On Mon, 14 Jul 2008 13:22:24 -0500, sweetcar1968 wrote:

Lucky me just managed to receive a free distressed boat. Only one
problem is I don’t know jack about boats. Now I am pretty mechanical
and have restored a few cars so I think I’m up to the challenge. What
I’m wondering is if anyone can give me some tips or direct me to some
site where i can get good information. The boat is a 70’s and its a
16’er thanks for any help in advance!

There is a reason it is a "free" boat.

You will probably spend a boatload of money getting it back into shape
unless it's been well cared for which, being "free" is unlikely.

Which is not to say it's not worth it to you, but glass, resin and
marine plywood isn't cheap and your labor has to be considered also.

And even if you do a great job, you've spent money that you will never
recover because the boat is essentially worthless.

However if you insist - start with the floor as jamesgang suggests -
ifit's rotten, then the minimum is floor and probably stringers. If
the floor is no good, the transom is probably suspect so check that -
it's probably no good. Then it's on to the interior - new seats, etc.
Engine probably isn't any good...you can see where this can lead you.

It probably isn't worth it.