Brough home an '89 Supra Priatta. Ugh what have I done.....

For many years I have wanted an Inboard ski boat. When I was 16 I bought a '67 correct craft with a I/O four cylinder. We had fun with it. But I then noticed that the inboards were a lot better. Now 30 years later I thought I would buy one I another boat. I found this piratta on Craigslist and went and looked at it. Totalled my car on the way up there last weekend to look at it. Went back up with my truck this weekend and brought it home on rotten tires and all. Took it straight to a restoration shop thinking I would have him check it out and see what he would charge. Well he was nice enough but a little crazy. He wanted 10 grand to do from the stringers up. I was think more like get it on the water this year and down the road put more money into it. I left it at his shop for him to evaluate. He said he would have to pull the carpet and some of the floor to give me a better idea of the stringers condition.

But after I got home, I decided he was a high pressure sales man. So I brought the boat back home to think on it a while. I have a guy that works for me that can do the wood working on the seat bases. I am going to fix the seats and take them some where to get covered. Fix some soft spots in the floor, put new carpet down and use it this summer.

When I was talking about not leaving it for the 10 grand repair he started talking about using git rot or doweling the holes for the engine mount bolts. If that can be done I can do that myself.

So does anyone have any input? Who else looked at this boat and walked away from it? Did you think that stringers were shot?

Just trying to figure out if I was taking all the way to the cleaners.

Attachment 8785

I will post some pics of the interior later today.

$10 grand does sound steep! I guess it all depends on how bad it really is but, I'm sure some of the more experienced guys that have done this kind of work before will chime in on that price.

If you're going to use Get Rot. Try Smith's Penetrating Epoxy instead. Unbelievable how that stuff works.

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Originally Posted by gogger

For many years I have wanted an Inboard ski boat. When I was 16 I bought a '67 correct craft with a I/O four cylinder. We had fun with it. But I then noticed that the inboards were a lot better. Now 30 years later I thought I would buy one I another boat. I found this piratta on Craigslist and went and looked at it. Totalled my car on the way up there last weekend to look at it. Went back up with my truck this weekend and brought it home on rotten tires and all. Took it straight to a restoration shop thinking I would have him check it out and see what he would charge. Well he was nice enough but a little crazy. He wanted 10 grand to do from the stringers up. I was think more like get it on the water this year and down the road put more money into it. I left it at his shop for him to evaluate. He said he would have to pull the carpet and some of the floor to give me a better idea of the stringers condition.

But after I got home, I decided he was a high pressure sales man. So I brought the boat back home to think on it a while. I have a guy that works for me that can do the wood working on the seat bases. I am going to fix the seats and take them some where to get covered. Fix some soft spots in the floor, put new carpet down and use it this summer.

When I was talking about not leaving it for the 10 grand repair he started talking about using git rot or doweling the holes for the engine mount bolts. If that can be done I can do that myself.

So does anyone have any input? Who else looked at this boat and walked away from it? Did you think that stringers were shot?

Just trying to figure out if I was taking all the way to the cleaners.

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I think you need to figure out just how bad the rot is. If the motor mounts have rotted out, you're going to need to replace the stringers. I don't believe that it is possible to repair them (and I tried almost every method possible to do so.)

Turn some of the motor mount bolts and see if they can bite into good wood. If they can't, the first "repair" step to try and is to get some bolts that are 1-size larger. These might be able to find some good wood to sink into. If they don't.... either get insurance and head for deep water with the plug out, or be prepared for a big project.

The wood inside of the strings will be so saturated with water that the penetrating epoxy will never work. It can't bind or setup to anything with a high moisture content. When I cut my stringers open, water and mud poured out. And this was after I spent 12 months trying to dry it out with several dehumidifiers.

As far as other stop-gaps, be careful. I tried to "repair" my stringers with various methods. The engine in my boat ended up twisting when the mounts gave out. This caused the prop shaft to wear a hole through the shaft log. The hole in the shaft log caused the shaft seal to fail and my boat sank. Luckily I was able to get it to a place where the water was only about 2 feet deep, but.... knowing what I know now, I would have headed for deep water instead. I pulled the cap and replaced the stringers. That was before there was anyone on this board so I just figured it out myself.... I received quotes very similar to what you saw and didn't have any choice but to tackle it myself. In the end, I paid someone to reglass the stringers but I did everything else myself. It's not a project that I ever want to consider doing again but with the number of people that have documented the process on this board -- it's no longer as hard as it once was. Read through some of the pride and joy threads and you'll see some pretty good step-by-step projects.

Good luck!

I guess there is a couple things to consider. How much you paid for it, how much time you got, how bad it is, and how long you want to keep it. After doing a stringer job I could deff do one a lot faster and not be shy about sandin and such but it is a ton of work. If you do it yourself it can be done for under 3k. Just a lot of things to consider

$10k is insane unless it included new vinyl. either he's done one before and never wants to do another or he smells blood in the water.

quick fixes probably won't work on stringers. you never know until you open the floor. in all likelihood, the bottom of the stringers are sitting in water, grime and saturated foam. lots of grime. quick fixes end up being difficult and expensive. this is definitely a job that you only want to do once. get it done right. cutting corners is what the factory did and you will see the results if you move forward.

a rebuild is really only worth doing if you're going to keep the boat a long time. you prob won't recoup the costs, esp if you pay someone else. blood, sweat, and tears are free. the job takes some room though.

where are the soft spots? dig some foam out and you should be able to tell how wet it is. you've already rolled the dice, take a look.

let's seem some more pics. not many pirata's around.

