first post - first boat - question about hrs
 

Hi everyone. Been lurking for years, finally decided to sign up. I've been around boats my whole life, enjoy them, work on them, now have enough saved up to buy one. Now for the question. My buddy has a 1989 baja 235 force in super nice shape. He takes extremely good care of it and has owned it for around 15 years. Its got the black 454 mag stock engine besides captains call exhaust, with a stock bravo one. Besides regular maintenance and religiously I should add. The engine has never been opened up. Its got just shy of 1000 hrs on it. Runs like a top and doesn't burn oil. Ive been on the boat, out on the lake and it rides nice and smooth. Its got a ton of upgrades like stereo, gaffrig gauges, ss 4 blade lab finished prop, interior is in super shape as is hull and paint. For the most part besides small things the boat needs nothing. Hes asking 10k for it, he'll give it to me for $9250. Im only worried about the hrs and how much longer before I have to sink in more money to build a 496 stroker. Any input is extremely appreciated. Thanks in advance.

It is 24 years old, has a lot of hours, is underpowered and it has never been run at WOT in all that time :rolleyes: ? It might run high 50s but that is just a guess. It's overpriced. Keep looking.

Many on here seem to think all older boats are worth more as parts than as whole boats. In many cases thats true. If the boat is turn key and exceptionally clean, I would be a buyer at $6-7k.

many good deals out there for much less. I'm sure your buddy's boat is nice but with that many hours I wouldn't want to plan on that power running for more than a couple years. Many out there with much fresher power. although thats not always a good thing.

Thanks so much for the input. That's all I keep hearing locally as well. Way to many hours for that price. Something is going to give in the engine, then gonna have to sink in at least 5k more for a rebuild.

Yep I have to agree. 6-7K boat at best.

I have a buddy with 1300 hours on a 311 with 365 mags, she runs perfect, lower hp engines can go a ton of hours if they were taken care of, I do however think any more then 5-6000 I would be buying a lower hour/bigger/newer boat

A little high on the price. We had a 94 Caliber with the 454 Mags. Nice motors. One started burning oil at about 500 hours. So definately will need a rebuild soon. Keep shopping there are ALWAYS good deals out there. Keep an eye out on craigslist. Boats like that always seem to appear. Where are you boating at?

congrats on saving and buying youre first . better keep saving . since youve been a,lurcker . you know what the word boat means . enjoy, boats are kool .personally 9250 dont buy much . theres always 454 around pretty cheap besides . if you know the history . everythinfg is in good condition . its worth 9250.00. run an oil analist on it .

+1 - OP, you just listed a couple of thousand in upgrades on the boat. You know the owner, the boat. If you trust the owner, buy it. If you don't, then don't. It's not like your going to pay WAY over what it is worth who don't know.

But.........Pay attention to how he operates it and takes care of it. If he babies it and you jump in and start slaming throttles as hard as you can, then you will most likely Break Out Another Thousand or five.

Yeah, 9250 seems high. But knowing the history of the boat can mean a lot! What is the bottom like? What about the stringers and transom, that is huge. has it sat in the water or been a trailer queen taken out on the weekends and then put back indoor storage? Solid wood in the boat and good vinyl can mean a lot. If you are comfortable with pulling a motor and rebuilding it, knowing everything else is solid isn't bad then. Trust me, I thought I found a "deal", HA!!!!

What do you think will go wrong on the boat first and then see if you think you can tackle it.

Also talk to your buddy and be honest that your torn. You like the boat, think it is worth owning but worried about getting burned. If he puts it on the market, let him know you have the first offer on it in a certain range that you are comfortable with. If it sells for more, good for him. If it doesn't, is he willing to consider selling for less? You have to be willing to lose the boat, otherwise pay him what he wants.
Be Patient!!!!!

Brian

Thanks again for all the input. I have had a few weeks to think it over. I still want the boat but can't bring myself to drop over 9k on it when the engine could fail this summer, or it could last a few seasons. It's a hard gamble to take. I have my eye on an 89 seebold eagle 236 with the 454 bravo 1 setup. It's about an hour away from me and looks real good. For 8k obo I may have to check it out.

I read it that the engines had never been opened up...as in the intake has never been off.

I hope that no one would believe that a boat has never been run WFO. It just doesn't happen! :D

Yeah I guess the way I wrote that, it could be taken either way. What I meant was they have never been torn into mechanically. Bone stock on 1000 hrs. It has been opened up wot many times but not left there. It is also stored at a dock in fresh water all season. Up here (upstate ny) that's not too long. Prolly 5 months at a rip.