Possible new project - PIX ADDED!!

When I went to church tonight a friend of mine mentioned that another guy there has an old bass boat that he needed to get rid of. I asked him about it and he said that it's a 1985 Venture bass boat with a 115 Mariner on it. He said that it was a really good boat the but problem with it is that critters got up in it over the winter and ate the wiring up. He said he'd be willing to give it to somebody that was interested in a project boat. I raised my hand and said, "I may be your man!"

My question is, does anybody have any idea what I might be getting myself into if I take it? I'm wondering about access to all the areas that the wiring runs through so I can run new wire. Has anybody here had or heard of Venture bass boats? The company that made them is no longer in business and the guy that designed the hull is dead. I'm going to go look at it tomorrow. Here's a picture of a 1985 Venture with a 150 Mariner on it that I found online but I don't know if it's that model or not. I've been out to their house before and had seen it sitting in the carport but all I remember is that it is red.

I would take it if I were u, looks like a nice boat.

Sounds like a fun project, I would assume you could access needed areas I've heard of people getting bass boats rewired.

Those production boats have wiring chases built into the hull.If you need to replace wires,just tape string to one end and pull the old wire out.The tape the new wire to the string and pull the string out.Now you have new wire installed.Those were some fair good boats.I see them around here.If it's a freebee,you could make the nessasary repairs and sell it for around $4500.Wish I could get that deal.

Well I spent about 10 years pulling wire for audio systems in bars, nightclubs, churches, recording studios, outside in railroad yards - so I know how to do that part of it. I just don't know if they ty-wrap or anchor the wiring some other way. But if there are true wire chases then maybe I'll be OK. I'm kind of looking at it as something to fix up and sell so this could turn out to be pretty sweet. The guy that has it did say that the last time they had it out last year, the trolling motor was intermittent in running. That could have been more wiring problems caused by rodents, or it could just be that it's a 23 yr. old trolling motor.

Sounds like you will have it all under control.Trolling motors are usually easy to fix.

MikeA57 said:

But if there are true wire chases then maybe I'll be OK.

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They are not, 95% of the time. My experience is that just about all slightly older bass boats, even some of the higher priced ones into the 90s, have the biggest jumble of wires. Sometimes they are taped in place, sometimes zip tied, sometimes laid in place etc. I wouldn't count on good wiring chases, in fact I would count on NOT having chases.

Most rewiring jobs I have seen on glass bass boats are done with the top cap removed for stringer and deck repair. In some brands, that is the only way to gain access to how the wiring is taped/zip tied off, without cutting access holes. I am not going to say it can't be done, but I want to be realistic on how in depth that task is on a lot of boats of that type.

Also, I wouldn't get my hopes up on 4500 either, unless your locale is starving for bass boats for sale. Right now, in my area, a mid 90s 17 - 18 foot bass boat, of a brand still in existence powered by a 90 - 150 will bring 4000 - 4500 or so, and if you get up into the 19 foot range, powered by a 200, the price rarely breaks 5000, for a circa '95 model.

man what a deal! nomatter how many wires are chafed, or how hard it may be to get them its still freee

first thing i'd do is find out what works and what doesnt. then find the general area of the problem and go from there. atleast thats what we do on the trucks.

bassboy1 said:

MikeA57 said:

But if there are true wire chases then maybe I'll be OK.

Click to expand...

They are not, 95% of the time. My experience is that just about all slightly older bass boats, even some of the higher priced ones into the 90s, have the biggest jumble of wires. Sometimes they are taped in place, sometimes zip tied, sometimes laid in place etc. I wouldn't count on good wiring chases, in fact I would count on NOT having chases.

Most rewiring jobs I have seen on glass bass boats are done with the top cap removed for stringer and deck repair. In some brands, that is the only way to gain access to how the wiring is taped/zip tied off, without cutting access holes. I am not going to say it can't be done, but I want to be realistic on how in depth that task is on a lot of boats of that type.

Also, I wouldn't get my hopes up on 4500 either, unless your locale is starving for bass boats for sale. Right now, in my area, a mid 90s 17 - 18 foot bass boat, of a brand still in existence powered by a 90 - 150 will bring 4000 - 4500 or so, and if you get up into the 19 foot range, powered by a 200, the price rarely breaks 5000, for a circa '95 model.

