1978 20' CC Auqasport w/ 150hp Evinrude OceanPro--Opinions??

[fighting irish45]

A friend of mine has a 1978 20' Aquasport w/ 150hp Evinrude Oceanpro.  Restored with a 2yr old trailer, you will see in the pics that there were numerous upgrades to the boat.  Thinking of buying it but wanted your guys opinions on boat and price ($5,500)

[JoseGaspar]

A friend of mine has a 1978 20' Aquasport w/ 150hp Evinrude Oceanpro.  Restored with a 2yr old trailer, you will see in the pics that there were numerous upgrades to the boat.  Thinking of buying it but wanted your guys opinions on boat and price ($5,500)

What year is the motor?  Have you done a compression check on the motor?

[GoneFission]

It's a 200 CCP and the price seems OK if the motor is in good shape.  A single axle trailer is a little light for this boat - tandem axle would be preferred with 3,000+ lbs of boat and motor on it...

[fighting irish45]

Right it has a 150hp OceanPro Johnson/Evinrude, He sounds confident about the motor even said he would pay for the compression test.  The boats LOOKS light but I could be way off.  Its hard to judge weight from simply looking at the boat.  There are a few issues.  The steering cables need to be replaced because they ceased, the boat has 2 turn cables (he said he would replace them if i bought the parts).  For the Money he wants, $5,500 does anyone think he should replace it?  For 5,500 I would think this boat should be turn key or am I getting a good deal and should I just break out the money and replace it? The hose clamps need to be replaced along with the hose itself (on the scuppers) due to corrosion and water seeping back in the boat, if I plain on keeping it in a slip all season.  I grew up fishing on an aquasport, I know they are quality, durable and reliable boats.  I'm not very educated on this type an model.  I don't want to go out and buy steering cables take her out and realize I don't like how she rides.  Can anyone with this year and model boat confirm her seaworthiness?  She has cosmetic spider racks around the transom, does anyone think this is a major issue or just cosmetic?

[fighting irish45]

Can anyone else give me insight on this boat???

[jdupree]

This is my opinion since I have owned a 200 CCP.  I don't think you will dissapointed with the ride.  With the deep vee and high sides she handles very well.  The hoses on the scuppers will not be an easy job.  You are going to have to cut access panels on both sides inside the splashwell just to get to them.  They will be near about impossible to access them from the hatches.

The 200 CCP is a heavy boat for a 20 footer.  Dry weight of this hull is 1900lbs according to documentation.  This is not a light 20 footer.  As Gonefission said above, a single axle trailer is right on the borderline for this boat.  She would tow much better with a tandem.

As for the transom goes, can you post some pictures of the stress cracks on the transom?  As with all older boats (including mine), the transom will have moisture and will most likely be wet to an extent.  Is it flexing any?

As for the steering, I would knock the guy down on the price and go with hydraulic steering.  You will not battle frozen cables ever again.

Not quite sure of what has been restored on the boat, but based on what it needs I would make sure I was in the $4000.00 to $4500.00 range.  As we all know, a boat is only worth what someone will pay for it.

[fighting irish45]

JD, thanks for the reply, I can't get the pics right away.  I should have taken them from the get go and I'm kicking myself in the but for that.  They look more like cosmetic spider cracks.  I didn't realize she was that heavy, Knowing he wasn't going to have her for to long he opted to get the cheaper of the 2.  As for the scuppers, you can see he has flap scuppers in there, the starboard flap sticks out which would sink the boat.  What about these ball scuppers?  Does anyone have any experience with them?

[fitz73222]

Unfortunatley you cant have ball scuppers sticking out of the side of the boat. They stick out about 3" They work very well when used on the transom drains.

[fighting irish45]

so how do you fix the problem?

[fitz73222]

Short term you can replace those "reed" style scuppers with new ones but it may not fix the root cause. Speaking for the early 70's crowd; The floor height and drains were just to low to take care of any real weight in the stern. They would self bail without any major weight in the stern at rest. A pair of 70's was about the max weight a 22-2 could handle at rest without any additional weight in the stern. I think the later CCP's made an attempt to deal with this by slightly raising the floor and moving the drains a little further up into the hull and discharging through the gunwhales like yours. But as we all know, these boats gain weight as the years go by with the foam accumulating water, causing the effect. I would do the surgery and replace the hoses, shut offs, and fittings to make sure everything is water tight and then look at weight distribution to help her bail better. Batteries, gear, anything to lighten the load at the stern.

