Thinking of Purchase - 1998 252 Opinions?
 

Thinking about purchasing a 1998 BAJA 252. Looks good so far from the pictures. 454 MAG with 50 hours. Eagle trailer, drop down bolsters (not sure if these were an option or standard on this boat?).

Whats everyone think? Im look for a quick runabout, something for my wife and I and a couple friends. Eventually take the kids out. Plan to do some water sports, wakeboard, tube.

Anything specific to look out for on this model? (XT I know you'd know)

What's a fair price?

Thanks for the help!

Transom and stringer ROT. How many hours on the hull (and everything else)?

Transom, and Stringer Rot!.....also soft spots in the battery platforms, or cockpit floor around bolsters. Tap out the bottom for delamination. Skeg condition, and spin prop to see if shaft is bent at all. Pull bottom drain plug just enough to drain some lube on drive before running it. White/milky lube is not good. Gimbal bearing whine, and anything else you can think of.

XT

I'm a little confused. Is this boat known for rot or delamination problems? I need to go look at the boat, only seen pictures so far, but looks pretty clean already.

Wouldn't be my first boat so I know to look for the usual stuff, milky oil, knocks, ticks, that type of stuff.

Is there anything more specific with the 252 to watch out for?

Was the 252 a generally well made Baja? XT what do you think about the boat compared to an H2X or Hammer, generally looking for that a ~22-25' cuddy.

It dosn't seem like there are a lot of 252s out there, any reason?

Any boat can rot, underneath all that pretty gel coat is plywood. Any screw or bolt not sealed perfectly can rot the entire transom. I just rebuilt mine last year, it never sat in the water and always dry stored. The screws on the trim tabs leaked and rotted about half the transom to mulch. Take a rubber mallet with you and tap around on the outside. If its bad you will tell a difference in sound. A moisture meter also works well. Good news is I raised the x dim up 3" and gained about 4 MPH, put it back together better than new.

Andrew right?

The 252 is a great model, one of my all time favorites. 1998 is more the issue, because in all the years after SR had the company, that year was the highest number of boats produced (1,970 boats) compared to (854) boats in 2007.

If you are only running small inland lakes in MI. the Hammer/H2x is a better choice for having a fun driving boat, but if you plan on running Lake Michigan, Erie, or St. Clair, get the 252 for sure.

There were (92) - 252's built in 98' compared to (170) - 272's. The cost on the BOM, and dealer pricing was so close that it made the 272 more popular.

XT

The H2x is a fast hull, but its not a very big boat. Not as deep and wide, also the cuddy is really small. The 252 is much bigger but not as fast, power for power.

Caught
 

Alright, alright you caught me. Yep it's Andrew.

How are things in Bucyrus? I follow the XT progress and it looks like things are going well - great to see that!

I ran across this 252, was looking at a Hammer X, or 247 but both are way out of price for me. Also thought about a 1st gen P22, but can across this 252 and thought why not.

Anything you didn't like about the 252? I would be using it on Lk. St. Clair and Huron once in a while.

How should it run with the 454?

Not to hijack your thread, but would you happen to know how many 272's were manufactured in 1996? Just curious!

208 of the 272's in 1996

Thanks! Is there somewhere online to find that info by year, or it's just info you have? Also, is there a way to find out specific numbers of specific configurations, Boss packages, Anniversary editions, stuff like that?

It is on BBO, BajaBoatOwners.com. I didn't see any of that info. It does show how many 272 islanders, 272, and shooters per year. Along with all the other models built by Baja. Glad to help.

To bad there was nobody left to fill-in the 2008 (HALF YEAR) numbers....I guess the guard did not have that information. LOL

Where is this boat located....I think I'm interested in it?

A 454 Mag MPI is a great engine in that boat, just as good as the 502 MPI. Low to mid 60's.

XT

Id pick the 252 in a heartbeat over the rest of those. Decent cockpit & cuddy for overnighting, mid sized-easy to tow and most importantly (to me) they have really held on to their value over the years. The 247 was actually a fun little boat if you are into open bows.

