Care to elaborate?

I bought the boat as a repo in 2006 I think it was. The repo company had the boat for what it sounds about two years, where it was stored outside, no cover. Hence the engine was cracked when I bought it, which is why I did, cause I got it cheap. But that's a different story.

Anyway, it was pretty apparent when I brought the boat home, it wasn't well cared for during the previous 7 years. Possibly due to just sitting for awhile, but most likely the previous owners had to do with that as well. After a good cleaning, buffing, new engine, and wax job, the boat looks really pretty good. Doesn't run half bad either.

Got any before and after pictures?

No before pictures, unfortunately.

Some of the major things include the gelcoat on the transom where the hull buldges out was pretty much white, supposed to be red. After some serious buffing, it is back to red, I never thought it would come back but the gel coat was pretty resilient to the removal of the oxidation. There were also some minor scratches that buffed out.
The seats were stained and a little mildewed. they cleaned nicely, and are still in great shape, even with a weekly dose of 4 kids climbing on them.
I wish i would have taken some pics of the engine interior. Both sides were cracked in the lifter bay, one side you could stick your little finger in. They actually ran it this way until the engine fill with water and locked.
The only bad thing i would say about the boat, and it isn't the boat's fault, but it has glued in carpet, non-removable.

That's from 06, guess i had the boat in 05 from looking back. You can see the transom that sticks out a little that is red, that was a pinkish color when i brought the boat home.

That's better, thanks, Deepv.

Needs a *.jpg or *.gif ending on the path/file name?

Thanks, bones, i mean bonesian.

Our first boat as a family in 2001 was a 2001 Bryant 182 with the carbed 4.3 / alpha. Great boat! I've met Joe Bryant and I've been through the factory down in TN. Great people to deal with.

A couple years ago Joe Bryant made a few appearances here on BABC, do a little diggin' and you'll find them.

I find the issue of which boat is better very funny. We all have brand loyalty if we have been treated fairly by our builder and dealer. I have a friend at work that is a die hard Chevy guy. I bought a new Tahoe and had several problems with it, not biggies and the dealer took care of everything. The one that really got me was when the battery failed at three months old and he said it was ether poor maintenance or abuse...Ok, the battery is maintenance free so I guess I abused it because GM could not have built a battery that is deffective..right? They only build millions of them each year,

I have had two Bryants a 214 that I had purchaesd that was three years old. I now have a 219 that I ordered and when I went to the factory they (including Jim Bryant) not only came out to meet us we went on a personal tour of the factory, talked to the people that build them and took all the pictures we wanted of the building process and yes they only build 400 boats each year.

Next time you go by Cobalt and Sea Ray ask for a 4 hour tour and bring in your digital camera and see what they have to say....just another happy Bryant Owner.....

I was asked by the "Eastern Regional Sales Manager" for Cobalt if I would like to come out for a factory tour. (Met him at local boat show) Said he would arrange everything and told me where to fly in etc. Didn't get the impression that time in the factory would be a problem when he said there isn't much else to do in Neodishea. I didn't ask about taking pictures.

I looked at a used bryant a few years back and I was completely impressed with the build quality and materials. I wasn't impressed with the design aspect. Layout was decent it was the design. The little things. The best way I can say it, is it's like comparing a Mercedes to a Camry Interior. I will check out the site to see if they've improved design.

Friend of mine owned a Bryant bowrider. He loved it. I wanted to look at them when we were shopping for what we have now but there was no dealer anywhere near where we live.

Formula gives free tours of the factory... just call. The even put my name on the plasma marque!

Really, it is a great idea to tour any boat plant if you can. I toured the Nor-tech facility (one of the top high performance boat builders) and learned a lot on how they build.

Happy Bryant owner here.

You don't hear much about Bryant because they build so few boats realtive to other manufactures and they do not do alot of advertising. Dealers can be few and far between.

When I first learned of Bryant I was working out of town and saw them at the Baltimore, MD boat show. I would have to drive back 300 miles to take my wife to see them. (I went to look at Four Winns) I waited another year before making a purchase but drove >200 mile to buy it. A local dealer ( www.lakegastonwatersports.com ) has since started selling Bryants here BUT I haven't had any problems to need service.

Great support from the factory the time I called with what turned out to be a silly question. I've also done the factory tour. They don't get in a hurry. They take customer service to the extreme.

I was just killing time instead of sitting in a hotel room and decided to go to the boat show...a common past time when I travel for work. I ran into Jim Bryant at the Knoxville, TN boat show this past spring. Real down to earth guy. When he learned I already owned a Bryant he asked what I thought of it both good and bad. He inquired what could they do to improve it.