1985 TS6M Bad Stringers - Scrap it or part it?

Hi All,
My friend gave me his TS6M a few years ago as the floor was soft and he's too old to ski now, so he didn't want to fix it. Got it home and of course the stringers are like potting soil. I wanted to fix it and already removed the old floor and foam and drilled most of the rivets out to prepare to remove the inner hull. I have a a few bad disks in my back and neck and am finally coming to terms with the fact that I don't have it in me to continue. That and the wife is giving me crap about it on a regular basis.

I used to kneeboard behind this thing when I was in high school and really wanted to fix it as it was so much fun to drive, but I need to get rid of it as I can't afford the divorce:). So my question is would the boat still have any value to anyone as a rebuilder/parts boat, or should I just scrap it?

A little history, the boat ran when parked but there was gas in the tank so the carb and fuel pump are gunked up. The interior pieces are all pretty shot, the exterior is pretty faded but not cracked or damaged. The only really valuable parts are probably going to be the windshield, prop, and driveline (although 351s are a dime a dozen) and maybe the gas tank. It was parked on the beach (lake) most of it's life and only pulled out and trailered for a month or two in Winter. It's never been in salt water.

This isn't a solicitation to sell, just want some feedback as to whether there are enough of these left to bother offering it for parts? If so I'll run a classified ad for it and see if anyone wants it. I live in Orlando, FL BTW.

Thanks in advance for any insight.

I might be interested does it come with a trailer?

I'd be interested in the rudder and RWP, possibly other items.

They make such good wakes, it is shame to see them scraped.

You'd also have to sort out the end-game for the parted-out carcass before you start selling off pieces. Will you have to pay someone to haul it?

You might ask around for a bid to get the stringers repaired. Since you've started, you might get a reasonable price. You seem pretty DIY. Copycat Upholstery is in Florida. If you pull the old skins, they can make you new ones. Maybe that saves some cash too. Then again, you may be emotionally done with a restoration project.

You got it for free, if you pass it on for free or cheap someone will take it and restore it. Would be a shame to see another one go to the crusher.

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Originally Posted by michael hunter

I might be interested does it come with a trailer?

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Yes it has a Ramlin trailer. I replaced the wheels/tires recently so it's roadworthy.

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Originally Posted by scottschmitt

They make such good wakes, it is shame to see them scraped.

You'd also have to sort out the end-game for the parted-out carcass before you start selling off pieces. Will you have to pay someone to haul it?

You might ask around for a bid to get the stringers repaired. Since you've started, you might get a reasonable price. You seem pretty DIY. Copycat Upholstery is in Florida. If you pull the old skins, they can make you new ones. Maybe that saves some cash too. Then again, you may be emotionally done with a restoration project.

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Yeah it would have to be a labor of love to fix it as the cost to have the stringers redone would be at least $4-5K (guessing based on DIYers here saying $2K in materials alone) and interior would be over a grand. I have a buddy who paints cars and could repaint the hull on the cheap, but I'd end up with $6-8K into it and it'd be worth $6-8K when done (when is a big question mark!). I have a herniated disk in my neck that is hitting my spinal cord so getting on hands and knees sanding and getting under things it not really a good idea. Still I'd rather it go to someone who wants to fix it but realize it may be better for parts to fix another one.

I'd rather sell it complete but understand our county dump will accept the hull with everything stripped off if I do end up parting it. I'll see about getting some pics posted in classifieds in case anyone wants to take a look.

What kind of money are you thinking?

Looking at the math, I'd agree that it will run you ~6-8k to get the floor and upholstery done, and the boat would be worth about that much when you were done. You sound like you are done with the project and the wife needs this off the driveway. But since you got the boat for free, you'd be unlikely to loose more than a couple grand if you did some restoration, and enjoyed the boat for a couple seasons. The wife might like the boat better if she got to spend lovely evenings on the water instead of walking past its rotting, hulking corpse.

Do the right thing... Make a ‘deal’ with Michael Hunter so the boat will live a happy life for many more years.