Sylvan Offshore 22'

[nsjames]

Good? bad?

Let me preface by saying that I am a boat n00b. I acquired a 14 ft lone star in trade, my wife enjoys the water and I need a new hobby that involves burning gasoline.

so here I am going to look at a 22' Sylvan Offshore with a Johnson v4 115HP outboard.

In my price range I'm not going to even consider a 30 year old glass boat. That seems like asking for trouble.
I'm not too worried about the v4 johnson, they seem ruggedly reliable. I will check compression and if they're 140+ and even I'll call it good. I'm more than capable of rebuilding carbs and maintancing it up.

but what I don't know about too well is what I need to be looking for when buying a big tin boat.
I will pay particular attention to the transom, but as I can work metal and have a pretty complete workshop I'm not too terribly concerned if it needs replaced.
Anything else to look for aside from loose/broken rivets? I had read that these hulls were sometimes prone to cracking in the rear where they were folded over at the to rail. I will be sure to inspect all of it for the signs of metal fatigue.
I'm also not worried about electrical stuff because I will likely re wire the whole thing this winter as well. 12v wiring is kind of my thing and it will be neatly organized, because I hate troubleshooting rat's nests.

here's a photo from the for sale ad

he's asking 1700 as is on the trailer. Seemed reasonable to me, but I don't know jack about boats.

I have an older, but still working 22ft aluminum boat w a 115hp 2 cycle Johnson outboard motor. Some great things about aluminum are they are easy to tow, use less gas and the stringers and hull never rot. Any wood (floor, transom, sides and cuddy) just attaches to the aluminum. I have had this boat only 2 seasons. It was an older gentleman's (and a friend) boat. He was an electrician. I didn't really need the boat but he was in hospice and wanted the boat to go to someone who liked fishing. Problem is I already have a boat and really don't need 2. I have had this boat out a few times and it works well. It does have some switches on it I have no idea what they do. I think the RPM dial isn't working, but I never look at it anyway. If you want a boat for Lake Erie this will be a cheap way to get out there. Comes with a VHF radio and a Garmin fish finder. Comes with the trailer and the cover you see in the pics. Also has a Bimini top not pictured. Boat sold as is.

The current budget to buy a boat and get on the lake is about 3 grand. I think it's doable with this hull and some TLC.
thanks tinboats!

 

[lckstckn2smknbrls]

IIRC, That might be a rebadged StarCraft.

 

[nsjames]

everything I've read points to smokercraft and sylvan coming out of the same factory during the 80's.

sylvan is still listed as part of the smokercraft corporation.
I'm unsure if starcraft is also under that umbrella.

is it a good thing if it's a rebadged islander then?

 

[earl60446]

I would not expect 140+ on compression. My 1988 is 125 on both cylinders and runs well. Just saying don't negate the deal if not.
Seems like a heck of a deal to me. Good luck with it. If it truly is an islander, I would see it as a positive thing, always thought they were good boats. Lines look similar to an islander to me.
Tim

 

[nsjames]

well it had 110-115 on one cylinder and 120-30 on three others.

I bought it.

seems I went from no boat to two boats in 9 months. Escalated pretty quickly.

It has leaks in the cabin from the window frames. The header board in there is nasty, and it will need the carpet and such replaced in the cuddy. The exterior floor is in good shape. The wall between outside and inside was in good shape.
motor kicked off even with weak batteries. Power tilt worked, steering was free and the hull looked in good shape with original paint. Transom passed the poke and the try to tear off the motor test
Trailer is a roller trailer with surge brakes that looked in serviceable shape. Some new pads and wheel cylinders and it should be good for a long time.
master cylinder wasn't frozen up.
electrics are a disaster. it starts and runs, but it's a terrible rat's nest that's littered with electrical tape splices. So I'm rewiring a boat. how hard can it be?
It cost 1500 dollars.
I've got to move some projects around and find some space in the driveway, so I'll be going back and trailering it home next weekend. It's a bit taller than I expected so I need to cut some tree branches. So i guess I'll start a build thread sometime after that.

 

[lckstckn2smknbrls]

You got a good deal, more pictures.

 

[nsjames]

I only took two after we made the deal. I spent about an hour and a half looking it over before we talked money, but didn't take any pictures. Was busy.

https://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b38/NSJAMES/IMG_20140913_125142_934_zpsc9cmppfv.jpg

]https://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b38/NSJAMES/IMG_20140913_125209_400_zpsre1tcob7.jpg

ran into width restriction. too lazy. you're going to click links.

 

[acabtp]

i think that's a hell of deal you just got there. that trailer alone would probably fetch 700-1000$ out here. good stuff, keep us posted on your progress, i love seeing the bigger tins.

