First Boat purchase 1996 Mastercaft 205

I wanted to say a quick thanks to everyone on here who responded to all my posts and questions, you guys are very helpful and awesome!

I decided to buy a Direct Drive being my first boat and all so, One week ago I drove down to Texas and bought Marc H's 96 Prostar!

So far I'm in love, still can't belive this thing is a 1996!

A few things I was going to ask about was the fuel tank sensor always shows 3/4 of a tank? Easy fix or should I take it to the shop? Also does anyone know how much it would cost?

Back seat, anyway to reinforce this thing to make it a "usable" sun deck. It's already Boeing at the ends so I'm wondering if I should just get a new seat made and one that will be sturdy enough to be used as a sun deck.

Steering cable, turning is hard left, and a little easier right? Any ideas? And ideas on price for taking it to a shop?

Last, is there a good place to order the tag decals, I want to try and match the shiny silver decals for my Oklahoma numbers.

Oh and here's a couple pics from this past week.
- Had to stop at In and out Burgers on the way back too!

Thanks!
-Chance W

Good looking rig,
On the registration numbers, try 3dlettering.com

I got both sides for my Supra for $40. They are the raised style, chrome decal with black outline.
They look really sharp, the previous owner had them on the boat. They've been sitting on my desk for several weeks, haven't gotten around to getting them on yet as I've been wake boarding too much (never a bad thing....)

Sweet thanks! Yupp, my boat still had the texas tags on because I was to excited to get out on the water!

Looks great man, congrats!

Does the fuel gauge go to zero when you switch power off? You might want to try to just fiddle with the wires behind it.
Steering could be the cable. Don't know for this specific boat but new cable is usually $150 or so. As long as you can steer it though, I'd say just go out and ride!

The fuel gauge in my '99 MC 205v has never worked right. Always pegged full unless it's less than half tank, then it reads 3/4. I just fill up every trip and use stabilizer every other fill up and don't worry about the fuel gauge. Over at mastercraft.com/teamtalk you'll get some better advice on that particular topic.

I second 3dlettering.com for reg decals. Got mine from them and they were priced right and look great. Domednumbers.com is another one but they are typically higher priced.

For steering you'll need to replace the steering cable. I think yours is a 17'. Give the guys at skidim.com a call and they'll confirm. They're usually $150 or so. Not hard to replace either.

great looking boat! going to be a great summer!

call for that cable sooner than later. it will make driving a LOT easier and they can get stuck in the middle of a turn.

I have a 2000 Mastercraft Prostar 205 and it is great for us. Enjoy!

On the steering you need a new cable. I have replaced mine a few times over the years. We have had ours for 14 years. If your somewhat mechanical not very hard to do. Once you get a new cable it is so much better.

On the fuel gauge I have the same issue. I just go out and fill it back up every time. I can usually go a whole day out. all of my gauges are weird and I have replaced them and the same issue comes back.

Best thing we got for ours was Perfect Pass with the GPS works great.

Sweet thanks guys!

I plan on replacing the fuel sending unit and steering cable in a week or so.

Does skidim include instructions for the steering cable replacement? Or is there a video or blog about it? I wouldn't even know where to begin on replacing it.

And same thing for the fuel unit?

cable is easy. disconnect both ends. tie new cable to old one. pull new cable through as you pull the old one out. reconnect at rudder and helm

Sending unit is pretty straightforward as well. access the tank, pull out old unit. wire up new and drop it in.

The fuel gauge issue is very common and is a easy fix. There's a how to in Team Talk on how to fix. You will likely find that the magnet in the sending unit is stuck or needs to be reglued. I fixed mine after a year of no fuel gauge. Hardest part was removing the tank enough to get it out but once it's out is only about a 20 minute job to fix. Below is a step by step video that will show you.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EapdWCEhhzI

Sweet thanks guys! Being my first boat I wouldn't even know where to start and what to pull apart.

It's going to be a rainy weekend here in OKC so boat and house projects it is.

When you do the steering cable, keep in mind, the cable may have one end that's bigger, and if the hole in the floor between the helm and bilge is pretty small, you might only be able to pull the cable one direction. If that's the case you'll have to pull it out with a rope on it, and then pull then new one back through with the rope.

I replaced the steering cable and fixed my fuel gauge on my '97 205. Both are manageable and I am far from a handy-man. MC forum is a wealth of information for stuff like this. Here is a write up on the cable replacement, the hardest part for me was getting the rudder and steering wheel to be normal. http://www.mastercraft.com/teamtalk/...ad.php?t=40160