I have mine for sale locally but have not put it on here or boat trader cause it cost money.

None of thos problems talked about, boat is Turn key, trailer is ready for long hauls too.

http://hsvracing.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=43876

I bought mine new in March '98 and still love it. It's a great all-around boat and I can't think of anything specific that I would consider an issue.

Price???
 

What's a fair price for this boat?

It looks clean, and has 50 hours on the engine.

I haven't found many out there for sale, and It's still a buyers market. I have seen a couple nearing the $30,000 range, but this seems wayyy over priced?

What's everyone think?

:( - 252 is a no go
 

The boat is a repo at Harrison Marine In Michigan.

So I looked at the boat last night. It was near perfect. Only one scratch in the gel, no stress cracks that I could find anywhere. Very clean, only needed a good scrubbing. Perfect boat for what we are looking for.

Then I got home, luckily I haden't put my bid in yet. My wife informed me that a friend of a friend of a friend had posted about a Baja on Facebook. Well I went to take a look and the post went like this "just bid on a Baja for 24000" Well they way outbid what I could afford for this boat so its a no go.

Thanks for all the help up until now.

Hello,

I know this is an older post relative to the 1998 Baja 252. I am considering looking at one to purchase. However the posts relative to transom and stringer rot has me very concerned. I believe also XT-Innovator is/was a Baja employee so all your opinions are very important to me.

I also have a 34' Silverton Express and when I was researching boats in this size I found out mid to late 80's Wellcraft 32' and 34' cruisers were notorious for stringer rod.

My question; does the 1998 Baja 252 have the same reputation for stringer and transom rot. My concern is not only making sure I get a good boat, but if I decide to re-sell it will it be a hindrance with a rot reputation?

Thank you in advance for any help you can provide, it is greatly appreciated.

Jim

Jim, I worked for Baja from 84' to 2008 when it was closed in Ohio. I think your rot concern should be no more for the Baja 252 than almost any boat from any builder in the 90's. I think it has more to do with the history of the boat rather than how they are built. Any boat that has wood in the construction has the possibility of rot if it sat for any long periods with a bilge full of water, or from sitting in the water with holes that were not sealed proper. Tap Test: on the 252 (or any boat) do a tap test on the whole boat but check the transom first. The cutout for the gimbal only has a thin coating of sealer after the cutout was made and that makes it difficult to seal that area if there was a bilge full of water at any time. Start by taking a small hammer, or even the handle of a screw driver and tap the transom corner. That same solid sound needs to be on the entire transom and you will hear a difference and feel it if there is rot, or a hollow spot. Don't bang on it like your driving a nail, just hold the hammer about 1" of surface and tap it and the hammer will bounce off when solid and stick with a hollow thud where it may be rotted. Check close to the dive cutout and anything mounted or drilled through the transom. Next tap the bottom running surface to see if there is any delamination with the balsa cored bottom. This is a little more rare to find problems unless you find any bottom damage that water could have entered into the coring. Last is to check the engine compartment by tapping the engine stringers and the battery platforms. If you can sick your fingers in any drain holes you can see and feel for flaking wood particles. Cockpit wood floors is another place to check by just walking on every spot you can. Cabin stringers can also rot, but if the boat has passed all the other testing it is most likely to be fine. A moisture meter is another great tool if you know someone in the boat repair business, or a boat inspector. I hope this helps!

I have had guys that wanted to start a boat right away when I go to look at one and I do the tap testing first, and then I say ok let's hear it run. Last year I bought a 1986 Baja 220 Sport that passed the transom, bottom, and stringer test, but it had a soft spot in the wood cockpit floor that I am willing to fix on my own.

XT

Thank you XT for the advice. I just looked at a 1997 252, beautiful boat. It passed the tap test. However, when I was under the boat I noticed a row of blistering on the gelcoat. It was probably 3" wide and about 8' long. There were a lot of blisters. Perhaps 10 had completely peeled off, a lot were cracked and the rest were just blisters. I'm trying to find out how much of a problem this is and what will it take to fix it. Your advice would be greatly appreciated. I have photos, but don't know how to post them. Thanks again