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About to be new owner in Michigan

Tye 1on

New member
Greetings Maters! Thanks in advance for all of the accumulated experience and wisdom that you all have posted over the years. I'll be poring over the forums in the months to come.

I'm in the middle of moving back to Michigan after 35 years in the West, settling near Lake Mecosta. I was busy looking at pontoon boats or maybe a CC when an old buddy said they are selling his folks house on Houghton Lake and have a ski boat for sale if I'm interested. As a kid I loved water skiing so thought I should at least ask him about it. I like the idea of a fast boat that's easily trailered to different lakes, I'm looking forward to exploring a lot of Michigan's lakes.

He said it's a 1998 Eluder but I'm thinking it's a 1988. Open bow, black and silver w/red pinstriping, 175 Merc. Always wintered in the garage, if it's like most of his family's stuff it's been well maintained. Comes with covers, skis, pfds, etc etc etc. But will likely need a bit of work, and now that I'm semi-retired I bet I can skip one round of golf a week and get it whipped in to shape.

Thanks for any insights on the Eluder model, I look forward to getting her in a couple of weeks and will post photos of my [mis]adventures once she arrives!
 
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Well, you are correct the last year of the Eluder was 87 or 88. They are 19 ft boats. Being that old you should watch for soft spots in the floor and check with a water meter for water in the transom. If you find some, you will be replacing the transom and floor wood and may need to do the stringers and core too. These are big jobs if required.

I had a 82 inboard powered Eluder for many years and our family loved that boat. It road fairly well, pulled tubes and skiers and went ~60mph.
 
^^^Thanks karz, great advice. I do plan on having a shop look at the transom, floor and motor- compression tests, etc. I fully expect to put more than a few dollars in to it, but will enjoy the heck out of it.
 
I liked my Eluder until the transom cracked. It was a good boat for the local rivers, great as a ski boat, too, minimal wake and with a 175 it would pull me up with ease (I weigh 220).
 
I liked my Eluder until the transom cracked. It was a good boat for the local rivers, great as a ski boat, too, minimal wake and with a 175 it would pull me up with ease (I weigh 220).
Good info, thanks. I weighed 220 too, but these going away parties are adding up! Thanks for the confirmation that the transom deserves attention. For the little that he’s asking I’ll have some $$ to put in to it before the spring. And I need a project for November/December anyways.
 
Good info, thanks. I weighed 220 too, but these going away parties are adding up! Thanks for the confirmation that the transom deserves attention. For the little that he’s asking I’ll have some $$ to put in to it before the spring. And I need a project for November/December anyways.
Mine was a 81 southern boat, pretty sure stored outdoors, it was 'restored' once by some company in Georgia, and technically was free along with the purchase of a trailer. I have 2 other 80's Checkmates and the transoms are fine. The floors on all three were in need of repair, check well for soft spots. That being said, a northern boat stored indoors in the winter probably has better wood than a southern boat stored outdoors.
 
That’s sounds Awesome , congrats . I’m normally on east coast of Mi , Thunder Bay , or Maumee Bay or river in Toledo OH
 
We had an 81 Eluder when I was a youngster. It came factory with a 260 Mercruiser set up. By the end we had a 400sbc in it. Loved that boat!!! It burned to ash in a garage fire about 3yrs ago now. I always wished it had an alpha SS on it.
 
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