New Boat Suggestions?

[adammathewjones]

Sometime either this summer or by next spring I will most likely purchase my first new boat. Right now I am leaning towards a Lowe or a Lund. I really like some of creature comforts that Lowe offers on its Crappie models. With so many options as far as boat makes and models to choose from it is going to be hard enough just figuring out what I want to buy let alone where to buy it. If any of you have had a good expeirence with any local dealers recently could you please let me know who they are and what brand of boats they carry? Thanks for your help!

Suggestions for first offshore CC boat?
I am looking to buy my first boat, a offshore CC between 17-23 feet. I will mainly use the boat for fishing but may drag the family and friends around for a cruise on occasion. Since it's my first boat I'm not looking to break the bank either. Anyone have any suggestions for me?

Thanks!!

[Dabalone]

Not sure what you are looking for, you like the lowe crappie models but then ask about a CC, im guessing cabin cruiser, in the 17 to 23 foot range. A 17 and 23 footer are totally different boats. What I would do first is look at the used market first for something late model and low hrs. With the economy in the tank, lots of good deals on boats people are trying to get out from under. Its a sad situation but if you are in a position to take advantage of it you can save some big bucks now.

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

If you are going to get a good boat that is 17-23 feet that will last you need a quality fiberglass or heavy gauge welded aluminum boat.

Most of the lighter gauge aluminum boats like the Lund, Crestliner, Fisher, Tracker or Lowe are going to be 0.100" (one hundred thousandths) thick on the bottom or less.

Most heavy gauge welded aluminum boats are going to be 0.160" to 0.225" thick. This would be boats like the North Rivers, Alumaweld and Jetcraft.

If you want a boat to take out the entire family or two couples you will need at least 18 feet with 150hp = $40,000.00 completely rigged.

They say to buy a boat for what you will be doing with it 80% of the time.

this is a very serious decision you will be making here so take your time and do some serious thinking and looking first.

If you buy a boat new and it is not what you really need it is a bad thing.......$$$$$.

CC can be 'center console" too.

[Dabalone]

Yeah center console is probably what he means by CC. Just a note, from the recent experience with my Tracker boat I would avoid them like the plague.

[FRSam]

Dabalone...Why avoid the Tracker? What happened with yours?

Pete

[Dabalone]

Dabalone...Why avoid the Tracker? What happened with yours?

Pete

Sam, bought my boat new in 2007. Pro guide v17, here is a list.
Boat was delivered with a dent and scratched up paint on the rail.
Stitching on the covering of one of the seats came undone.
Could not load the boat straight on the trailer without someone actually holding the boat
while pulling it out.
Could not steer the boat to starboard without using two hands and a death grip. They said it was prop torgue.
Could not run the boat wot, trimmed up and in the recommended rpm range of the motor without the boat porpoising dangerously.
Both trailer tires wore on the outside edges and were gone in a little over a year, not many miles. Warranty on trailer was a year I did not know (my bad) and was just over the warranty before I took it in. They would not fix it.

These were all defects Tracker recognized.
They had a welder fix the dent and re powder coat the rail. (shipped out of town for this)
Fixed the upholstery
Had a trailer company install custom side bunks so you could load the boat.
Replaced the steering helm which did not fix the problem, took it back in and replaced the steering again this time with hydraulic steering.
Their solution to fixing the porpoising was to actually modify the hull by welding some crap on the bottom or something, I refused to let them.


Ok, they did fix everything but the porpoising which I think is a design flaw and still cannot use the full performance the 115 Opti can put out. But, not without delaying tactics back and forth with the dealer. Also, everytime I took it in for repair work I was without the boat from two to three weeks, I have been without the boat approx. 9 to 10 wks while it is being fixed, so far.

Next, the boat begins to take on water. We find out the welds have cracked along the keel and take it back in to the dealer. Tracker ok's the fix but the welder refuses to try and fix it, the dealer tells Tracker basically it is unrepairable. Tracker says they will pick it up and ship it back to their factory. Ok, im done, I call their warranty department citing all the other problems and tell them just replace the boat or refund my money. They refuse. The dealer has now had the boat for three weeks waiting for Tracker to pick it up, they finally pick it up and ship it back to their factory. It takes them two months to do their repairs and ship it back. Now it really gets interesting, the dealer calls me to come pick it up.

