I Bought a CHEAP Hurricane Salvaged Boat!

I picked up this cheap hurricane salvaged boat from an auction, sight unseen. Am I in over my head?

Subscribe and watch me attempt to rebuild this 196 Key West Bay Reef

Boat came from Cooper Capital Special Salvage.

[kenmckenzie]

As long as the motor spins over the only real issue will be the wire harness mainly the fuse box thats the only area thats not sealed. Just clean out the hi and low fuel pumps and replace the fuel filter in the Bottom. All should be great. Never had a Suzuki yet that went under that i wasn't able to have running that day.
Great find, good luck

[RoyMcclure-mk]

I did the same thing. Ended up with a 2021 Yamaha f90. I had to replace the engine harness and the idle motor solenoid flushed it all out. Fresh oil runs like a champ. That's the best way to buy a motor. This one only had 10.7 hours total time and it was sunk in freshwater. No corrosion no rust. The motor looks like it just came out of the Yamaha box 12, 000 motor. I've got less than 3000 invested in. It runs great

[JS-sxbl]

I’d
1. Strip the boat of all hatch(s)
2. Remove the tee top and deck plates remaining
3. Remove the gas tank and hoses
4. Remove all the wires
5. Remove the engine and strip down to the block to inspect what needs to be replaced/ reworked
6. Core drill the stringers and transom to indicate how much water intrusion has taken place.
7. Clean and sanitize the interior hull compartments.
8. Dry out interior of the hull with fans and build a bubble with a commercial grade dehumidifier to expedite the process.
9. Build a stand for the rebuild of the motor and testing and so on if your going to do it at your home / compound..
AND So On….

Cheers
Jjr

[competitivecombatsports]

I think you got a great Bay Boat there, looking forward to seeing the resto I recently bought a 2004 Ranger 185VS bass boat but I would love to add a Key West to the collection 😊

[davidzajano]

If you spray brake cleaner into those combustion chambers I'd recommend that you follow up with a bit of fogging oil before cranking the engine. I'd also suggest that you crank the starter with the ignition disabled for a few seconds before allowing a spark (The deadman switch should work for that)) so that you get some engine oil circulating before that engine fires up. And, perhaps most importantly, change the oil before even thinking about turning that engine over. Oil is lighter than water so despite the pristine appearance of that oil you could have salt water at the bottom of your sump and that would be bad. So pay attention to the first thing to come out of the sump when you drain the oil.

[colindavidson]

I love it! Learn as you go lol. I just got a key largo, similar situation

[edwardlandry]

Loved the vid! Probably a number of saltwater thrills waiting up around the bend… Such is the nature of this sort of hobby. I dig your attitude! I’ll be watching!

[UltraMagaFan]

Those Key West Bay Reef boats some of the smoothest riding bay boats made. We have a 1999 196 Bay Reef and it’s great. We can take it out in 2 foot waves running 20 miles per hour no problem. That is going to be a really nice boat once you get it restored.

[HoleeSheeitPyro]

in over your head? nope, good base foundation looks like fun

[regemcgowan]

I like to see you get your thing running

[anthonyp]

Love key west boats hope it all turns out okay for you. Subed for the build

[bbingtube]

If the motor was solid, I would probably not sweat it. Not looking good at this point, after alot of demo and dry-out, fiberglass lay up, tons of wiring your going to be in in for some coin. The good news; since this is content, you’re probably going to end up with a badass skiff with a 2 stroke and another full life.
I re-motored my immaculate 98 Aquasport in 2014, and I’m still in it for the cost of a new skiff 😂
Wouldn’t have it any other way my sled sleighs 55kts and drafts a bit more than a foot and now I have been able to land my PR yellowfin that was almost as big as the boat, and still be able to run around backwater and main channel on the lower Colorado River 🤘🤘
Sometimes unwise choices lead to the best experiences. Lol. Sometimes

[sully]

Looks like a great project boat Carl. Take your time, be thorough, and most of all, have a blast throughout all the new things you will be learning! Cannot wait to see the progress videos. Subscribed and ready watch from the communist state of NY. Good Luck Brother!!

[Mike-zjww]

I can't wait to see how it turns out. Hope it works out for you!

[Jellyfishcrabdude]

Hi Carl, when are you going to post the next video? I can’t wait to see how you get this boat running again. 🤞Checking faithfully every week for new content!

[ernieforrest]

There is no wood used in the building of Key West boats.
So no worries about soaked plywood in places like the transom.

[jimmyz]

Hey Carl, if you need any help figuring your boat out hit me up anytime. I'm in Merritt Island still. I moved my sailboat out of the cove a couple years ago. I ended up getting several bigger boats. I'm currently restoring two sailboats that came from the same place as that boat. 27 Hunter and a 38 Irwin

[Xenthera]

Wow can we all step back and give our condolences to all the boats getting scrapped because of a hurricane. Even this boat was someone’s day out on the water and then one day, poof. Washed away forever.

[martyg]

I wish I had space to do project boats like this.

[jamesrhodes]

Looks like something I would do. I would probably spend way to much money fixing it though.