parts for older boats

[jsmmonaco]

hello, it's me again with another question............in my search for a boat, i have run across several older models that would fit my requirements.....size, price, trailerability.......these boats are in the time period 1996 thru 2002.........the three i am considering, are from manufacturers that are still in business (sea ray, rinker, wellcraft), but they no longer offer these models, or the manufacturers no longer offer these types of boats (cruisers)............my concern is if, lets say i buy the 96 wellcraft excel 23SE, how easy, or difficult, will it be for me to get parts?.......i take it that engine parts (mercruiser engines) will be no problems.........but what about things like trim parts, guages, seat parts, etc....................looking for some advise on this..........my search of the internet has yielded little, if any help.............figured it would be best to get help from those that own older boats..............and i guess another question i would have is "is this the right forum for me to ask these questions"......if not, could someone direct me to the proper site.........no sense me wasting anyone's time.......thank you..

[SilentOption]

Stores like Marine Connection in Ft Pierce Florida can be a helpful source for some parts for older boats but in cases such as my boat that has parts made of plastic that have broken and are no longer available I had to either change style and appearance using newer similar parts of use the broken part to have a mold made and then reproduced in fiberglass. It really depends on what trim parts you are talking about. Older style gauges and seat parts can be found at the salvage outlets. Or upgrade to new parts.
Regarding the proper site. This place might not be optimal for a Wellcraft Excel or Rinker but other social media locations such as Facebook have dedicated pages for boats brands you mention. Go there and ask your questions and I bet you will find all the answers you seek! Good luck!

[ranger58sb]

Depends on the parts.

Production boats are systems of systems, and the manufacturer is often just as much a compiler as a maker. Bolt-on (or -in) systems can include engines, gauges, generators, fridges, plumbing parts, A/Cs, battery chargers, toilets, holding tanks (fresh and black water), fuel tanks, etc... All those are generally replaceable if you can get to 'em. Seat parts from Garelick or Springfiel, for example. Tanks maybe being the most problematic, if replacement means cutting and then replacing fiberglass. You can often scavenge manuals for all these from the 'net somewhere, these days.

The basic molded fiberglass parts -- hull, liner, cabin, bolt-on swim-steps, etc. -- and then probably bow rails and so forth are what the manufacturer actually produced. Much more difficult to come by "factory replacements" if the model isn't made any longer, or worse, if the maker has gone south due to market conditions or whatever.

OTOH, fiberglass is fiberglass, and there's generally somebody who can replicate almost anything. Stainless is stainless, and custom fabrication is often possible. Might be getting into more cost here, but it becomes a question of whether it's worth it -- to you -- or not.

Owners clubs to the rescue, in two ways. Often, you can join and poll the membership in advance of purchase, learns pros and cons of a given marque and/or model. (Sometimes harder to get real candor about cons, given that owners often don't want to appear goofy for having bought what might have turned out to be a POS.) And then once you've plunked you moolah down on a given boat, other owners can often be a great resource for info about maintenance techniques, parts, manuals, etc.

You might find thehulltruth.com helpful for boats like you're thinking about.

-Chris

[rsn48]

"Older boats" from 1996, those aren't older boats, they're just warming up. My boat is 1969 and some will consider it almost new... lol!

[Cheechako]

Most of those parts are not made boat specific to start with, they were off-the-shelf items. Upholstery is specific to the boat though. But marine upholsterers are out there. Many of the stock parts change over time, so it may be hard to find exact replacements. What to use can nearly always be figured out though.

[burntheships]

I am sure older parts are hard to find. We went through an old storage trailer and found some old parts and listed them for sale on the popular C----- List site and sold many of them.
Now we are looking for old tractor parts for our Massey Ferguson tractor - boy that one is difficult!
boattransportpros.com

[Lepke]

ebay has people hat sell used boat parts. Some buy wrecked or damaged boats and strip them to sell the parts.
There are tractor junk yards. Mostly in major farm areas like the corn belt. But ebay is also a good place for tractor parts.

[1000 islands]

As said in previous posts, boat manufacturers are pretty much like the car companies.

The boat people usually just make the hull and the other pieces required to fit the various other parts to make the boat complete.

They purchase things like the engine, steering controls, cabinets, electrical parts, toilets(head), props/drives, holding tanks for water/fuel/waste, lights and more from the same suppliers as we do. Companies such as Taylor, Bennet, Perko, Bomart, Shurflo and many, many more.

So generally a part will have the manufacturer's name and part number on it so you can go to a marine store and order it.

Quite a simple idea if you are a bit of a handyman.

[jsmmonaco]

Thanks to all of you, really helps........