Help me check out an 88 180 Fisherman...
 

Hi there
going to look at a 1988 Wellcraft 180 Fisherman tomorrow... Hoping someone out there can help me know what to look for. Reading a bit I see a lot about stringers and waterlogging... How do I detect such a potential problem? Tips/advice very welcome - thank you!

One word:Survey.

survey?
 

survey?

it's like a real estate appriasal on a home. depends of you level of knowledge on boats. for an 18 ft, i'd just do
1 The transom bounce test(raise motor on boat and bounce on foot and look for movement of the transom).
2. tap lightly on the transom with a non marring hammer and listen for "different" sounds, hollow is good, dead is bad.
3. Do a compression test on motor,with a warm motor, all plugs out, and throttle in full forward.
4. check the foot oil for water
5. Sea Trial!!!!
6. Look the trailer over also.

if it passes all of that, you probably have a good base to start with, but it is a used boat and your gonna find a lot to rework on your own.

or have a survey done .

I'd add just one more thing to what PhatDaddy already said:

1) Walk on the deck... all over... with a little bounce in each step. You'll feel a soft floor "give" slightly under your step. While not a definitive test, it's an indication that there may be areas under the floor that need attention... stringers and such.

(Nothing is as good as a survey though.. and if you're a novice at repairs it's cheap money spent to avoid large amounts of time and money spent after you buy the boat. After all, the reason you're buying the boat is to enjoy using it, not to spend all your time repairing it).