So a friend of mine bought what I thought at the time a pretty good deal on a duck boat. He paid $3000 for a 18ft boat with a go-devil on the back from a good friend of his that he has known forever. The motor has not been used very much at all and the boat and trailer are in solid condition.

So he picks up the boat this past week after buying it from the guy and takes it out on the river to do some scouting. After driving a couple of miles up river the motor just seizes up and will not start and you can't pull the pull start. I guess the question is would you make your friend fix it or is it more of the you bought it so it is yours kind of deal.

The guy said he would help make it right but just wondering what everyone's opinion was on it. If I sold something that broke immediately I would make it right but not everyone is that way anymore. I told my buddy to just go buy a new one because he could get a great deal on a clearance model and get a warranty. Not sure what hes going to do but we shall see.

was it a stock motor or full of mods?

Either way he should be able to get a qoute on fixing it froma small engine shop, or just replace the entire engine himself.

On how to handle it. Not sure lots of variables.

If the "friend" knew it was gonna lock up, nail his butt to the wall. Otherwise, it's just bad timing. If I sell you something and I have a history of awesomeness with it and then it breaks on you, it's not my fault.

if it were me that sold the boat...id fix it. Thats just the kind of guy i am as well. Especially if it happened that fast afterwards. Because if it was the other way around and I bought something from someone and it broke right afterwards..id be pretty bummed about wasting my money.

But then again..when you buy used, you have to expect you might be getting a piece of junk..reguardless of its history. Its part of the gamble i guess. Everything these days is made to wear out.

If I had sold it, I would buy it back.

Then I would fix it and sell it again, to him or someone else trying to recoup the cost of repairs.

definately

Problem solved.

First I would check the oil. If it was apparent he didn't do something stupid to it then I would fix it.

Oil and everything was in good shape. Buddy of mine had taken it out 2 or 3 times before buying the boat as well and it ran like a top. Guess it was just one of those freak deals. I told him to take it to a lawn mower shop and get it fixed or just go buy a new one and get a bigger one

I would offer to "help" get it fixed but you buy used you roll the dice.... If it was a great boat it would have cost more than 3k

Then the previous owner took it out for one last romp before delivery.

tell him i will take it off of his hands.

when did he look at the oil before or after it locked up? if the oil was ok before it locked up then i would say it is not the sellers fault. if the oil had water, metal shavings in it then it would be both of their fault becasue of the way the seller took care of it and also the buyer becasue it should of been changed before he ran it.

There is some good advice. When I have bought used I ALWAYS serviced, or had a pro. service the engine immediately.

Do you even know what's wrong with the motor at this point?

As for getting a complete new go-devil, I believe he'd come out better repairing or replacing the engine depending on the issue.

It does sound like a bad break, but kind of strange that it ran like a top on previous outings. However, a motor sitting up I've always been told is not good.

He probably should have taking it in for a complete tune up sort of speak.

bring it to me!! i will give him 800bucks as is!!!!or take it to a lawn mower shop. probly cost under 300 bucks in parts to get it fixed. its not the sellers fault that the motor craped out.

I don't disagree at all with any of this. I told him when he bought it he should of taken it to a shop right away to get it checked out but to each his own. Just wanted to see what some people thought.

It could have new oil in it but if it had no oil in it previously it still could cause the rod to break(some of these engines dont have oil switches because of the extreme tilt). I see this all the time, it sounds like one of two things, the starter is locked up in the flywheel (if elec start) or the rod is broken.

Never worked on engine on this platform so I dont know what has to be removed to get the closure plate off but if it doesnt require a lot thats what I would do.

After that you can take pics, if it had no oil in it there will be transfer of aluminum from the rod onto the crankshaft and sometimes the block along the oil level will be discolored from heat.

Ive also seen ingition coils lock up an engine too, the bolts loosen and the coils rub against the flywheel, then get bound up and bang!!!!

Would it be better to just replace this mortor or replace it?

I've seen on some web sites that just the do it yourself longtail kits without the mortor go for $1,000.00.

A new motor for the long tail would be around $2500, so over all investment would be $5500.00. Not a bad deal considering it is an 18' flatboat, trailer, and a new engine.

I'd bet the labor on a rebuild is going to run about $1000.00. To me, I'd spend the extra $1500 for a new out of the box motor with a warranty.

Yes you are correct plus dont forget the machine shop bill, they usually charge anywhere from 100-190 a hole to bore it and same for turning the crank.

Cheaper to throw a 302 on it.

Well my brother owns a machine shop so that part of the repair would be free

Got to see some pics if either way he goes.

Yeah I told him to send me some pics when he got it tore down. I haven't heard much out of him I think he is still hurting a little from it.