Click to expand...

You have more experience on this than I do.The couple I worked on had chases molded into the hull.The wire bundle on one was taped every foot or so.The other was just laid in.

bassboy1 said:

Most rewiring jobs I have seen on glass bass boats are done with the top cap removed for stringer and deck repair. In some brands, that is the only way to gain access to how the wiring is taped/zip tied off, without cutting access holes. I am not going to say it can't be done, but I want to be realistic on how in depth that task is on a lot of boats of that type.

Click to expand...

So, what's involved in doing that? How are the top caps connected to the hull and can they be put back together and be seaworthy (or, lake-worthy in this case)? Would I just be stepping off the deep end with this? I've got a detached garage for a shop but I don't have a hoist or anything like that to lift the cap off with.

I'm going to go look at it tonight and see if I can get some type of feel for what is going to be involved. I've never worked with fiberglass so that's another thing I'd have to learn about too.

Thanks bassboy and everyone for their comments!!

Mike

Not every boat requires the top cap removed. My limited experiences are what convinced me to work only with alloy, which is why my glass boat experiences are limited. I doubt you would want to do a top cap removal for rewiring alone, if no stringer/deck repair is needed, so if it is indeed stuck in as many are, your better option might be to cut access holes at certain inconspicuous locations, and then cover them with a panel that looks like it is intentional. Having never worked with that brand of boat, I don't know exactly what it has, so you may find open chases, and clear passages like ben2go mentioned. I just didn't want you to get your hopes up, and realize halfway through that you have to dig into a top cap removal and all.

Just went through the restore page on the BBC boards (they are a cutthroat group, but there is a lot of good info to be had on there), and found one Bullet resto thread I remembered seeing a while back. This is the sort of wiring that I always seem to end up getting.

https://bbcboards.zeroforum.com/zerothread?id=316625

I can honestly say I wouldn't touch that wiring job without removing the top cap for a full restore.

Went to see the boat last night. By the time I got there it was almost dark because heavy cloud cover had rolled in late yesterday.

Basically, it's not pretty. Right now it's sitting under a farm equipment pole barn which offers little protection from the elements. The animals really did a number on the wiring and I would also need to replace the carpet if I take it. The under deck storage areas smell real bad from all the animals that had lived (and died there I presume, although I found no carcasses.). I just don't know about taking this project on. It looks like I can get to the wiring easily enough, I only saw one wire coming up from under the carpet in one of the bow storage bins but I don't know where it led or what it belonged to. I didn't climb in it and jump around, I'll do that when I go back out - the mosquitos were absolutely swarming and I had my wife, my 5 yr. old, my 20 yr. old daughter (who's pregnant) and my 20 month old granddaughter out there with me. So, I looked it over quickly and took a bunch of pictures. We told the lady we'd take it but like I said, I'm torn about it. My wife thinks that if nothing else we can sell the motor and the trailer, but then I've still got to figure out how to dispose of the boat. With the wiring gone like it is, I don't think I'd get more than $500 for the hull as it sits. The motor, maybe $1000, and maybe $400-500 for the trailer which looks to be in good shape. In the photos it looks rusted and it does have a coat of light rust on it but it was originally painted a rust color so it's deceiving. Here's some pix...

my girlfriends stepdad has that same boat only its grey.

charge them batterys up and find out if the motor cranks, and what all gadgets work and dont work. if only the accessorie wires are chew'd rip um out and put a forsale sign on that beast

If the transom and floors are solid, it is well worth cleaning up and fixing. It will make a nice old fishing boat. You have my vote....

Flintcreek...

Yours appears in far better shape than my old ugly duckling. I had to get rid of it because it prooved too much for me. The hull was worn and ugly, but it floated. The trailer was ok, but needed new tires. The motor definitely needed work. Like you said, you have nothing to loose. Good luck with your project.

edit: I thought I would mention I traded it for my tinnie. The guy I traded it to owns a boat repair shop and had the whole thing sanded down and repainted. I wish I could have seen it after he finished. He said he had the motor running, but still working some issues.

I know this is an old thread but how did the deal turn out? Looking at buying one of these this week, thought I see if there was any more to the story?

I hope he took the project on. It looked like it would be a good boat with a little work