I Bought A $200 Boat From Facebook Marketplace! **POS** 

Every story has a beginning, middle, and an end. This boat is just the beginning. Boat prices are insane and no matter what you put into this one will be far less than new. I've got extra fiberglass, resin, and the materials that I'll donate to help you get her seaworthy.

Can we fish out of it from the swimming pool pond?

Keep the center console and check the compression, spark and fuel delivery on the motor. If the motor can be made to run the rest is stuff you can do as you get the money. I bought an old POS and fixed it up, take it to the gulf two times a week, hasn't failed me yet. mine ain't pretty but hey, pretty doesn't catch fish. Look forward to see your progress.

All those fiberglass and wood issues are why I went aluminum with my first boat. Just less to rot quick.

I'm sure the previous owner was happy to have that hauled away with and a couple of hundred to boot!

first thing i would do is put it in water and see if it floats or just let it sink..the stringers are probably rotted out as much water as you have in the floor...the engine can probably be brought back around but its gonna be costly...i redid a couple boats last summer and all i can say is dont expect to get off cheap with that one...best of luck bro

That boat looks like . . . a learning experience. Best of luck to you, Brad.

Hahahaha! You made me laugh throughout the tour of the boat. Good to see that you have that can-do attitude and enthusiasm. May that dream for your "new" boat come true.

Nice boat, we repaired the floor in an older Malibu with marine plywood and epoxy resin. It was a lot of work and a lot of fun. The boat turned out amazing. From the looks of your S.S. POS you have your work cut out for you, but as they say in Tennessee “That is No Hill For A Climber” . Good luck!

😂😂 "All in all, a pretty solid boat" after falling through the floor!🤣🤣 That is an optimistic outlook on things. Here's to you and your headache...I mean project! Cheers!

I agree with Freddy. The motor cover ties it all together 😆

I don't know what would have made for better content, the trip back after picking up the boat, or the conversation between you & the wife to convince her. Great episode, looking forward to updates. 👍

Keep the console it’s nice for long runs. I to bought a project boat after I retired, new foam, wiring, carpeting, lighting and motor work. But it’s mine and no payments. You will enjoy the rebuild and you’ll learn a lot. I’ll keep watching chin up it will get better.

Good luck Brad ! And Merry Christmas !!

While the boat is rougher than using sandpaper as toilet paper it can be fixed. I bought a similar hull years ago for its motor and it was " bathtub" design. I can't tell by looking at yours but that boat I bought didn't have stringers and used foam and the floor for its structure. If yours is like that it will at least be a little easier to make structural sound. I can tell you but looking at it with its current amount of for the transoms going to be rotted. Your best economical way to rebuild will be marine ply with epoxy. I've done a couple boats and have decided my current Bumble bee is going to be going to a glass shop in the fall for a complete rebuild at 10,000 bucks. Expensive but will be worth it.

“All and all, I think it’s a pretty solid boat” sold me😂😂😂😂😂😂

Boat Bring On Another Thousand 2 options 1. Insure it for 500.00 with no deductible, launch it as is and let nature take its course. 2. Pull the new tires and wheels off and sell them then scrap the metal off of it and go sink the hull in an area you want to put in a reef. If you decide to move forward with this project the plus side is you have two to three years of content for your channel

Hopefully you’re a patient man with a great sense of humor…I’m sure your project will test both!

I bought a boat like that in 2000, a 1974 tide craft. My foot went through the floor just like yours, and I also found it full of water. All the wood supports were rotten. I did not feel safe using that boat since all the supports were rotten. I suspected the transom was rotten too. The hull ended up stripped of all usable parts in in the land fill. I cleaned the trailer up, rewired, and painted it and bought a new aluminum hull. The motor I got with the boat required a new lower unit, and the carbs rebuilt. Ended up costing me a lot more than I had planned, but 21 years later, I still have the boat and use it all the time. Good luck with the project. I would remove the center console and use tiller steer. it will give you more room in the boat.

For sure keep the center console. Boat will plane sooner and you won't have stay twisted around on long runs ;) Also, be sure to install a kill switch for the motor....tether or even in the seat. Have seen a couple of situations that very nearly ended badly because of rough water/wind where the operator was knocked overboard with the motor still running......

Tiller handle man, that will also give you more space. Nothing like letting that hair blow in the wind at the back of the boat ... lol. Can't wait to see what you come up with. I may have to start me a project....looks fun!

Love the boat and project. I see potential in that and what you are wanting to do with it. You'll be able to craft that boat into what you want and be an original. Awesome video. Be Safe Brother.

