B.o.a.t.

[Tim Hancock]

Break Out Another Thousand..... Because I do not have enough hobbies or projects to work on, I decided our family needed a boat. Bought this 1995 Larson LXI 214 5.7 Alpha One Mercruiser bowrider from an old college friend's dad. It is approved to seat 13 people and came with all gear. It supposedly was in mint condition and had low hours. Well his memory was off a bit but once there to look at it, I bought it anyways. Thus far I have pulled the stern drive and replaced all the bellows, bought a different trailer as the original was found to have terminal cancer, buffed the faded gelcoat, shampooed the carpet, fixed the loose steering, fixed the trim switches, fixed the blower fan. This winter I will likely be putting in a new floor (probably stringers too). Will also be getting the rear cushions recovered. My wife's Mustang and my airplane may never get finished.

All that said, my kids and grandkids love it and we will have some fun Sundays using it on lakes in Indiana/Michigan along with the nearby Maumee River and Lake Erie. All 8 of us can sit in the back with it's u-shaped rear seating and wide width. Had 13 people (kids/adults) on it 2 weeks ago at Lake James and it pulled tubers without any trouble.

[enzo1]

[Tim Hancock]

is that your boat Enzo? What is it? Like the swim platform.

[ckelly78z]

That looks like fun. I have had too many boats over the years, and finally said no more a few years back, when it seems that I was entertaining my kids, and all of their freinds, but not having much fun myself.

30 years ago, when we were just married, I had a little 16' SeaRay, with a 60HP Evinrude, that we took out almost every weekend, with just 1 dog, and no kids. We had a blast, and it didn't cost much with $.99 gas.

Be wary of the launch ramp at Grand Rapids (Oh) into the Maumee River...talk about steep !

[pete3799]

I'm sorry......but you have entirely too many toys Tim.

[enzo1]

Originally Posted by Tim Hancock

is that your boat Enzo? What is it? Like the swim platform.

Not mine but I've had a lot of boats over the years.... big swim platforms are NICE!

[enzo1]

Make sure the bilge pump is good...don't forget to put the drain plug back in after washing

[Tim Hancock]

Originally Posted by ckelly78z

Be wary of the launch ramp at Grand Rapids (Oh) into the Maumee River...talk about steep !

Yep..... I almost lost an old car in college on that ramp in the late 80's when I was putting in an old boat a friend and I bought back then. No e-brake and my tranny would not hold in park. Was by myself launching on a weekday and tires were spinning when I tried to pull out. Luckily someone came to my aid with a 4-wheel drive truck. In somewhat recent years I had a couple Jetskis and would put them in at Lally's a little west of Grandrapids. It is closer to my house by a couple miles but is only a stone/gravel "ramp" and is into the river from the side so the current makes loading a bit more challenging.

[Tim Hancock]

Originally Posted by pete3799

I'm sorry......but you have entirely too many toys Tim.

Blasphemy! (hmmm... have you been talking to my wife?)

[sammyg2]

Cool, now you can work your tail off to make sure EVERYONE ELSE has a great time.
Could be worse, at least you still have one great day coming .......



Sorry for being so cynical.
I did the boat thing on the Colorado river for many years.

[Indescikov]

I thought it was break out another two thousand
And what would it be without the two happiest days of a boat owner's life:

[Tim Hancock]

Had to dump it into the pond to swap out old rotted bunk trailer for newer used Shoreland'r trailer. My pond ramp was barely steep enough to float it off the bunks. I found out that unlike my old jetski, a 21' boat is no fun in a 1/3 acre pond.

[ckelly78z]

Originally Posted by sammyg2

Cool, now you can work your tail off to make sure EVERYONE ELSE has a great time.
Could be worse, at least you still have one great day coming .......



Sorry for being so cynical.
I did the boat thing on the Colorado river for many years.

Nothing cynical about it...read my earlier post.

[berettafan]

sold my boat this spring.

it was an awesome fishing machine set up exactly how I like. great electronics, had great memories on that boat.

but I am not sad about it in the least.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Nice! We get more enjoyment out of our 23' Monterrey than anything else. The entire family is sad to see the season end, and can't wait for summer to come back so we can hit the lake. We have two other friends with boats, so that helps too. Really they are dirt simple, and except for access issues they aren't too bad to work on.

[Tim Hancock]

Matt, I was just browsing iboats and happened upon "onewhippedpuppy" and knew it had to be you. Lol

[gshase]

We have a Larson and it has a Lifetime hull warranty....I would check with Larson

[Tim Hancock]

Pretty sure the hull warranty started later years after the company changed owners and after they quit using plywood stringers.

[Crowbob]

Originally Posted by pete3799

I'm sorry......but you have entirely too many toys Tim.

So in the end he wins.

[sammyg2]

Originally Posted by Crowbob

So in the end he wins.

I been to the park lots of times. Never owned one.

I'd be in that john deer making the pond bigger I were him, and he's glad I'm not.