Need help,I'm looking at a buying a sea ray 250 cuddy cabin

[Jeffery edwards]

Hi everyone,I'm am currently thinking about upgrading to a 1986 sea ray 250 cuddy cabin with twin 4.3 v6. The guy is asking 2000 Obo he says it will need battery's and a good tune up.it has not been in the water since mid 2013.I'm going to go look at it next week,I'm new to sea rays and have always had aluminum boats.is there anything I should check or be aware of?thank you in advance

 

[dvx216]

Structure and transom for rot , bellows probably need replaced, fuel tank full of varnish will need cleaned, hoses on motors, if in the north has it been winterized cracked blook, if it's been sitting on a messed up trailer hull might be swayed, All depends on how it was stored if it was sitting in his back yard sunk to it's axles with it's mooring cover on it and now it's a mushroom and mold farm you are wasting your money. if you see any tea stains under any attachment point that is a sign of rot. I sold my 1988 230 weekender for $ 7500 for $2000 you will be doing more then a tune up to get her right again.

 

[Boater420]

Welcome to CSR!

Walk the deck in bare feet and feel for soft spots around the hatches or up by the anchor locker. Look inside the boat for small black spots (mold) in your headliner, near the hatches.

Look for water lines on the carpeting inside the cabin. This will tell you if it filled up with water while it sat. Check the engine room for rust lines on the motor and the overall condition of the motor. A lot of surface rust on the motors will tell you if it's been full of moisture.

If you're not going to survey it, you can buy a moisture meter relatively cheap. Test the stringers and deck for excessive moisture. If you have a high level of moisture it's not worth it to do anything to the boat as it's rotten under the fiberglass.

These old boats left unused for years can rack up a lot of expenses quickly. I'd be very careful not to spend any money until you're sure the motor will even turn over and start. Borrow a battery and see if it turns over first. Check the oil, if it looks milky don't bother going any further unless you're ready to put a new engine in her.

There's a lot of threads from people restoring old boats on this forum. Read through a few of them and see the challenges they faced along the way. It might deter you from buying an older boat.

Good luck, if you decide to move forward, post pics. I love to watch an old boat brought back to life.

 

[bobeast]

Just remember. There is no such thing as a cheap boat. $2000 is likely just the down payment on what you will end up spending.