Agreed that you need to dig into it a little bit to see how bad it is. Turning the motor mounts will give you one piece of information. You can drill some pilot holes in various spots of the stringers and get an idea of what the wood is like. Once you do, you will want to evaluate whether you want to keep the boat for a while or not. You can do the stringer job yourself and there are lots of threads on here with great ideas. Plan on several hundred man hours and a few thousand dollars and you'll be good. You can also look at having it done for you which should cost more like $5-8k. Definitely post more pictures and provide more details. Lots of us on here can provide good feedback.

I had a few minutes today to look a little closer at the Piratta. I started taking the seats out so I can eventually pull the carpet. Pretty much all the the plywood on the seats is rotted at least, around the edges. They all need recovered. I am going to build new seat frames and take them somewhere to be covered.

I took out one of the motor mount lag bolts and reinstalled it. It caught but wouldn't torque down. I am going to try a long bolt and see if it will catch. The other side is fine. Just the left side seems to have the problem.
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I think the guy got me pretty good. I paid 48 hundred. It is a cool boat. The hull is great. Just the interior sucks.

I really like the boat. It has a really cool look to it. At this point I am not sure how to proceed. I don't really have 10 grand to have someone else do it. And I don't think I can do it myself. I can do and get the interior done, but if I have to replace the stringers right now, I don't think that will happen.

$4800 isn't that bad provided there are no more big surprises. lots have paid more...i paid more and still had to get a trailer.

If I can get it in the water for a year or two before a major stringer replacement I would be happy. If I don't work a double shift tomorrow, I am going to try the pilot hole deal and see what the wood looks like. I haven't even started it. It was winterized and cold, so I didn't want to put water in it to start it. He assured me it would run fine. But he also assured me that the floor and stringers were fine. Live and learn I suppose.

Maybe I will just put a trolling motor on it, take it to the lake, go out about 50 feet and sit and drink beer.

I will give him a call tomorrow. I appreciate the referral. I could handle $10,000 over 3 years. Just not this week. I was allowing $2500 for upholstery repairs when I bought the boat. I am hoping to get the seats done for around that if I repair the wood bases and frames myself. They don't look to complicated. I am hoping I can get through the year with the stringers the way the are. But my gut tells me I won't. We shall see. I do really like the boat. Feel like I already have a connection to it. Guess I am just going to have to work a lot of overtime the next couple years to get her fully restored. I dig the 454 also. Can't wait to fire that thing up. Hopefully it runs. :D

Well you thread is inspirational. I guess I will just grin and bare it. Hopefully I can get her sea worthy this year, and prepare for a long winter next year. I am hoping.

As you can see, there are many ways to tackle this project. The one thing that I can promise is that reality won't be as bad as it seems right now. Talk to Donny, read this forum (there's a lot to read). We're here for support.

After 3 years of boat ownership, you'll realize that the $4800 you paid for the boat is almost nothing.

I paid close to $10k for my boat and was faced with the same situation as you are after about a year. I'm sure I've got at least another $10k into it. Can I sell it for $20k? Absolutely not. But have I got my $20k out of it? Without a doubt!!

There's no guarantee with boats. You could have easily spent $15k on a boat and still need to put $10k into it over the next few years. Purchasing the boat is rarely the shockingly expensive part.

I can echo Wotan's remarks above. Purchased my boat for around $4K, had to rewire it and do a whole bunch or work the first year to get it to the point where I felt comfortable leaving the dock. Last year, put all new upholstery in it. All said and done, I am sitting just less than $10K total invested in the boat. I could not sell my boat for that at all, nor do I want to as I have really come to love my boat.

You can do it yourself if you are at all handy and patient.

I am fairly handy. But I don't know that I can do the stringer replacement. I don't really have a place to pull the cap. I could pull the engine and get it down to that point. So I am going to check it out when i get home and see if i can tell how bad things are and proceed from there.

Well good news I think. I put an inch longer lag in and it gripped into something. So I think it will hold. Don't know if I should try to go a little longer. Looks like the string is pretty thick. Guess I will do some measuring before I go any longer.

I talked to Donny in TN and he said he would do the stringers for $5000. He thought with what I told him it would probably hold up for another season. He suggested putting some Git Rot in to add a little more strength. He said at least it wouldn't hurt it.

So I am thinking I will get the seats done, put down some carpet and run it as is. Then if we like it well enough have the stringers done next winter.

I am going to wait until the weather is a little better to try the engine.

Should I order stainless steel lag bolts

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Originally Posted by gogger

Should I order stainless steel lag bolts

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Galvanized will probably work just as well and are actually available. Stainless lag bolts are tough to come by.

It might seem like I have a lot of questions, but this has been a whirlwind for me. I drove 6 hours in a snow storm to look at the boat. totaled my car 1/4 mike from the place where it was stored. Drove the wrecked car back home. Got hassled by the state troopers. Whole front end was gone but he was worried about my front license plate.

Went back to get it with my truck. Pulled it home on bad tires. First guy that looks at it wants 10,000 to get her sea worthy. And thatisn't any engine work.called the guy I bought it from and asked if he would take it back. Found this forum and calmed Down some.

I am hoping the longer bolts get me through the season and that I will like her enough, actually my wife will like her enough to let me get the stringers done over the winter. I, want to work on the motor, but don't want so much power it Rips loose.

Anyone have any suggestions on someone to recover the seats? Wouldn't mind driving a little for quality work at a fair price.

Well I just saw the stainless bolts on Ebay thought that might be the way to go. But for a year or two probably aren't needed. Might do it anyways since I have some time. I want to start it but have to wait a week or so for the weather to cooperate. Plus I have been working 80 hours a week at the prison I work at.sitting in a hospital room with an inmate until 10:30 tonight boring but I have my phone and can watch TV. And getting paid time and a half. can pay for the stringers fairly quick working a lot of ot.