We get there and first thing we notice is the boat is filthy, and has obviously been sitting uncovered. Then upon inspecting the hull we notice along the keel area the hull has been dented in several places like some one had hit it with a mallet. Couple areas it was dented from the inside out. Everything had to be removed on the inside down to the bare hull so they could repair the structure and do the welding on the inside, its obvious the dents were made during the repairing. The warranty person at the dealer takes pictures of the dented areas and we get on the phone to Tracker and send them the pics. I then wait for their reply.

Tracker gets back to me and this is their position.
They do not deny some denting may have occurred in the areas of repair (I even have a voicmail from them stating this) but the damage is "cosmetic" and has nothing to do with the integrity of the structure. They sealed the leak and repaired the structure full filling their warranty obligations. In other words, we fixed your leak, sorry about the dents. I have had a couple heated phone calls with their warranty people and tried to make them understand they have devalued the resale of my boat by causing visible damage, they will not listen. Trying to go up their chain of command but they keep their higher ups well insulated.

Sorry about the long winded post but I think its good info for people to have in case they are considering a Tracker boat. Everything I say is completely documented and truthful. The boat has never been mistreated, only been used in freshwater and the roughest water its been in is some wind chop. Beware of Tracker. This last round of repairs left me without the boat for 11 weeks, add the 9 weeks before and the boat has been out of my hands in for repairs a total of almost five months since I bought it about two and half years ago.

[shawn kempkes]

[QUOTE=Dabalone;71976]Sam, bought my boat new in 2007. Pro guide v17, here is a list.
Boat was delivered with a dent and scratched up paint on the rail.
Stitching on the covering of one of the seats came undone.
Could not load the boat straight on the trailer without someone actually holding the boat
while pulling it out.
Could not steer the boat to starboard without using two hands and a death grip. They said it was prop torgue.
Could not run the boat wot, trimmed up and in the recommended rpm range of the motor without the boat porpoising dangerously.
Both trailer tires wore on the outside edges and were gone in a little over a year, not many miles. Warranty on trailer was a year I did not know (my bad) and was just over the warranty before I took it in. They would not fix it.

These were all defects Tracker recognized.
They had a welder fix the dent and re powder coat the rail. (shipped out of town for this)
Fixed the upholstery
Had a trailer company install custom side bunks so you could load the boat.
Replaced the steering helm which did not fix the problem, took it back in and replaced the steering again this time with hydraulic steering.
Their solution to fixing the porpoising was to actually modify the hull by welding some crap on the bottom or something, I refused to let them.


Ok, they did fix everything but the porpoising which I think is a design flaw and still cannot use the full performance the 115 Opti can put out. But, not without delaying tactics back and forth with the dealer. Also, everytime I took it in for repair work I was without the boat from two to three weeks, I have been without the boat approx. 9 to 10 wks while it is being fixed, so far.

Next, the boat begins to take on water. We find out the welds have cracked along the keel and take it back in to the dealer. Tracker ok's the fix but the welder refuses to try and fix it, the dealer tells Tracker basically it is unrepairable. Tracker says they will pick it up and ship it back to their factory. Ok, im done, I call their warranty department citing all the other problems and tell them just replace the boat or refund my money. They refuse. The dealer has now had the boat for three weeks waiting for Tracker to pick it up, they finally pick it up and ship it back to their factory. It takes them two months to do their repairs and ship it back. Now it really gets interesting, the dealer calls me to come pick it up.

We get there and first thing we notice is the boat is filthy, and has obviously been sitting uncovered. Then upon inspecting the hull we notice along the keel area the hull has been dented in several places like some one had hit it with a mallet. Couple areas it was dented from the inside out. Everything had to be removed on the inside down to the bare hull so they could repair the structure and do the welding on the inside, its obvious the dents were made during the repairing. The warranty person at the dealer takes pictures of the dented areas and we get on the phone to Tracker and send them the pics. I then wait for their reply.

