Looking for a bass boat!!!!

[reelinrolly]

Hey guys,

 

I'm in the market for a bass boat and have started looking online. (kijiji , Craigslist, google). I was wondering g if you guys could give me a hand.

 

I Am looking for 18 ft with trolling motor, fish finder, live well , rod storage

 

First off, when looking for a boat what are some tell tale signs of a lemming. I don't know a great deal about boats and want to make sure I don't buy a money pit

 

Second of all does anyone know of any good websites I should be looking at?

 

I have a budget of 4000-6500.

 

Thanks in advance!!!!

Edited May 17, 2012 by reelinrolly

[jedimaster]

Bass boats are money pits. The gas is terrible compared to other styles of boat out there. For 4000-6500 you are gonna be in tough to find one with a recently newish motor. I know a guy selling a nice one for 8k though if your interested shoot me a pm I'll pass on his info.

[aplumma]

If you are looking at Ranger boats look for 1989 or newer that was the the first year they removed all of the wood in the substructure so you will not need to look for wood rot in the fiberglass portion of the boats. The motor they came with in some cases are the Johnsons and they are still maintained to an extent thru third party and factory parts. I have the 150 gt series and it is still running strong with a few worn parts replaced over the years.

 

 

Art

[Gerry]

The gas is terrible compared to other styles of boat out there.

 

Now that's a whole lot of nonsense. Bassboats are actually better than deep V types and other heavy designs. Bassboats skim the surface of the water thereby reducing drag. Having owned one for many years I can attest to this with absolute certainty. My current boat is much less fuel efficient due mostly to the weight and design.

 

Now, as far as not wanting to buy a "money pit"......well, for $4,500 to $6,000 range you will likely do just that. Have you priced a new one in the size that you've mentioned? They are probably running in the high $20Ks to low $30K range, or more. If a guy (or lady) is letting theirs go for $5K, they've probably used it all up. I'm assuming of course, that you're thinking of getting the motor with it.

[Snidley]

Boats in general are expensive items to maintain, money pits if you will, but cheap used boats fit into this statement. "If you can't afford a new Porsche then you really can't afford a used one'. Same saying goes for cheap motor boats and cheap baitcast reels. Avoid cheap anything especially if an internal combustion engine is involved.

[bigmac1984]

BOAT stands for Break Out Another Thousand.... referring to dollars of course.

 

I heard that from a guy recently and it is about as close to the truth as there is!....

 

Another suggestion is to look at marinas or dealers around where you live. Typically if you buy something from them, they are more likely to be of better service to you down the road.

[landry]

There is a great looking bassboat for 12,500 on this site's boat classifieds. I have seen that same model on the water - fast and very functional. I also bought a icehut from the seller and he was a good guy - and a longtime board member here.

A 6000$ bassboat will likely cost you the same as that one in the end somehow.

Sometimes you get lucky though - I bought a 16 year old boat that was cheap to run and very reliable. My neighbor has a newish 4 stroke merc that has broken down twice on him in the last year??!!

Landry

Edited May 17, 2012 by landry

[misfish]

BOAT stands for Break Out Another Thousand.... referring to dollars of course.

 

I heard that from a guy recently and it is about as close to the truth as there is!....

 

 

Wow,I guess you know eh?

 

I am one that bought a 87,18ft Ranger with a 89,115 Mariner,what 6 years ago or so. I paid $7500 for it.Great deal. Bought,and dropped in the water and off I was going. Put an upgrade bow mount.200 bucks. Replaced one livewell pump(left running over night after a tourny me bad:wallbash: ) 65 bucks.Two upgraded deep cells,and one cranking battery.(got a deal on them, three for 130 bucks) Bought some clear coat spray and wet sand paper for the trailer fenders,40 bucks. Ran that boat for 3 years.All of them for tournys and fishing Simcoe waters. Gas and oil was all I spent on the boat after that. I lived my passion,and sold the boat for $7000.

 

I say I did well,and lived out a dream.

[Billy Bob]

Get yourself a 16' aluminum fishing boat with a 50hp outboard and you will have it FOREVER......my is 27 years old and runs just like it was NEW....had her out again today (10th time this year) and haven't put a dime into her this year.....last year she was showing signs of overheating but she was 26 then....cost me $300 to have her clean out but really that has been it for 27 years.......can't beat that even with a Ugly Stick....LOL......and she catch LOTS of fish for me....sometimes even bass....

[mike rousseau]

Your budget is WAY off for a bass boat...

