SWEET! boat. I'd pay 129K for it if it didn't need any work. I wouldn't worry about the motors just cause their non-merc. Those carbed engines are very simple and easy to work on and NEW. I also favor the straight hull over the step. Very forgiving.....I'm not always the best driver after a long day on the water and tabs/drives pumps don't always work right Just my .02

you got it tank

Tony, in that first pic, the way the water is breaking off the hull amidships, almost makes it look like a TS!

Are those shorties on your boat?

BTW, great pics!

Sweet shots TS

LS

not water...check pic #2

Nice spot Sean. Shoulda picked that up!

Awesome shot!!

Beautiful pics Tony.

I'm thinking about getting into a used Top Gun and have little experience in the performance boat sector. Does anybody have any strong pros or cons for 525 or 575 Mercs? How long will those motors actually run? Also, what does a complete engine/drive rebuild cost for that setup. I figure with looking at boats around 250-300 hours they need to be completely gone through correct? Thanks for the advice ahead of time.

This 38 was like new very very clean boat its headed to NJ sold for $165K

Does anybody have any strong pros or cons for 525 or 575 Mercs? pros of the 575 is it's faster and can be upgraded easier to more power, cons more expensive to maintain because of supercharger rebuilds and 91 octaine fuel. Both are great motors but 525 is more popular because if closed cooling, 87 octaine and near same speed. I'd own a boat with either had one with a 575 and had 0 problems with it.

Also owned boats with 350 mag, 454 Mag MPI, Merc 525sc's and my current boat has 500 EFIs. I've had little to no problems with any merc motor.

How long will those motors actually run? Depends but with maintenance and freshing of valve trane at the proper times 700 hours is not unhead of, also depends on fresh or salt water.



Also, what does a complete engine/drive rebuild cost for that setup.for a complete rebuild, including pumps, hoses, couplers, injectors, boring yadda and so on $10-$15K a motor. If your only going to reuse the block, oil pan and intake, you'll be at the $15K number. Good refresh half that.

I figure with looking at boats around 250-300 hours they need to be completely gone through correct? Probably not depending. You likely will need some head work. Lower ends likely may be solid as a rock. Depends on the prior owners. You may buy a 125 hour motor and have find it to be roached out because of poor care.