by the low entry price! You will most likely spend every bit as much bringing that boat up to snuff as you could buy a decent running example for. But if you like to tinker, I cant think of anything more fun and rewarding to work on. Just make sure you know what youre getting into before making your decision!

TR, that was well said. For a couple of grand it's easy to find an older complete boat that just needs a slight bit of attention to get on the water with. Keep it for awhile, improve it a little, sell it and step up. That boat is months from ready unless you have the cash on hand to get moving. And if you've got that kind of cash, why not just get a more complete boat? Without a trailer, it's a no brainer to take a pass for anything over a grand. Just not enough there for the hassle. At least that's my two cents worth.

After seeing it, I can assure you that for everything you can see initially, there are two more you don't see. Lot's of little items kick in that add up in time and money. Things like, bilge pumps, blowers, blower hose, bad toggle switches (marine toggles ain't cheap),gauges to possibly replace or rework. Looks like the exhaust hose may have seen better days. That stuff is $15-$20 per foot easy. Fuel sending units, fuel hoses...the list goes on and you can pretty much figure if it says marine the cost goes up.

If you haven't done it before, start with a smaller project. At the same time, I don't think anyone here would blame you for piling in head first. To have the innate desire to throw your money into a hole in the water is prerequisite to membership on CCF isn't it?

looks like a gold mine to me!! Get it and quit kicking the tires!!

Gary S wrote: Now THAT would be the boat for a 454 transplant

Sadly, the tabs on the cradle would not match up. And the motorbox wouldnt fit over the big block.

One more word of caution. If you are planning to replace the interior on one of these, that alone can be a huge expense. A set of factory correct skins will set you back $2500, and that doesnt include foam or installation. Not to mention the missing observer and rear seats, which would have to be custom made. That alone might be a deal breaker if you hope to use the boat for anything but a bare bones slalom course boat.