Tracker gets back to me and this is their position.
They do not deny some denting may have occurred in the areas of repair (I even have a voicmail from them stating this) but the damage is "cosmetic" and has nothing to do with the integrity of the structure. They sealed the leak and repaired the structure full filling their warranty obligations. In other words, we fixed your leak, sorry about the dents. I have had a couple heated phone calls with their warranty people and tried to make them understand they have devalued the resale of my boat by causing visible damage, they will not listen. Trying to go up their chain of command but they keep their higher ups well insulated.

Sorry about the long winded post but I think its good info for people to have in case they are considering a Tracker boat. Everything I say is completely documented and truthful. The boat has never been mistreated, only been used in freshwater and the roughest water its been in is some wind chop. Beware of Tracker. This last round of repairs left me without the boat for 11 weeks, add the 9 weeks before and the boat has been out of my hands in for repairs a total of almost five months since I bought it about two and half years ago.[/QUOT


tell them you wish to invoke the california lemon law. It also applies to boats. if I were a betting man I would say your boat was damaged either at the factory during manufactur or shortly after and they just wont own up to it.

[koffler]

Based off that one email I would now never buy a Tracker. I've been looking at boats in this price/functional range and this one is now eliminated. Sorry about your trouble but we appreciate the heads up. I'll take my shot at a Lowe's I think.

Koffler

[Flys4b8]

This being my second boat, there were a number of things I was looking for as top priority:
-- Decent room to move for two or three people: 18' - 16' , no seats to step over ...maximum open area, stern to bow
-- Lightweight (under 1200 lbs fully rigged w/trailer) and easy to tow
-- Maximum open casting area at water line or slightly above (how many wakes have almost thrown you out of the boat while casting?! )...this meant a side console for me
-- Maximum stability while fishing....jon boat/flat bottom. Three people on one side, not a problem
-- Needs to run on Delta, lakes and rivers (like the Fall, where you can't stand on a high deck w/out scarring every fish w/in casting distance )
-- Enough motor to run but not guzzle gas; low emissions and light weight were also a priority

The Lowe 1760 with an etec 50hp has more than met my expectations. Sutter Marine was great in setting things up and working w/me to put the gas tank under the forward casting deck to increase room, and putting the console 'exactly' I wanted it. Planes out at mid 30's, big enough to fish all day from and I can pull it w/my hybrid and get 22 mpg

I am still finishing up some other items (rod holders, fish finders, etc) but nearly a year of research has paid off in a something that I can fish from for a long time.

[briansII]

This being my second boat, there were a number of things I was looking for as top priority:
-- Decent room to move for two or three people: 18' - 16' , no seats to step over ...maximum open area, stern to bow
-- Lightweight (under 1200 lbs fully rigged w/trailer) and easy to tow
-- Maximum open casting area at water line or slightly above (how many wakes have almost thrown you out of the boat while casting?! )...this meant a side console for me
-- Maximum stability while fishing....jon boat/flat bottom. Three people on one side, not a problem
-- Needs to run on Delta, lakes and rivers (like the Fall, where you can't stand on a high deck w/out scarring every fish w/in casting distance )
-- Enough motor to run but not guzzle gas; low emissions and light weight were also a priority

The Lowe 1760 with an etec 50hp has more than met my expectations. Sutter Marine was great in setting things up and working w/me to put the gas tank under the forward casting deck to increase room, and putting the console 'exactly' I wanted it. Planes out at mid 30's, big enough to fish all day from and I can pull it w/my hybrid and get 22 mpg

I am still finishing up some other items (rod holders, fish finders, etc) but nearly a year of research has paid off in a something that I can fish from for a long time.

Nice boat Mike. Sounds like it has the right options. And yes, I almost flipped out of the boat a couple times this season. Sorry I didn't get to see the boat in person the other weekend. You missed some good chili.

briansII