strizzy

Hello, lurker here, but long time lover of Formulas.

Been looking for a new boat and this popped up on craigslist and if you guys don't mind, I was wondering what you thought.

350MAG, ~300hrs, 2-3 year old Alpha
SS Prop, Docking lights, some bottom scum, but "Good Condition"

New stereo, amp, and subs...

Calkins trailer, brakes need repair.

Asking $5500



I think I'm going to take a look at it this Saturday (4/5), anything I should look for on these boats?

I'm not scared of a project, Ive done total rebuilds, but I want to make sure the price is right. NADA is just under $6k with trailer.

I have an 18ft Crownline 'Closed Bow' with a SBC and its just a little too small. I know this isn't a large 21 footer, but I think it will still fit into my fathers empty boat hoist/canopy!

Thank you very much for your time!

jenks

big block w/brovo, and you could seriously hurt your self. sounds like fun when do we start? jenks.

handfulz28

I've been looking at these hard in the last few days and have considered them really good runabouts.
Depending on how strong the 350MAG is, the boat should probably run in the 50s depending on load. I don't know enough specifically about structures and this model to give advice on negatives to look out for. Even at 20' and $5000, it might be worth a couple hundred to have a surveyor poke it with a moisture meter.

Most everything else to look at would be standard across all boats: make sure everything works, nothing bad is hiding behind a panel or a sticker or under a hatch cover. Look under and behind everything you possibly can.

They made a few of these in a Spyder version...bowrider. Much more fun for the kids to ski/tube behind than my 311. I could even bring the dog...

jenks

Dido, what he siad!

got twins ?

Hey Strizzy ,

Did we talk last fall ..... are you from the Sodus Bay NY area?
I had a 88' 206LS with a 350 mag and a alpha drive. This boat was great on the smaller water but if you got caught in the bigger stuff that Lake Ontario can give you .... you are in for a ride.
Mine had trim tabs it ran in the mid 50s with no problems at all. The tabs believe it or not made a big difference considering the size of the boat.
To give you a comparison as far as price goes .... I sold mine on Labour Day weekend 2006 for $12000.00 which included a brand new trailer (aluminum) ... the boat only had 500 hrs. on it and on a scale of 1 - 10 it was a 8.5 .... very clean but starting to show it's age.
I found out the hard way .... it was a salt water boat and chit was starting to go ....
Therefore it was time to go ..... I honestly believe it was the right time right place right person who bought my boat. He was looking for my exact colour and boat at the time. I wasn't even sure if i wanted to sell it at the time .... I just spent all freak'in summer replacing everything that needed to be replaced and started to enjoy it.
Thank God I did ..... I love my 311 now ....

Shoot me a PM if you any more questions that I might be able to help you with.

Is this a "local boat" for us?

Talk to you soon ....

Jeff

got twins ?

As far as the size goes .... imagine sleeping the back of a pickup truck with 2 hatches .... that is what you got there .... enough room to get the job done if you know what i mean
As far as the lift goes I can't remember the weight of the boat but you should be ok .... bare in mind it is a heavier 21 footer then most.

Jeff

strizzy

Hey Jeff, yeah I talked to you last fall after Labor Day weekend when I saw your (amazing) boat. And for what its worth, my obsession started when all you Formula boys started bombing around the bay.

I'm still looking for a new toy, as I am bored with my current boat and this one popped up in Avon, NY. It would be kept in Sodus Bay, at my parents place. Its not too large and should fit in the covered hoist my father has (currently between boats).

I find this combination of size, style, and power appealing as I am still a student and cant afford much more than a 350.

I definitely am going to look at this boat and was curious if there was any common problems. Unfortunately I haven't had the opportunity to go through any Formulas, although there was a couple late 70's boats at the shop (now if this was a Bayliner or Crownline, I've been through tons of those).

Thanks for the help so far guys!

Although I'll pass on the surveyors, haven't met one that wasn't a joke yet Hell, just two weeks ago I had a cruiser plug in for a surveyor and he showed up and told me he didn't have power. Guess he hasn't seen a boat with shorepower before and didn't know you had to turn it on. One more good story for ya, at the shop there was Bass Pro Tour boat, whole thing had a vinyl wrap(big sticker) and about three months ago a surveyor said the fiberglass was delaminating on the edge of the boat (happened to be where the wrap stopped). One of the sales guys gets down and asks him if he knows this is vinyl wrapped, he didn't know what to say!

Just want to make sure if I get into something that needs work I can make out on it, THANKS!
-Cory

strizzy

Haha that is what I pictured. But hey its better then nothing!

Is there a portipotti under the removable cushion? Im sure the girlfriend would appreciate that.

I believe the boat weighs like 3160lbs or something, right around the rating of the hoist.

Oh and the guy says it does 58mph gps...

Thanks again!
-Cory

axapowell

I had a 1986 206LS with the same colors, 350 Mag and the alpha. It ran between 55-59 mph depending on fuel and gear. Fun boat, but as mentioned, watch out for the rough stuff. It'll go through it, but watch the landings. The porto- pottie is right when you crawl into the vee berth under the small cushion. The exhaust, if thru hull, dumps onto the swim platform. I had to re-paint the swim platform because the heat of the water faded it. Mine was a 8.5-9 as well and I sold it on an Eagle Steel trailer in 2002 for 11k and it had 325 hours.

PM me if you have anyother questions as well! Good Luck.

Dave

strizzy

Thanks Dave, you guys are great! Love the pictures! Formula makes a pretty timeless looking boat, hard not to fall in love with them.

It looks like you added a swim ladder, there isn't one mounted on the bottom side of the platform?

It has thru hull, find the location a little odd, but not that troubled by it (guess it makes sense because of its size).

I think the boat needs a little TLC but nothing I haven't done before (I hope).

Thanks!
-Cory