18ft Bayrunner Monterey Bay

[lallemandc]

Hello,

I am looking at buying an 18' Bayrunner from my neighbor, and I'm wondering what I should look for. I've heard that corrosion, transom issues, and leaks are common problems with aluminum boats. 1983 hull with 60HP Evinrude outboard and 15HP Evinrude kicker (both 80s and 2-stroke). I believe it has been at least 50/50 salt water if not more.
- fish finder
- VHF radio
- compass
- anchor
- two downriggers
- a few 6-gal gas tanks

Pros:
- easy to tow
- fuel economy
- less maintenance than fiberglass
- deep V, high bow

Cons:
- rough ride (pounds waves)
- leaks
- less stability than a bigger or wider boat
- no self-bailing deck
- on the small side for the ocean

I don't mean to ask too many questions, but I'm wondering what the value of this boat is, and what kind of inshore/bay fishing it could do (San Francisco & Monterey Bays). We're going to do a sea trial soon, but this would be my first boat. Tried to include relevant pictures!

Thank you for your time.
-Chris

 

[hawkplayer32]

That’s an old hull. Not sure I’d want to be pounding it on the ocean. Pull up some floor boards and check for cracks and corrosion. I wouldn’t pay more than 5k for that boat.

 

[Steve K]

Looks familiar. Mine is an ‘85 and I power it with a 1988 Johnson 48SPL. This is a V Bow, flat bottom hull. I fish it on Crowley, even Pyramid Lake up north of Reno. Run it at about 8-10 mph when the wind comes up, and the bow rises up, I plow through the wind waves easy easy.

 

[DOGHOUSE26]

I have a 1985 Hull that I bought in 1990 with a Mariner 40HP 2 Stroke, re-powered with a 2018 Yamaha 50. Your biggest concern with the hull is galvanic corrosion. Before I re-powered I took the hull to a welding shop and spent $1k on welding up all the cracks and pinholes which were many because I always left the batteries connected which is a fatal mistake. Get the boat on the trailer on a level surface and get a hose and put 3-4" of water in it to determine how many leaks are in the hull. If it doesn't leak too bad and there aren't that many holes to fill I'd say it would be worth the welding effort. Your weather up that way is a little harsher than our average day in SoCal but they are very economical to run and the ride is not that bad. In my younger ignorant days an offshore trip as far as 30-40 miles was doable with good results on calm days. Its a great Baja Boat and I primarily use mine for lobster Hoop netting in the local Harbors and inshore fishing off the local kelp beds now. I have a 26' Blackman for my offshore needs. With 2 stroke Outboards that old I would think $5K at the most as a re-power with a 50-60HP 4 Stroke will cost $9-10K but at least you will have a dependable reliable skiff. Your Bait System could use a little work.

 

[kevina]

Depending on the condition and the repairs and repower, Not to mention re-wiring and other misc repairs, I would say $3000-$4000. P.S If you look at picture #2, It appears he already put some 5200 or something similar on the weld in the corner (from top to bottom) on the transom along with some other areas on the transom??

 

[lallemandc]

Thank you all for the information! I will look and see how much water we are taking on during the sea trial, and the owner is a cool guy- so he'd probably let me do a leak test like you suggested and maybe pull up the floorboards (it looks like some kind of grip/bedliner on top)? Will try and take some more pics of the welds on the corners of the transom and any corrosion near the bunks, etc.

I don't think I'll go out very far offshore and try to pick good days. It seems like 3-5ft swells at 10-15s intervals are pretty common conditions, and calmer in the SF Bay- but I'll see how it is when we go out.

I'll hopefully have a fishing buddy (who has owned a few boats) go with me. Thanks again for the advice!

 

[Reel Kahuna]

In the current condition, $2K tops.
If I were to consider buying it, then everything would be off loaded, inspect the empty hull then outfit it right.

 

[lallemandc]

We tried to do a sea trial today, but the harbor mouth was mostly blocked by a sandbar. We putted around the harbor and the boat was in the water for 15-20 minutes. There was already a bit of rain water in the boat, but it didn't seem to leak during that time (but we weren't out for long and didn't go very far).

The main motor doesn't seem to start well cold, but adjusting the throttle position helped it idle better once warm. I'll do a compression check before purchase!

KevinA- I looked at the transom again and it just looked like normal welds. There are little holes plugged along the sides of the hull and transom with something. Also took some pics of the underside of the hull. The spaces I saw under the seats and near the bow looked alright- no huge cracks or anything. There was one crack where the front storage area meets the hull.

Thanks again for all of the advice- I really appreciate it!

 

[DOGHOUSE26]

Blow up the 3rd pic down and you will see cracks in the rounded stiffeners on the bottom and the beginning of galvanic corrosion shown by the pinholes and blisters near the center of the hull. I would take a closer look to see if those are really cracks or scratches from putting the boat on the trailer.

 

[lallemandc]

I see what you're talking about! I will check it out on my next trip. Is the corrosion from not washing the boat off? The zinc anodes look okay. Not sure there is one on the hull, now that I think about it. Are cracks a deal-breaker, or just need repaired?

Thanks!

 

[DOGHOUSE26]

The cracks need to be welded. The pitting needs to be ground down to clean solid metal and welded. Mine was much, much worse. The welder told to me to connect the positive lead on the battery only when I'm using the boat, and disconnect it after every use. With the battery connected and water inside the boat leads to corrosion. After I had my boat welded, I installed 2 zincs on the transom and 2 zincs inside the bench in front of the console. Its been almost 2 years and I really don't see any degrading of the zincs so I don't really know if they work on the hull.

 

[bazzturd]

It looks like a pile of shit. It always pisses me off that when someone is selling something they don't take the time to clean it up. Leaves, pine needles and dirt in the hull. Probably the kind of person to be pissed if they get low balled.

 

[Mike_I]

I have to agree with buzzturd. It doesn't look well maintained which is a bad sign to me. I had the same boat years ago with a 40 mariner. Great motor, light weight easy to tow boat. The bad thing is it beat the shit out of me in bumpy conditions when the afternoon winds kicked up. For me it's good for a lake boat but not for open ocean. I thank that boat for my crushed disc and lower back surgery. After every trip my back would be killing me and same for everyone that were on the boat. Be sure to take it out in bumpy conditions for a sea trail. Regardless of where or when you fish you will hit white cap conditions.

 

[lallemandc]

Thank you all for the input! Sorry I didn't respond sooner. I have been waiting for a sea trial but continuing to shop around. I found a nice Smoker Craft center console with a 4-stroke Honda that my fishing buddy loves.

Here's a link to it:

Nice boat for sale - boats - by owner - marine sale

40 Horse 4 stroke Honda. New tires. 4 new deep cycle marine batteries. Hummingbird fishfinder, 50 Minn Kota trolling motor. 2 downriggers, seats 3 comfortably. Tagged, Pink in hand. $6000 Firm. Also...

merced.craigslist.org

It's a bit smaller but seems to have more freeboard and my buddy says they are bulletproof hulls. He thinks it is a good deal! Apparently is was an old crabbing boat for a family in Monterey. Going to check it out Saturday- what do you think?
Nobody snag it before then, please.

Again, thank you for the advice!
-Chris

 

[simmo13]

Way better. Those small honda four strokes are solid.
Just make sure u do all the valid checks as you have been it seems. Solid trailer, hull looks solid. Etc etc.