Help me buy a boat

[Shoe]

I'm looking to buy a boat in the next couple months. I have just started looking -- I have never owned a boat before and don't really know what to look for. I am looking to spend around $15k (probably used) but am willing to spend up to about $25k for a new one if I really have to. From what I have seen so far, I either want a Fish & Ski boat or a Bow rider (where the front of the boat can seat a couple people too instead of being closed off).

A couple things -- I want to be able to fish from this boat. I also want a fast boat and to be able to bring some friends out to party on the lake as well. Does anyone know how hard it is to fish from a bow rider or similar speed boat not designed for fishing?

There is a marina by my house that I could store the boat at, they mainly sell sea rays and four winns. Does anyone know if those are good brands or what brands are considered to be reputable? I am planning to keep it there because I only have a car and I dont have anywhere to store the boat. For about $1800 a year they will store it for me and have my boat ready for me whenever I want to go out on the lake as long as I give them 2 hours notice. That's worth it to me because it's cheaper than buying a truck and finding a place to store it on my own -- plus I won't have to worry about hauling it around. However, I will be limited to the chain of lakes that it is on (which I think I will be ok with).

Any other tips on what to look for or any other types of boats that you can recommend would be greatly appreciated. Also, I am assuming I can negotiate on price similar to how negotiating for a car would work?

[jzpiano]

Shoe,

I've been on boats all my life and although I've never owned one (I'm 21, fyi) my parents and grandparents are way into boating. Negotiating a boat price is just like buying a new car, make sure you do all the research and you can most certainly haggle with prices.

We've owned 4 different brands of boats, Sea Ray, Cobalt, Four Winns and Tiara.

The Tiara is the Rolls Royce of boats. These are going to be out of your price range and I would recommend them for Deep Sea fishing.

The Four Winns we owned was around 27' Cabin Cruiser. We loved this boat a LOT. However, this boat was too big to ski or tube behind which is important to us.

The two ski boats we have owned were Cobalt and Sea Ray.
We sold our 1985 Cobalt in 2005 for a 1984 Sea Ray. We had pretty much ran the boat into the ground and at its peak was great, but I personally favor the Sea Ray over it (even though its older). The Sea Ray we now have is 19' (the cobalt was 17') and it is great for Skiing and tubing.

We only fished a little bit off of the 4 Wins, never off the Sea Ray and Cobalt. Mainly because we would fly down to FL and take out the Tiara to fish. However, I think fishing off of any of them is very possible.

I would also suggest maybe buying a used boat because it doesn't sound like your going to be using that much. Plus an older boat is cheaper [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] and unlike a car boats last a LONG time.


JZ

Also, what chain of lakes you talking about?

[EYEWHITES]

in south Texas having a fishing boat is like having a lawn mower. From what i have noticed the most important thing for a boat around here is how shallow it will run, speed, and how smooth it will ride.
It would suck to have a fast boat that rides like [censored] and would cause you to get sick.
My father in lawn builds boats, sells them to dealerships. He goes to boat shows, talks shop, and from what i have heard, gets his a$$ kissed alot for the boats he builds. The run further shallow then any other boat that i have heard of....he a savant when it comes to building them.

advanced outdoors in hamlin texas.
hes the link to his web page http://www.advancedoutdoorsinc.com/

side story. I spent last summer working for this drilling company, doing survey work, sso i got to meet alot of fishing guides. I met several people who knew my father in law and had his boats, and got to hear them brag about them having no idea who i was...had not married his daughter yet...it was cool because he is a humble man and would never brag on him the way these people do

[baumer]

Take the box. It could be anything.

It could even be a boat!

[jzpiano]

[ QUOTE ]
Take the box. It could be anything.

It could even be a boat!

[/ QUOTE ]

lol, simpsons

[z28dreams]

Unless you're seriously going to get a lot of use out of the boat, I'd reconsider getting one.

They're LOADS of fun, but for most people are just a total waste of money. I'm sure this is region dependant, but I've seen plenty of people end up using their boat 2x a year. They depreciate fairly quick.

Go USED if you get one.

FWIW, my parents had a 19' Searay sport/ski type boat pretty much the entire time I grew up. I will admit that it was very fun. Oh, and definitely get a 6-cylinder engine- don't mess around with those little 4's. Our searay had a mercruiser 4.3, which is the same as the vortec block that GM uses in their blazers/vans/s10's/etc. I'm not sure what they currently use in boats.

[TIEdup14]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Take the box. It could be anything.

It could even be a boat!

[/ QUOTE ]

lol, simpsons

[/ QUOTE ]

nonono you're thinking of:

Up, up and awayyyyy
in my beautiful
my beautiful
motorboaaaaaaat
doo doo doo doo doo doo

[Shoe]

Thanks for the all the replies so far [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

Just to answer a few questiosn and clarify a few things:

I will only be going in freshwater. I'm anticipating getting an 18-20 foot boat with around 190hp. That is plenty for skiing and tubing right?

The chain of lakes is mendota/monona/mud/waubesa in madison, wi for anyone who knows that area.

Until I get a truck I will not be able to transport to other lakes, but I am ok with that for now. There are definitely other lakes I would like (and prefer) to go on, but these would be the most feasible, and are still great fun to go on.

I'm in Wisconsin, so about half the year I won't be able to use it. When weather permits, I plan to use it atleast once a week. I plan to average atleast once per weekend (sometimes all weekend, sometimes not at all), as well as taking it out for a few hours a couple nights a week. I'm not sure if that is considered "a lot" to you guys, but it is to me. Also, I want to make sure I actually start enjoying the summer instead of just finding another computer game to suck my life away (last summer it was wow -- ugh).

It might end up being a big waste of money, but I am only working so that someday I can live on a lake, and I want to start experiencing some of the fun now. I have a couple friends with boats so I get out a couple times a summer, but the lake is where I would be every day if I could. If after 1-2 years I am not using it, I plan to sell it to hopefully reclaim a good chunk of what I paid for it.

I am definitley leaning towards buying used. Do boats depreciate as fast as cars? The few comparable quotes I have seen make it look they hold their value longer. Kind of funny, I am looking to buy a boat that is going to be worth 3-5x what my car is worth. But i'd much rather have a nice boat and an ok car instead of a nice car and no boat.

Also, does anyone have a general idea on how many years a boat will last? Or about how many hours per year would be considered "high mileage"?

One more question -- does anyone have any estimates on what boat insurance costs, and how necesary is it?

Thanks again in advance.

[jzpiano]

I would def buy used in your case. Boats generally depreciate slower than cars, especially used ones. Boats can last a long time, ours for example is 23 years old. Generally, for a boat to be considered to have high hours, it would need upwards of 1500-2000. Although, like a car though, under excellent care, a boat can go many more hours than that. Note that the interior needs extra care to keep in its best shape.

Oh and if you do buy a boat, please take a boat safety/rules course. Most people don't understand how different driving a boat is compared to a car.

Oh, our lake house is on Channel Lake in Antioch, IL (1 hour south of Milwaukee, right on the IL and WI border), so not too far from you

[Shoe]

Thanks for the advice, and yes, I am definitely planning to take a boat safety course. I know some of the rules but not all, and need to learn how to actually drive one too. I have been in a couple of nice boats but the only ones I have actually steered have been basically the most basic boat you can get with a 10hp motor on the back.