A neglected Cobalt

I was out shopping for a bot for a friend of mine and i stumbled across a 1998 Cobalt 252. I have always loved the cobalts and I stopped to take a look. Wow... this boat was neglected in a bad way. The bilge had standing water in it over 4 inches deep, and the rear stringers had lots of hollow spots. On top of that the right window glass was broken out. I inquired about how much it was, and they said if they fix the windshield it will be around 30K. WHAT????!!!! The sad thing is that some sucker will buy it.

Swim Platform from Swimplatforms.com

As you guys remember, I odered the sim platform about a month and a half ago from swimplatforms.com. They told me that it would be about three weeks until it was finished... However... They switched manufacturing facilities in the middle and that put them almost a week behind. No big deal, as they kept me in the loop the whole time. They shipped on a Friday, and it was at the shipping yard in Dallas by that Monday... HOLY FAST!!!! I could have had let them deliver it, but I was too exited. I drove down and picked it up the day all the Tornados ripped through Dallas, and caused a lot of Damage. My Dad and I installed it the next day, and it was actually pretty easy. You need two people at least to do it, as it is VERY heavy. I am very happy with how it looks, and it really completes this boat. I ordered some hydroturf to cover up the back of the original swim deck area, as I had bolt holes there from the original ladder. Dad and I took it out the other day just for the fun of it, and the platform stays just above the water at all times. Now this add on is very expensive at around $1500.00 shipped, but it is well worth the money if you need the extra space. 

Here is how it looked right out of the Crate




Nice recessed 3 rung swim ladder



The from of the platform goes clear into the outdrive well for stability



Here is a look at the holes that we drilled for the bolts.





Just make sure you follow the instructions about where to drill the holes for your boat.




Here we used the outdrive to hold the platform in place.



Here is the final product







Here is a shot of the Hydroturf




On the lake








Here are the Videos of the full installation