If you extend the front so you can stand 2 people you can make some hidden compartments underneath, and have your live bait there as well.

The SS POS!! I love it. I definitely prefer to keep the small center console over a stick drive. But whether this makes it to the water or not, I’m looking forward to the journey the rebuild takes you on

The two best days of boat ownership is the day you buy it and the day you sell it. You've got at least one of those two days under your belt at this point. Tight lines and good luck bro!!

Hey Brad you should’ve got them to give you $200 to take it 🤣

This is an AWESOME new beginning for you, your channel, your career and probably possibly Freddy's channel! That's great stuff Bread! Imagine a Clickbaiters video on this amazing vessel... Pushing it with poles.. Lmao

Once you get the carpet out can the old floor tore out of the boat please check the stringers and transom for rot it is going to be a huge undertaking to replace those items but it can be done. It can turn out to be a great little boat

You and your family have a merry Christmas and love the video keep them coming

I have been working on a project, but at least I could use mine from the start, once I got the holes in the gas tank fixed that is. Mine is an 18' aluminum CC. A couple of thoughts.... First, unless your HOA/Property Mgr. has an eyesore policy, painting should be way down the list in the order of things to do. You're a strapping young man and I am 60-something, but the motor you're going to need to push an 18' fiberglass boat is going to be pretty big, so keep that in mind when deciding whether to keep it console or go to tiller steering. Large tiller steer motors can also be hard to locate. Good luck and I look forward to following along on this journey.

Yeah rear tiller handle is the way to go. Got to hand it to you, I have gone fishing in some sketchy contraptions but nothing like the HMS POS.

I think you should pay the old owner $200 to take it back, the money you have to put in that one to get it running will be enough to buy a decent running skiff. Good Luck..

Looking forward to this project. Excited for you Brad!

I did this a couple years ago. You'll be proud of her when she's done and make memories working on her.

Extend the bow platform and build the live wells into it. Remove the center console and have Rod storage under the gunwells on both sides and like you said tiller it with a decent seconda hand outboard. Only concern I would have is if the hull has soft spots.

Too funny! So about 2 yrs ago my dad picked up an oldaluminum boat from an old family friend. He conned me into helping him get it “ready to move” when I was back home. We rode over and that thing was loaded with literally a ton of crap! It took us a couple of hours just to clean the junk out of it, and the boat had been sitting for nearly 40 years in the same spot and the tires were dry rotted and sunken in the ground to the axle! He hauled that joker home and started putting a spit shine on it. I found a 9.9 mercury 4 stroke on CL and sent him the link since it was down there and he was able to pick it up for $400. Runs like brand new and is super quiet! Trailers in much worse shape than yours but it’s been to S. FL now a few times and I’ve been out on it several times from the Everglades to the canals in Miami to Escambia bay to Yellow river back home in your neck of the woods. I say that to say you did good IMO. As long as it floats and doesn’t need too much glass work, everything else is cosmetics and can be removed, repaired, repainted or replaced! Heck, the new rims & tires are probably close to $200 by themselves! Looking forward to seeing the project unfold personally! Love the vision too. I foresee a ton of fish landed from that front platform! Best of luck to you.

Put the live bait in the hole in the deck

Tiny boat nation man go for it. Just get that hole welded up. For $200 gotta expect some unexpected stuff. Definitely go with tiller drive.

Looks like a good candidate for an artificial reef!

I'm shocked you actually bought that.

I suggest fixing up the trailer and selling it standalone and trying to recoup your investment on that SOS POS

Great video! Thank you so much as I needed a good laugh! But, it's only the beginning of this story! So let's see where it goes!!!

Hi Brad the way the center console and the chair move freely looks like you will need to replace the floor if it is soft (water damaged) possibly the stringers hope not but does not look good. You said it is a project boat I owned a 1970's 18' Gerry Bass Boat in the late 70's looked just like this one except mine was newer. It was a very good boat in the ST Johns and Indian Rivers in Brevard County FL where I was raised. I didn't see the hole in the floor before my comment after that I would remove the floor to see if the stringers and hull are still good if not take the loss and save up for a better boat.

I would do the center console or stick steer and you can just have a cooler with a padded seat. Then extended the deck with storage and a live well. In the rear rod holders and a polling platform.

It'll make for some great video's as you restore it Brad. Looking forward to them. Good luck!

Wow! That’s a big project Brad! I can’t wait to see how things go! I didn’t think things were too bad until your foot went through the deck! Love the name- The SS POS! Brilliant! I wish you the best of luck with things and I can’t wait to see you hauling fish aboard. Peace and love from the UK bro.

you got to go with a tiller on a smaller boat with that you can fish 1 more person . Cant wait to see you dig into it. the good thing is if there is water on the bottom of the boat you know it doesnt leak there at least

Congratulations on becoming a boat owner! Looking forward to seeing the remodel man! Bought my first boat last summer. Your gonna love it dude!!

