I fell for the the old "It worked the last time I had the boat out" line!

[TheMan90241]

I'm embarrassed to say, I fell for the oldest trick in the book when it comes to buying a used boat. Me and a friend went 50-50 on a used 1987 Champion bass boat to save a few bucks. When we purchased the boat, the most important thing to us was a good motor and hull. I'm proud to say we did well in that department. The motor started easily and had good compression across the board. However, we knew there were some calculated risks that we had to take. For example, the speedometer, the bilge pump, the impeller, etc... We expected to replace much of the electronics and some mechanical items. We asked about the livewell system. The previous owner said, "It worked the last time I had the boat out in the summer." Ok, it was obvious it wasn't working at the time we bought it, but this guy's B.S. statement about it working last summer was just F---ing ridiculous. I just removed the gas tank today to replace some more livewell plumbing and what I saw JUST TICKED ME OFF!!! We all fudge a little on the condition of our stuff when selling it, but look at the picture of the livewell control valves I pulled out of the boat. These things haven’t worked in years! I was angry at first, but then I just started laughing hysterically. They were rusted so badly, the crap inside that was blocking the flow of water was suspended from the center, because the metal housing was completely rusted away and gone. This Gypsy just straight out lied with a smile. Needless to say, he changed his cell phone number a couple weeks after we purchased the boat. If you plan to sell your boat, please don't be a jerk like this guy and lie, lie, lie. We would have bought the boat anyway, but it would have been nice to know in advance the amount of work I had to look forward to.

I'm still happy overall with the boat and have already got a couple successful fishing trips under my belt. When I'm all done with the reconditioning, I will be posting a detailed thread with plenty of pictures on the boat in a few weeks.

[Carnivore]

Well sorry you had this issue but as long as you are still happy with the boat you are set. Good thing you know how to do this yourself that saves some serious bucks.

[grantar2]

It happens, at least a livewell isn't the expensive part of the boat. Seems sort of crappy the manufacture would use parts that could rust like that in a water environment. My one recommendation would be to change out the water pump on the outboard as fast as you can. They are always failure points but my guess is that might not have gotten much attention either.

[phishy]

no idea why your upset..a few drops of some WD-40 and that sucker will work fine..

[ironman]

what part of cali did you get the boat from

[TheMan90241]

Got it from a guy who lived in Lakewood but stored the boat in Victorville.

[ironman]

does yor boat have both live wells conected to each other and just seperated by a screen or are they to seperate live wells

[mochosla]

Originally Posted by phishy

no idea why your upset..a few drops of some WD-40 and that sucker will work fine..

That was funny Mitch.

Honestly, I wish the live well had been the biggest problem my previous boat had when I bough it. The guy told me to my face, "you can take your family to Catalina on this boat NO PROBLEM". First trip, one of my wheels starts smoking. Had to put bran new brakes, rotors etc. Second trip. the motor has a knock under weight. I had to replace the engine!! This is a guy who lives in Huntington Beach with a huge house and his own slip. He is loaded. When I confronted him, he straight out lied "there was nothing wrong with the boat". Live and learn!!

Honestly, your problem with the bait tank is a minor thing. I'm glad you can fix it and not pay $500 for someone else to do it.

Good luck!!

[TheMan90241]

Hey Ironman. They are two separate wells. One under the middle bench seat and the other in a forward hatch on the bow. They are interconnected in the most confusing configuration of hoses and valves I have ever seen. I'm still working out the bugs for tournament use, but making progress. I will post pictures someday when all the work is done. I did have it out today after a power tune on the dyno. I sure wish my speedometer worked, because I was doing over 50 mph, maybe even 60 mph with two adults and a 13 year old aboard. The 175hp Black Max is screaming like never before.

[ironman]

hu mabye the previous owner went in the ocean
other than that nice 50-60 with 3 people