1996 Javelin 409/ 225 Venom, worth fixing up?

[marshmandan]

I'm sure you guys probably get tired of hearing basically the same question from noobs like me, but I need a little guidance here.

I was planning on buying my first bass boat and have been looking at different used rigs for the last few months and I have found what I think may be what I'm looking for.

The boat is a 1996 409 Javelin single console with a 1996 Johnson Venom 225.

The boat needs the carpet and seats replaced badly and has the usual stress cracks. It also has no electronics or trolling motor. It has Seastar Hydraulic steering that was added last year and it sits on a tandem axle trailer with brakes and decent tires, but no spare. For its age the trailer seems to be in very good shape. It also has a 6" manual jackplate.

The motor is really in surprising shape for its age. The oil injection has been removed so its running pre-mix, and the tilt and trim seem to work just fine. I did not write the numbers down, but compression on all cylinders was between 110 and 115 lbs. From what I gather that is pretty good and a bit on the high side for these motors. The prop is s three blade stainless that is like new.

The boat is at a small dealer who happens to be an acquaintance of my Uncle and he's asking $5600 for it. I don't mind doing carpet and seats and having to add a trolling motor and electronics doesn't bother me too much either since it allows me to get what I want to start with.

My question to you guys is this, whats a fair price? I was thinking if I could get it out the door for 5K I'd be good to go.


Modified by marshmandan at 8:32 AM 4/6/2010

[rooster tail]

if its not mechanically sound Id go a little lower on the price. Sounds like it was a trade in and the dealer trying to make a little on it. jmo

By the way welcome to BBC

[ep72]

Buy as cheap as you can, cause your gonna have to spend some money on it.Just make sure the motor and transom are sound.

[marshmandan]

I agree on getting it as cheap as possible, I'd say we all try to do that whenever we can. One thing that hurts here is the time of year. I wanted to do this in late January, but got screwed over by a former friend so it put me behind schedule.

I've figured on:
Carpet--$250
Seats---250-300
Trolling motor---600-800
electronics--- $500

Total---$1850

So I suppose I'd have close to 7K in it at that point.

As for the motor, it looks almost spotless underneath the hood, with what I would consider less than normal wear. He claims it runs very strong. We agreed to take it out and run it, I just want to have a number in mind. My first thought was to offer him $4600, but I seriously doubt he'd go down that low.

[ep72]

Being this is your first bass boat im trying to help you.......on a boat that old, think about new batteries, bilge and live well pumps and hoses, gauges, onboard charger, look the electrical system over good, trlr tires, etc..........things can add up quick and you can sink a small fortune in an older boat.

[cubswin]

I think the price is too high for a 14 year old boat needing almost 2k of work. Be a good boat without a doubt, but at that 7K range you can find some not needing work more than likely.

also think your low on the electronics when you factor in batteries, and for 500 you are getting one lower end graph. If you go with BW you could find one for 200, but you'll more than likely wished you got color and gps in a year or less.