2000 18.5 MA restoration project - potentially for sale

[whichwaysup]

Hey all - 

I may be selling my 2000 18 MA, which is currently in the process of going through a restoration.   I've just crossed the "break even" point with this boat, and to finish the project will cost me about 10K more to do it right.  If I go forward, I'll be 10K underwater with the boat, and 10K is a lot of money when you have 5 kids you need to put through college.   I might decide to do it anyway, because I love the boat and if I bought another boat, I would be looking for exactly this same one.   If I decide to sell it, I'll just go boatless for awhile.

So, here's what you're looking at if you want to take this on:

When I bought this boat 2 years ago, it was in nearly pristine condition.  It had hardly been used at all.  That fact hid a lurking issue of a manufacturing defect in the way that the port stringer was bonded to the hull in the stern.   I used the boat 2-3 times a week for the first year and one day discovered a small, hairline crack running along a chine directly under the stringer.  This crack penetrated the hull and allowed water to pass from inside the hull (I filled it up to test this) to the outside.   It took very little time to realize that the cause was that the stringer had delaminated.   Since that discovery, I've had work done to begin remediating the issue.  I had the rear deck cut (just aft of the cockpit) and the entire deck removed to provide access.  The area around the stringers was ground down, the stringers were extended to connect into the transom, and the entire area was reinforced.  Drainage holes were provided to allow water to get from the area outside of the stringers into the bilge.   The shop that did that work stopped making progress, so I eventually gave up on them and paid them for the work done so far.   I've had another boat repair shop look over the work and they agreed that the work done was quality work and agreed with the plan to extend the stringers as we did them.   

As of right now, the rear deck has not been re-attached, so anyone who wants to take this on will have full view of the work done, and full access to the entire rear third of the hull from the inside.   The exterior crack has not yet been addressed.   Additionally, I have installed new throttle/shifter cables, have purchased new bilge and livewell pumps, and have purchased stainless steel through-hull fittings, all waiting to be installed.   

To finish the boat the way I want to (re-wire, VERY careful process to re-attach the rear deck, re-do plumbing, trim, and re-rig with most, if not all, new hardware, I'll be lucky to spend 10 grand.   Based on what I have in the boat, and what I would expect the value to be once complete, that amount will put me about 10 grand underwater (pardon the pun).   

The boat is in excellent shape cosmetically.  The gelcoat has very little oyster rash, and is in excellent shape.    The fuel tank (poly) has been checked out and, by all accounts, there is no reason to replace it.    The engine (year 2000, Yamaha OX66 150) is in phenomenal shape.  It had about 400 hrs when I purchased it, and I have no idea how many hours I put on it in the first year I owned it.  I haven't used the boat since January of last year.  The boat would come with the following equipment (plus all the various parts)

- 80# Thrust 24V Ipilot Trolling motor

- Lowrance HDS 7 with side scan transducer

- Pushpole (pretty basic version)

- 3 tempress seats

- Full, very much custom sumbrella cover (best cover fit I've ever seen)

- Trailer (springs and lights replaced last year)

I'll attach pics shortly, but you can find the restoration thread on this boat in the general section and see the work done to date, and I have pics of her in the Vintage Maverick photos section.   

Again, I'm not 100% certain I'll sell her, it is physically painful to even write this up, but if I do sell her, I will be asking for $10,000, which includes everything listed above.   That puts the new owner right at the current value that these have been going for, with a boat that will have new wiring, and will be in very secure and certain structural shape for years to come.  

If you are interested in this, or know someone who is, PM me and we can talk through it further.   I'm an honest guy and I'll make sure you know exactly what you are getting.  I'm expecting the full estimate for the completion of the project late next week, and that will probably be the final deciding point on which direction I go.  

Pics and links below:

Here are some pics of her:

 

 

 

Here is the repair thread

 

[mulligan]

Sorry to hear about the snag on the rebuild and even thinking of having to part ways with it after all you have been through with the boat.  You kids are very lucky to have a father willing to part ways with his dream boat.

Now go tell your kids that the first one to get a full ride to college gets to have the boat when they get their degree!  I just saved you $75k+ which should easily finish the boat and buy another when you have to give up the one you have now.  You are welcome

[whichwaysup]

Thanks for the kind words, Mulligan.   We'll see what happens.   I suspect that there are other boat repair shops that would do this work for much less than this one, but after going with a less expensive option that turned out to be very unreliable, I'll either go with the best (and most expensive) in town, or not do it at all.   The guy who's looking at it now is the guy I originally wanted to do the work, but I couldn't afford it, and wasn't convinced it was worth it.   Nearly a year of headaches trying to get this other shop to finish the work taught me a valuable lesson.   There's more to a shop than the quality of their work - reliability is a big deal.  

For all you praying types out there, if you could whisper a quick prayer up for me I'd appreciate it.  I'd really like to keep this thing and restore it, but if the estimate comes in high, that won't be an option.   

[JEM]

I got gray hair over years and years while learning the cold hard truth that many, many times, the cheapest morphs into the most expensive in the long run when dealing with botes!

I hope and pray that the Maverick figures out a way to get back on the water with you still the Captain!