Hi all
Found this site through boatered. I've owned Carvers since 1988.

We bought our first boat, a 1988 Carver 2807 Riviera in September of '88, brand new, from Oselka'0s in New Buffalo, Mi. Had it Lake Michigan until 92; Moved to Kent Island, MD, had it there for a number of years; then moved it all the way to Ventura, Ca for a few years; and finally to Port Washington, WI for a couple of years.

While in CA, bought a 1964 Barron flatbottom drag boat and still have it.

While in Port, found a Carver 4207 in St Louis. Bought it, and owned two Carvers for a while, but eventually sold the Riviera. The 4207 was a beautiful big boat, but alas, gas powered, or underpowered, and we didn;t use it much more than a weekend condo. We did do our annual 3 week boating trip, but I avoided weather like the plague.

Moved to Saint Joseph, MI, where we have a condo and 3 40foot slips right in front of the condo, and 5 minutes to the lake. The 4207 made no sense, so, we sold it, and I bought a boat that definitely handles big rough water, a 1988 Kevlar Cougar with triple 900hp 572s. My wife hates it. It's noisy as hell, and faster in the rough water than just about any boat on the lake, in rough water. No wind and smooth, lotsa boats faster. Does about 104 in light chop water.

As a side note, also bought a 1969 Glaspar Avalon with a 1969 Johnson Electromatic (both in like new condition), for trips up the Saint Joseph River, at least up to the dam.

So, I keep my boat, and this past year we bought a fixer-upper 1987 Mariner. It sat for ten years, uncovered. If you go to my photobucket link below and click around, you'll find the Mariner album, and in there are folders of the prebuy pix, and the progress we've made. Right now we have about 17k in it, which includes the winter storage, moving it, and all the work we've done.
Things we've done:
Washed, waxed with about $150 of compound and wax so far, reupholstered the flybridge, ripped the monkeyfur carpet out and replaced it all (the carpet behind the cabin cushions), redid the cushions, loosened up all the windows and rebedded them, ripped out the sinks and installing blue corral granite, new sinks, new faucets, all new fabric trim where fabric trim was, all new interior lighting, new bathroom wallpaper, replaced the plastic mirror with a piece of brushed stainless, both ac units, had to install a new hynautic reservoir because somewhere in 10 years somebody took it, rebuilt both carbs, rebuilt both distributors, new plugs, fluids, oils, etc, same on genny, primed all the oil systems, drained 300 gallons of bad gas to a farmer, a combination of new and old electronics - green screen Raytheon open 48m radar, icom radio, color furuno chartplotter/depth/speed/temp, standard loudhailer, new galaxy antennas with the new-style mounts, remote control spotlight, bridge stereo with all new speakers, amps, and sub, brought up power bus and intalled breakers for each device on the bridge for easy access, new bottom paint, all new boot and other stripping, refinished the carver signs, new fenders, lines, anchor and rode, and probably a bunch more but you get the idea. It will be a new boat.
Things yet to do - finish up the electronics install, new sunbrella (we'll do it ourselves), new carpet - not by us, fill the tanks with gas, fire the engines up (280 hours each, checked with bore-scope and valve covers off - looks like brand new - they winterized it right!), put it in a sling and in the water to check for leaks and problems, and then teach my wife how to drive "her" boat!

Anyway, glad I found this place. If anybody needs any info on 2807s, 4207s, and now this 3697, I know these boats inside and out, since I do all my own maintenance and upgrades.