[Capt. Bob]

 As for the scuppers, you can see he has flap scuppers in there, the starboard flap sticks out which would sink the boat.

Not quite. :|

I'll stand corrected since I don't own a 1978 CCP. Mine's an 84 but....

The flapper valve is not factory (if I'm wrong I stand corrected). That might have been the PO's attempt to limit water from coming onto the deck when he had too much weight (think fat fishing buddies) in the stern area or was launching from a steep ramp. Plugs in the cockpit drains work very well at doing the same thing and can be removed say, if it starts to rain. Even if I'm wrong and Aqua used those in the late 70's, they were only to limit water on the deck area under those conditions and were not designed to keep water from entering the hull itself (bilge area).

CCPs drain because the water on the deck is at a higher elevation then the waterline surrounding the boat. It doesn't matter if the drain is under water or not. The water on the deck is displaced by its weight (think force of gravity) as long as it's higher than the water below it.

Now if the thru hull fittings,hose connections and the hoses themselves are compromised then yes, she'll sink like a rock.
The hull will fill (cause it is penetrated) and eventually water will awash the deck.
I believe you posted something relating to that and JD, along with others are correct in that those must be repaired so they function correctly. You do not need  (unless you wish to have) flappers, ping pong balls or any other cover over that thru hull in order for it to function correctly.

You do however need to limit the weight in the stern or
Install expandable plugs in each cockpit drain or
Learn to live with wet feet. :(

Good luck.

[fighting irish45]

thanks skipper, i don't care about wet feet. My main concern is when she is sitting at the slip by herself and say it rains or I can't get to her right away is water going to flow thru her and build up in the cockpit?  it doesn't like it will so in that sense i am happy.  I will test her out and see how bad it is.  thanks for the response

[Capt. Bob]

As long as the deck elevation is higher than the waterline and the drains are not restricted in any way, it is physically impossible for the deck not to drain.

That stated, it doesn't mean water cannot enter the bilge (below deck) due to some other reason (leaking hatch, failed sealing of deck, deck plate missing, rotting below deck hoses,failed clamps, icebergs, etc.). For that you need a proper bilge pump, charged battery and a system to start and stop the pump. This is totally separate from the deck drainage system.

Rumor has it that Aquasport "copied" the CCP deck drain system from the design Noah used on the Ark. Noah himself was known for not filling patents on most of his work so it could be true.

I'm just sayin'

[jdupree]

Your most likely culprit as Capt. Bob said are the scuppers and/or hoses.  My 200 CCP had a leaky hose or scupper on the port side.  At rest in the water, she would take on just a little water over time.  Naturally, the water from the leak would drop down in the bildge.

First thing I would do is get rid of the flapper scuppers and go back with the original.  Replace the hoses as well and seal it up good.  That was my main complaint with my 200 CCP were the wet feet in the cockpit.

[fighting irish45]

Your most likely culprit as Capt. Bob said are the scuppers and/or hoses.  My 200 CCP had a leaky hose or scupper on the port side.  At rest in the water, she would take on just a little water over time.  Naturally, the water from the leak would drop down in the bildge.

First thing I would do is get rid of the flapper scuppers and go back with the original.  Replace the hoses as well and seal it up good.  That was my main complaint with my 200 CCP were the wet feet in the cockpit.

Jd, all in all how has your experience been with the boat?  Do you like it enough to recommend it to other people or have you spent a lot of time fixing problems and maintenance?  I'm gonna be honest here I am a charter captain, I work for 2 different charter companies.  I was never a boat owner, I run and fish a lot of different boats from 19ft to 55ft.  I spend a lot of time on boats but when it comes to maintenance I do what a lot (cleaning, bottom paint, wax, installing pumps, some epoxy work, oil changes, filter changes) I have never done much motor, glass, etc. work.  Not to say I can't.  Both companies could use someone with a nice 20' CC with back bay ability and on nice days out front fishing.  I could have an opportunity to do well for myself.  obviously I would have to get the motor checked and pressured tested.  

Do you think the boat (I'm assuming you have the same make boat) is good for that?

Thanks for helping me out JD