I bought a 16' Mohawk canoe for $100 (new $1400) it need a couple fiberglass patches and so love. I've got $175 in patch kits paint and stickers. I'm 6' 280lbs, this canoe is stable and handles great with me and my gear. It took about 1 mouth working on it after work. Best money I ever spent, and I know when I'm fishing in it. I brought it back to usable. Good luck, and get ready for alot of 4 letter words while you're working on it. Lol

Well the good thing is the boat doesn't need a ladder to get in and out of😂. Im so tired of climbing in and out of my boat every time I need something when I'm working on it 😅

Definitely a project boat...glad to see your excited for the challenge! I would go check out some of the Ghenu skiffs for platform ideas...for the flats I like your idea of a polling platform...rip out the center console for space...use a tiller handle prop 👍Good luck Brad, looking forward to the upcoming videos!

I have a similar sized boat with the console and for me personally I wish I had a tiller motor to open up the extra floor space for making movement front to aft easier, more space for equipment, coolers, live well, etc. I will also say if you repower make sure you get enough HP. I have a 25 merc. 4 stroke and with two men and a bait tank she struggles to get on plane. Just myself and bait no problem.

You got taken, a P.O.S. is a step up from what you got. That looks like a planter for your vegetables.

Omg, good luck lol. Just looking at this is making my anxiety go through the roof. 🤣🤣

Hi Brad put a boat plug in it see if it floats.There is no telling how much rotten wood you will need to replace,the motor is a gas hog you would be better off looking for a used 4 stroke ,good luck I hope it works out.

I got a 1989 17ft. Mako and out a 2003 Suzuki df140 on it. Redid all the electrical and survived the engine all by myself. Changed the oil, plugs, anodes, tilt and trim oil, and acid washed the water components internally all by myself just from RU-vid! You can do it.

Just don't get discouraged brad and don't get into a hurry I have drug home many like this in the past and always came out to the good from use or resale just remember you bought it in this shape so any thing you do to make it better you can always find someone just like you that want to be a boat owner you will be fine

Take to trailer to Fairhope Iron Works and have then sand blast and power coat it. I had one done and they do great work.

Congrats on the first boat man!!! Search videos there is a couple in TX that fix boat motors. Looks easy but it’s not my inclination!

The tiller handle are in the left side of the motor so if you feel comftable with driving with your left hand thats an option otherwise keep the centerconsol. The floor are made with a woodstructure and marinegrade plywood that they put a fiberglasscoat on. Personally i dont like to mix plastic and wood because the wood deteriate as you propably noticed. Try to build the structure and floorboard with a foamboard like Divinycell and other brands. For further info reply so i know you are interested.

edit: You can buy a brand new Chinese motor off ebay for way less than you'd pay to rebuild the one that came on the boat. My hubby and I inherited one like that from his stepdad in 2017; we ended up giving the boat to Dixie Speedway for a tow-behind demolition derby. I sold the motor for enough to buy bolts and 2x4s, then we rebuilt the trailer and bought an aluminum jonboat to put on it. Considering the cost of trailers, we ended up with a pretty good setup.

Great you have a project for the slow winter fishing season. And your Dad and I graduated the same year!

Good luck man!

Do the tiller handle and bench seat in the back. Because a little center console like that ain't doing nothing but taking up real estate where you could have more room to move around when fighting a bigger fish

Oh my! Looks like you got your work cut out for you but will probably be a good project for the winter. I'm thinking it will float since there is standing water in the bilge. So once you get the floor replaced would do a center console since steering cable is still functional

A flower planter that size would cost more than $200 so you doing good so far.

You gotta be excited! That trailer is way doable. Except for that hole that goes all the all the way through, a new floor will take care of everything. Throw all that shit out . Put that tiller style motor and the platform for flats fishing in. Sorry, don’t have anything good to say about the motor. Maybe, fill the jugs with Marvel Mystery Oil and let it sit. The carbs are probably toast. If you’re gonna try and deal with the motor at all, get yourself a shop manual. You’ve bit off quite a hunk of something. Take it one step at a time and try not to get too frustrated. Been there there, done that and bought the damned Tshirt!

I'd go center console all the way. You already have the basic infrastructure in place for it. My boat I operate from a tiller and it gets to be a pain in the ass after a long day. Arm in an awkward position etc..

