Just want to say that the boat market is broken. Whatever boats are in this thread probably cost the same or more than when they showed up 5 years ago.
I have been watching CL for years and the same 20-30 y/o boats are the same price.
I’ve looked at some $1k boats because I’m handy capable, but they needed engines.
Tried to free up a ‘nice’ 1990 Wellcraft 170 with some acetone/ATF penetrating oil, but all I did with a socket and pipe/breaker bar was tighten the crank bolt.
Are you looking for a 20’ish foot cuddy cabin, because IMHO, that’s got to be the most useless layout of all boats. The cuddy is too small to be useful and you’re giving up the bow seating you’d have if it was a bowrider.
But yeah, boat prices went even more crazy than cars and haven’t really shown much sign of coming down.
I’m not married to cuddy or open. Price trumps all.
It is sort of nice to have a shady spot to get out of the sun, but I agree that it is mostly useless.
Unless it’s much bigger and suitable for weekends sleeps.
My boss has a 90s sea ray that I keep pestering him about. “how much is that $1,000 boat?” " You selling that $1,000 boat yet?" etc.
Edit: Best thing I have learned so far watching boats… “There are only 2 things you can’t get rid of. Herpes and a Bayliner”
Bayliners definitely got a bad rap in the 80s/90s, mostly due to the super shitty Force outboards they were bolting on to keep the price down. They’re still not a top of the line boat but their newer stuff isn’t terrible. Like anything it’s how was it maintained, and a big part is, “was it stored in the water”. Sitting it the water all summer, cooking in the sun, ages a boat 100x more than one sitting at home on a trailer.
If you want shade, get a bimini. We swapped the 6’ one that came with our 21’ Larson for an 8’ one. Gives you nice shade from the driver’s seat back to the rear bench.
But if your budget is under $5k good luck. Going to have to get lucky and find something that doesn’t run that someone is just trying to unload that hopefully doesn’t need anything major.
I was ready to tear into replacing Bellows and some other minor stuff, so I’m just putting the energy out into the matrix that I happen upon a boat that needs minor work or a pissed off wife that is selling her ex husbands toys.
170hp 4 banger in a 21’ boat is going to be a dog. Take a few friends and watch it struggle to get on plane, especially since with a cuddy no one is going to be riding up front to help it plane out.
Don’t forget, this is the first year where regardless of age you have to complete the NY Boater course to operate a watercraft in NY, thanks to some drunk killing a girl named Brianna. I’m sure had he just taken a stupid online course and paid the state $13 to get a little anchor icon added to his driver’s license he would have known that driving a boat drunk was a bad idea and he wouldn’t have done it.
With all the different police agencies that have boats on the water in WNY I guarantee you’re going to get fined this year ($100-$250) if you don’t have your nanny state certificate. I’m going to do the free one offered through Boat US and then pay NY the $13 for a license reprint with the anchor endorsement.
Some real fuckin head scratchers on this quiz boys. Thank god there was a 24 second timer on each of the 39 slides that you have to wait for or I might not have got these right.
Aaaand I’m NY certified. The last 3 sections I never even read a single page, just waiting for the next button to come up and clicked it. What a fucking joke. Seriously, Kathy Hochul needs to get fucked with dry cactus.
I was just gonna say, read the fine print. You can get the boat endorsement added to your license for free if you do it as part of a license renewal, which I was going to do since mine renews next year, but then I saw the certificate you can print out is only good for 90 days. Because making that certificate you printed good for any longer somehow makes people less safe. Or you can pay Boat US $15 for a boater card that’s good in other states, but I figured for the few times we trailer to another state I’ll take my chances that the state either doesn’t have this BS at all, or the boat cop will be cool when I show him my super awesome anchor icon on my enhanced license.
PS… If you blast through all the pre-test stuff and get a random question you don’t know, like, “what is a primary feature of a type IV floatation device” there is nothing stopping you from opening another browser tab and googling the answer. Type IV is your throwable, and knowing that throwable cushion is called a Type IV is uber critical. If you attempt to throw a cushion to a drowning person but in your head you think it’s a Type III not a Type IV the cushion explodes on impact killing the person instantly.
They only explode in Canada because the seat ingredients are banned there.
How expensive are all the other boat related expenses?
I’m sure registration and insurance is a bitch and gas only should only cost and much as you choose to float. I can probably do most all mechanical shit and if that $1k boat was free, I would have tried to tear down the engine. probably.
Just passed this info to my buddy who has a boat! He didn’t know about the course. He also doesn’t have a debit card, wifi, and keeps all his cash under his bed in case you’re wondering how that’s possible.