 

[juggernot]

That's a very nice design and i'd love to have a boat like that. I would put a gas stove and or grill on it and otherwise set it up to be a mobile home away from home on the water for extended overnight stays. Maybe even rig a mount to hold a fishing Canoe or Kayak, it could be the base camp for all watery adventures.

 

[nsjames]

well I happen to have a bunch of RV parts here from another project, so it's probably going to get 5-8 gallons of freshwater and a sink. I was htinking of locating that forward up against the cuddy where the passenger captains chair usually would be. Currently the fuel tank is located there, so I could enclose it all in, gain some storage, still have easy access to fuel tank inside cabinet and make it all work.
I'll make a basic counter next to that so we can use tabletop grill or campstove (have both already)
I guess I'd rather have a sink/kitchenette than another seat. Since it's an outboard I'll likely build some lounge style seating in the stern.
I'd stash the radio in the cuddy wall above there. Maybe in a cabinet of some sort for additional dry, off the floor storage.

sometimes being a hoarder is good.

 

[nsjames]

I did snag the photos the seller had up before he pulled the ad.

 

[earl60446]

I have never seen a boat with that much freeboard and such a low transom. That boat is begging for a full transom and a bracket drive.
Must be a 15 inch (short) shaft.
Tim

 

[nsjames]

earl60446 » 15 Sep 2014, 18:05[/url]"]I have never seen a boat with that much freeboard and such a low transom. That boat is begging for a full transom and a bracket drive.
Must be a 15 inch (short) shaft.
Tim

yeah, it seems quite tall. The splash well there is tapered down to the transom. I assume they set it up for short shafts since they are more common.
at least I won't be likely to fall out of it randomly. :LOL2:

there won't be any major modification. The transom seemed solid, I'm going to drill a few holes when I get it home, if it's in good shape I'm not touching it and moving onto the interior. If it's rotten then I'm going to put it back just like it is.

 

[juggernot]

That's a lot of canvas for a boat artist! I could envision 2 F70s hanging off the stern, a hardtop w curtains, small kitchen/stove sink built into the back of a port front seat for fresh fish fries, maybe a small generator in the stern somewhere................

 

[nsjames]

juggernot » 15 Sep 2014, 23:58[/url]"]That's a lot of canvas for a boat artist! I could envision 2 F70s hanging off the stern, a hardtop w curtains, small kitchen/stove sink built into the back of a port front seat for fresh fish fries, maybe a small generator in the stern somewhere................

your pockets must be deeper than mine.

This thing is getting built cheap. That's how I roll.

previous project to support jeep habit was a toterhome I built out of a box truck I picked up for dirt cheap.

I'm not sure if what I paid for this thing was "bottom feeder" pricing, but that's where I'm trying to be.

 

[acabtp]

awesome you will have a great time with that boat.
love the toterhome too, got a link to some more pics or a build thread on that?

 

[lckstckn2smknbrls]

nsjames » Tue Sep 16, 2014 9:18 am[/url]"]

juggernot » 15 Sep 2014, 23:58[/url]"]That's a lot of canvas for a boat artist! I could envision 2 F70s hanging off the stern, a hardtop w curtains, small kitchen/stove sink built into the back of a port front seat for fresh fish fries, maybe a small generator in the stern somewhere................

your pockets must be deeper than mine.

This thing is getting built cheap. That's how I roll.

previous project to support jeep habit was a toterhome I built out of a box truck I picked up for dirt cheap.

I'm not sure if what I paid for this thing was "bottom feeder" pricing, but that's where I'm trying to be.

I've got an old budget rental truck in my driveway with RV plates on it.

 

[Hanr3]

Looking forward to the Sylvan build.

 

[nsjames]

acabtp » 16 Sep 2014, 16:46[/url]"]awesome you will have a great time with that boat.
love the toterhome too, got a link to some more pics or a build thread on that?

I do, but it's pretty much summed up with
shove RV stuff in a box truck, drive it.

https://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/tow-rigs-trailers/969976-another-uhaul-toter-thread.html

dirt simple, dirt cheap, for sale with all of the parts to do a studio sleeper style box+flatbed to fund boat project.

 

[nsjames]

lckstckn2smknbrls » 16 Sep 2014, 19:33[/url]"]

nsjames » Tue Sep 16, 2014 9:18 am[/url]"]

juggernot » 15 Sep 2014, 23:58[/url]"]That's a lot of canvas for a boat artist! I could envision 2 F70s hanging off the stern, a hardtop w curtains, small kitchen/stove sink built into the back of a port front seat for fresh fish fries, maybe a small generator in the stern somewhere................

your pockets must be deeper than mine.

This thing is getting built cheap. That's how I roll.

previous project to support jeep habit was a toterhome I built out of a box truck I picked up for dirt cheap.


I'm not sure if what I paid for this thing was "bottom feeder" pricing, but that's where I'm trying to be.

I've got an old budget rental truck in my driveway with RV plates on it.

cheap skates unite!