Two of the happiest days in a man’s life. The day he buys his boat and the day he sells his boat.

Great boat name 🤣

Dude! I have a 79 Monarch aluminum hull in storage in Louisville Ky that you can have. Trailer, Boat Motor, trolling motor. With Title

For starters you do have a good sized built in live well if you don’t fix the hole the floor.

You have your work cut out for you for sure! As far as the floor gut it and start over. Good luck with the sanding and don’t get to deep in the gel coat! The motor you need to check the difference in price for tiller or steering wheel! On some motors the triller cost more! But hey if it floats that’s a plus! 👍

Pull the console and set up with a grab handle and tiller motor with a long tiller handle

Got to start somewhere B Rad! Plus a cool hobby.

If it holds water it will float . Redoing my floor inside was 6’4” wide deck material was same width short 3”s. Had to buy 21’ instead of 12’. Use marine plywood coat/seat underside. I have center console,love it . Be ready/complete new year, road trip coming. Yes cost money 5th boat but this one made for fishing.

I’d say you want to float test is first. Even if it floats, when you pull it see if water is leaking from anywhere after you take it out.

Good luck brother. I have faith in you.

Looks like a challenging project! Looking forward to watching your progress.

The motor will make a good anchor 🤣

Before doing anything check the hull, if the hull is dry rotted nothing else matters, you can re glass it but if the wood is rotten it will never be sea worthy

Let me drive it out to the gulf an I’ll sink it for ya…. 😂😂😂

You can do it Brad!!! Just put your heart and soul into it and its gonna be a beauitful boat sooner than you can imangine. Heck, the tires alone are worth the money you put into it, lol

Had a boat like that with stick Steering that we went way out on the flats and fished in.. It was ok for the River, but not enough for the Salt water.. We made a few trips before I Sold it.. 35hp Johnson if I Remember Correctly.. Thanks, Richard

Check the transom for rot! It you knock on it and it sounds hollow then it's bad They used plywood inside the fiberglass around it, they leak and the wood deteriorated. It's fixable with some work. I'd keep the center console, always better than a rear tiller imo. All the wood will be bad that is exposed! Just start like you said gut it and start with fresh marine ply and fiberglass cloth and plenty of rosin and catalyst . It's plenty of work but takes time tools and patience! Bring On Another Thousand!. Dump that outboard and find one that runs open plug holes suck big-time as it's likely not worth dumping any more money in. That's what BOAT stands for

Man, that thing is in better shape than my first boat. Had a hole in my floor also. Okay, a few holes in my floor. Gutted it. Glassed in new stringers and a new floor... then sold it. (my second best day as a boat owner) Lots of work ahead for you. Should make for great content and a lot of head scratching. Just sub'd to watch the fun!!

Weight would be a factor. The out board plus you right there as well will be bringing the front up. You in the middle would distribute weight more. Love it and good luck with the project.

Brad as a boat rebuilder hobbiest I strongly suggest take the $200. as a loss or cost of experience and scrape that boat, and look for a more along the way (running and floating) boat for your now 2nd boat, it'll cost you 3x (if your lucky) as much to repair this boat than it would buying a "better" boat, oh keep those $200. Tires tho that's about all that worth keepin,,, sorry to be so brutal but you'll thank me in the long run,,, and Your Welcome...

👍 Best of luck bringing her back to life!

With a little work you can use that thing to get you up on some bridge pileings to fish on

Brad, I just ran across your story on the boat probably due to RU-vid and Facebook‘s algorithms! First I’ll say, I’m excited for you. But as someone who has done this many, many times over the last 30 years, It can be a fun thing to do, it can be a frustrating thing to do. It WILL be an expensive thing to do! I do love the name! Good luck with the SS P.O.S. and have fun! You will never get a good return on your investment, but it will be fun…at times! My advice is don’t expect too much!

Keep the center console, definitely needs a bait well and trolling motor. Looking forward to the updates on your boat.

Sometimes the least expensive things turn out to be the most costly. Good luck with the project and subscribed

You should have bought one for 2200.00 by the time you get a motor and all the wood fiberglass sand paper for repairs you are going to be there center console would be better it's going to be a project I would rather be fishing then spending all my time on working on this😉😉

Congrats on the boat

Good luck with your project

Congrats bro LOL 😂 Bring it back to life

Hey man please post more boat content

If you take out the center console and put in a tiller handle, you might have to much weight in the back , with a big dude like you sitting back there. It'll look like a Tinny Boat. Especially if you put in a sight casting platform back there. Just something to think about.

keep the tires and re do the trailer and turn the boat into a koi pond