Thinking about buying a boat 1300 miles away from me.was gonna have the boat surveyed and then shipped.any tips someone can give me on how to go about this.very concerned about paying out 50g and not seeing it until it hits my driveway.

Fly out and look at it yourself. Over the years I've found out my idea of 'great condition' is light years away from many.

i bought one, and it wasnt what was said, rug was worn, hell it was ripped up, and motor blew in less that 1 your use, i had to take legial action, i paid for about half of the repairs . go look at

What he said. You can also just have it surveyed...or just do a post on here to ask for help in the area. Many times I have seen where members have gotten someone from the area of the boat go and look at a boat for them.

I bought my 31' Cigarette sight unseen from Oklahoma and it turned out awesome. I also had someone go look at an old Vette for me in Wisconsin (Thanks again Little Tommy!!) and that turned out good as well.

I bought my last one 1200 miles away based on having Ed Cozzi survey it. With all these members, someone on here is close enough to give it a look for you, but that's no substitute for a survey.

i bought 2 long distance. one was an ebay deal with no motor, so i had no expectations. actually surprised with all the other crap that came with it.

on another boating forum i go to, people ask other members to look at the boat for them. thats what i did. just posted in the appropriate part of the country. a couple guys emailed back and went to look at the boat. they gave me the ok and suggested a local surveyor. only then did i fly down . i met with the surveyor, bought the guys some beers and it turned out great. wound up buying the boat. i might be naive, but i figure if someone takes the time to read up on boats and forums they have to be a step above your regular joe. just put a posting up in the region you want to buy in.

I simply did not pay until I picked it up in person. Checked it out, ran it, etc. Brought the cashiers check with me, paid and towed it home. 1300miles.

I bought two long distant boats. I didn't learn my lesson on the first one. I spent a ton on both, go look and run it in the water under load, I would not buy another one unless I ran it. Sometimes motors run great on a hose, then when you go out and sea trail you have problems. It is your money spend it wisely.

DO NOT do that .... go look ....
As stated ..first if its convienent for a member to go look... do that first ...
then either a survey and last go look/sea trail ...... or go look and if all seems ok to you ( you like it) then have it surveyed ..m

where is it ?

If you can afford 50g, spending a day of your time and a round trip ticket is chump change.