 

For that price youd have to really shop for a decent 16 foot tinny with a 40-60 hp motor...

[jedimaster]

A bass boat is a fairly effecient hull design, however the motor sizes and weight of the drivers arm will burn a hell of a lot more gas than most boats other than a big cabin cruiser. My 18 foot bowerider with a mercruiser was way better on gas than the bass boats I had. As is my 16 foot llund with a 30. So if you hae 5k to put into a boat most other boats will save you on the pump.

[ecmilley]

I would be over on bass boat central to do research, you'll be hard pressed to find any quality brands in that price range that arn't a basketcase in canada

but other than that what to look for, check for cracks in the flake, check for cracking in the transom, make sure all electrical works and what the electronics are on it, make sure all compartments open and close easily, steering cables make sure there free age of the batterys.

compression test of the engine, check lower unit oil for water contamination trim tilt operation and make sure you can do a water test to make sure the boat runs properly

[misfish]

drivers arm will burn a hell of a lot more gas than most boats

 

With the 115 being a 2-4 split,I could prefish a whole day for 20 bucks or so. Keeping the motor at 3200-3400 rpms all day.When I made a run,it would get maxed to 5400-5500. Thats when it sucked the fuel. When fishing a tourny, it,s different. If you are out just coasting around,your pocket book wont take a big hit. But once you feel the power,you,ll be punching the throtle,for awhile ,til you learn to back off.LOL

 

Good points E.

Edited May 18, 2012 by Misfish

[aplumma]

I run a GT150 340 Ranger built in 1989 and it fished 5 days in Canada on 25 Gal of fuel. Granted I didn't floor it often because it will dump 4/5th of a gallon per min. at 56 mph. I kind of relate it to driving a V8 lots of muscle when you need/want it but it can be babied and get surprisingly good gas mileage.

 

 

Art

[bobkayla]

the gas milage is not bad if you keep the rpm low like stated,,,,,good luck,,,,but you won:t get much of a boat for that money

[HTHM]

As a bass boat owner what they said. Need proof, check this thread:

http://ontariofishingcommunity.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=40590

[jedimaster]

If you're going to drive it around at half throttle all day just barely on plane then yah you will get ok mileage. But the same goes for any boat, just up on plane and they will all get ok mileage.

[reelinrolly]

I already have a 16ft tinner

 

wanted to upgrade, found a few decent looking boats, but don't know what your looking at until you see them in person!!!!

[grimsbylander]

Take your time and don't be in a rush. That's the key to finding a good boat at the price you want to pay. Not all older boats that are sold at good prices at all beat up like some guys are saying. You can get a great boat, even a great bass boat, for very close to your budget if you don't rush.

[NBR]

I bought my first bass boat used had it for 7 years and sold it for about the same as I paid. I did fix a lot of small things and I cleaned it up a lot and replaced/upgraded a prop that got too close to a rock. Yep, bass boat use a lot of gas but then so do all boats. If you read boat reviews most carbuerated rigs get around 4.5 mpg at 4500 to 5000rpms run faster and the mpg drops put put along and the mpg sinks to very little since you are pushing all that water out of the way. Good luck.

[reelinrolly]

than ks for all the tips guys I really appreciate it!!!!!

[lew]

If someone is looking to buy either a boat or a truck to pull it and their concerned about how much $$$$ they'll spend on gas, then I think their looking at the wrong vehicles.

 

But that's just my opinion.

[aplumma]

If you're going to drive it around at half throttle all day just barely on plane then yah you will get ok mileage. But the same goes for any boat, just up on plane and they will all get ok mileage.

Is 35 mph barely on plane? Lol

 

Art

[ecmilley]

If someone is looking to buy either a boat or a truck to pull it and their concerned about how much $$$$ they'll spend on gas, then I think their looking at the wrong vehicles.

 

But that's just my opinion.

have to agree lew, i didn't get a 150hp outboard and a fullsize truck to brag it up with the prius crowd

[grimsbylander]

Is 35 mph barely on plane? Lol

 

Art

 

 

Exactly.

 

I think the biggest contributor to the cost is the simple fact you can do so much more. I don't hesitate to make a 15-30 km runs and I absolutely go faster than I need to...when just fishing casually. If I fished the same way as I did previously, meaning same distances from the launch and at the same speed, things would be much different. It would still be more expensive, but much cheaper than now.

 

Oh, and you really should look hard state side for that boat. I'm not saying they don't exist here in Canada, but your odds are much better south. If you shop now with the intention of getting one by the fall or next spring, you'll get what you want.