Some advise

[riverman]

Considering purchasing a 1969 19ft mako. Very clean and in good shape. Myr first experience with a mako and cautious what to look for. Original fuel tank, hull is clean, floor seams solid, transom is solid. Equipped with 1983 115hp Mercury and 1986 shoreline galvinized trailer. $4500.00

Comments?

[mubikS]

I paid $1500 for my 1971 Mako 17 with good galv trailer and rebuilt 75hp Suzuki. It did, however need work (paint, some fiberglass repair. solid transom, but deck could stand replacing). ok, so this offers absolutely no comparison.

I'd say thats a little much for a boat and motor that old. Is the motor recently rebuilt? Do you at least have maintenance records? Have a mechanic check the motor for compression, etc. Make sure you have titles for both boat and trailer. After paying I found that the seller had no title for the trailer. I live on the water, so that's not a big deal, but if you are gonna be taking the trailer anywhere far and dont have a utility trailer you can grab the plates off of or dont have a "community" plate that is swapped amongst neighbors, you'll want the title. I'd jump on $3K for that boat, but 4500 seems a little much.

[riverman]

quote:

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Originally posted by mubikS


I paid $1500 for my 1971 Mako 17 with good galv trailer and rebuilt 75hp Suzuki. It did, however need work (paint, some fiberglass repair. solid transom, but deck could stand replacing). ok, so this offers absolutely no comparison.

I'd say thats a little much for a boat and motor that old. Is the motor recently rebuilt? Do you at least have maintenance records? Have a mechanic check the motor for compression, etc. Make sure you have titles for both boat and trailer. After paying I found that the seller had no title for the trailer. I live on the water, so that's not a big deal, but if you are gonna be taking the trailer anywhere far and dont have a utility trailer you can grab the plates off of or dont have a "community" plate that is swapped amongst neighbors, you'll want the title. I'd jump on $3K for that boat, but 4500 seems a little much.

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Hey thanks for your input. I accutately thought the price was fair, but you gave me something to think about. I think thisis the second or third owner. The boat hasn't been keep in the water, trailer all the time. I am taking it out on THursday for a test drive.
Good luck to you and thanks again

[mubikS]

thats actually a very good idea... i didnt have a chance to test drive mine. it had been sitting for a while after having been stripped and primed... so my boat is a major project. if the boat you speak of is clean and turnkey, 4500 may not be a bad deal. if you have a choice, take your test run in nasty weather... not rain, but definitely some good seas. you should be confident that the motor is strong enough to push you through some slop and back home again. dont baby the motor during the test, because you sure as hell wont when you own the damn thing. gun it, slam it back to idle, and over again. if you have a boat, you inevitably will have new friends who will do just that to it.

furthermore, look in your local classifies and try to price the trailer separately. say for instance, you find a comparable trailer for 1000 or 1500. then say for instance you try to find comparable used or new electronics (fish finder or gps and VHF at least... i work at a marina and get absolutely livid when these silly freshwater bowriders come in for fuel with no VHF) for around 500 bucks. so now we are looking at finding a 19ft and motor for around 2000. not terribly unreasonable. basically, when you are buying a hull that old you are really buying only the motor... so if the hull is in good shape, and a 115 is a very good motor for that boat. then consider any additionals... i still have to buy running lights and cleats and guages and paint and more paint and truckloads of sandpaper and epoxy by the cubic meter and and and and and...

if you are buying a boat that seems "close" to turnkey, do nothing less than go over it with a pad and paper and list everything you would need to make it so, then go to BoatUS or West Marine and price it out. "Close" often errs on the side of a grand or many many many weekends.

as a matter of fact, where is this boat? [][][}]

[slim]

I looked a long time to find the Mako that suited my needs an it was a 1985 17' with a 1985 90hp Johnson. It has a vhf radio,Raytheon L750 fish finder, a top, anchor, flip ice chest seat the boat was loaded. the only thing it didn't have was a trailer. My needs were that i wanted to be able to pull my 5th wheel an my boat at the same time.

I had to make a road trip thow. 900 miles one way to get it. the boat wasn't brand new but it wasn't beat to shit. 19 years of fish pullen has a way of showing up. on a scale of 1 to 10 my boat is a bout a 8.5 I was happy when I saw it

Boat 2800.00

road trip 400.00

other stuff 250.00

trailer had 000.00

total 3450.00

now I will spend more money as time passes thats me thow. I Could double my money easy if I choose to sell it tomorrow. becouse makos are hard to come by down here

Ever one has to feel that what they spend on a toy is in their happy place.

That amount of money for that age boat you better damn well make sure it puts you in that happy place pretty damn high.

[hdavis]

Riverman,

Take into consideration that the market for Mako's in the Northeast is generally higher than elsewhere. I would say that as long as everything checks out ok and needs no major work right off the bat, I would say you are not going to do much better. I looked pretty hard in the area and found that anything below that price range in a 19' or 20' generally needed some TLC.

Another thing to consider is having it surveyed for around $300. This will sometimes give you the extra piece of mind.

Just my .02

Good Luck,

HD

[makorider]

$4500 is a bit high IMO. That engine, an '83 should be considered worthless...and the hull IS a '69. If that transom hasnt allready been replaced, I think you can bank on that coming up soon. I know my 17 transom was soaked when I sold it, and read on:

My buddy just picked up a '69 19 out of cape may this past winter. Paid $3K, that was with trailer, radio, POS humminbird sounder, and a '96 or '97 Rude 130. Granted, he had to put money into the transom as it was real soft when he bought it, but his engine being a relatively late model still has value.

For that rig, personally, I wouldnt go over 3-3250....I've seen more than a few later model 19's with much newer power going in the 5K range here in south Jersey.

[hdavis]

Riverman,

By any chance is this boat in a yard in Stamford somewhere?