Which boat to buy?

Hey guys, first post here. Been reading for a while trying to learn what I can. I'm getting ready to buy a new boat but I'm one of those people that does a ton of research and tries to talk to everyone I can that owns something of what I'm looking for. I like as many opinions as I can get, and I do it with everything I buy that I can put gas or bullets into it. With that being said, I'm looking at an 1860 with a 4-stroke yamaha. I have narrowed it down to Xpress, Alumacraft, and G3. Haven't completely ruled out Roughneck though. As for War Eagle, I have a friend that has one, and it's the nicest aluminum boat I've ever been on, but IMHO, too overpriced for me. Hopefully no one takes offense to that if they own one. I have looked at all the other ones and researched all I can. But what's your opinion on overall bang-for-the buck? Haven't completely made up my mine on side vs. center console either. By the way, it will be fished hard in the spring and summer for bass and striper, then used for duck hunting in the winter. I'd really like to hear from those that actually own one or have owned one. What do you like, and what do you not like? Also, give me a ballpark idea of what I can expect to drive one out of the dealership for. Everytime I talk to a salesman, all I get is "MSRP" unless I sit down with them, and I'm not going to do that until I've decided exactly what I want. Sorry the post is so long, but this is important to me. I appreciate everyone's input and advice. Thanks.

Are you totally against a used boat? There are some really nice ones going cheap right now. Check out Craigslist. My next door neighbor has a 2001 War Eagle for sale with a 70 Johnson on it and I am really jonesing for that boat. If I only had $6,000 just laying around...

I was in the same situation as you just over a year ago with the same criteria. You can see in my sig which boat wound up being the best fit for me.

I am surprised that you say that War Eagle is too much money but have Xpress at the head of your list. The Xpress boats are the most expensive in my area.

There are way too many unlisted variables to give a ballpark price. As you know, they run the gamut of stripped down jons to fully optioned pad hull rigs. I can tell you that your motor choice is going to be the most expensive part of the purchase, regardless of which brand of boat you choose to go with. 4 stroke adds a lot to the price and incremental hp increases raise the cost almost exponentially.

I like the looks and price of the G3 boats but they are really not in the same class as the WE, Xpress or Triton when you start talking about the type of boat that I think you are. They have a lot of plastic in the interiors and everything is riveted into an all weld hull.

No, I have nothing against a used boat, it a used motor that I'm weary of. I've had 3 used boats in the past, all with used motors. Boats were all good, except one, which I won't name but it was a riveted aluminum jon and I'm glad I got rid of it. I had a used 40 evinrude which has never given any problems, a used 25 johnson which has been nothing but problems, and a used 30 johnson, which no one can seem to get the carb adjusted right. The main reason I'm against a used motor is the exact same reason I don't buy a used ATV...for no other reason than that I don't know what it's been put through. No, I'm not one that has to have the newest, best whatever there is. I just know how it's been run and how it's been taken care of if I bought it new. As for xpress, I didn't know they were that high. The only thing I had to go off of was a local dealer has a 2008 closeout on a 1650 express, with console and a 50 yamaha with trailer I can get for a little over $9K. I didn't think this was bad at all, it's just a little smaller than I'd like. And I got ballpark quoted yesterday, $21K for a War Eagle 860 LDBR. Granted, it's decked out, but has more than I need, and that's considerably more than I'm going to spend. You commented on the G3....you know, I noticed the stuff riveted into that boat but didn't think much of it until you just said something about it. Doesn't make much sense does it? I forgot about the triton, I looked at them 2 years ago at the boat show and just plain forgot about them. The one I looked at had the whole deck and floor "rhino-lined" camoflage. I really liked that. Guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm trying to stay around $15K. Or less I also have a trailer from one of the boats that I used to have that I can make work. (I can weld and fabricate the bunks). So I'm sure I can save at least a grand by not buying a trailer. Or are my expectations too high? Thanks again.

Not at all.

$15k will almost get you what you see in my signature including the trailer. It probably will if you can find a leftover '08. Mine has a pad hull, fully welded, no wood and complete spray liner treatement. It also has a 90hp motor but I went with the regular 2 stroke instead of a 4. I could have dropped back to a 75hp in the Optimax or 4 stroke on a regular semi V hull (1756) to stay in the same price range.

My boat is the 170DS SC. The interior is just a little different than the pics on the Triton web site. They are still showing an older style boat but have improved the interior by making the gap in front of the engine much smaller.

There was a fully decked out factory leftover 2072 with a 90hp 2 stroke for $15.5 at a local boat show a month or so ago.

Hey thanks a whole bunch. I read that and then called our local dealer, boats unlimited. He had a leftover '08 20' with a 2-stroke for $17K. Priced a new 09 1860cc with a 4 stroke for $16, with the sprayed in liner. Anybody that has dealt with boats unlimited before? How much can you negotiate with them? Thanks.

Nothing to add to this thread but :WELCOME:

Good luck with what ever you decide to buy!

vanillakilla300 said:

Hey thanks a whole bunch. I read that and then called our local dealer, boats unlimited. He had a leftover '08 20' with a 2-stroke for $17K. Priced a new 09 1860cc with a 4 stroke for $16, with the sprayed in liner. Anybody that has dealt with boats unlimited before? How much can you negotiate with them? Thanks.

Click to expand...

If that 20' is a factory leftover he should deal on it given the price for the same thing that my local dealer had. If it is remaining inventory that he had onhand from last year, he's probably still trying to get top dollar out of it.

Where are you located?

Raleigh, NC. Not sure if it was a factory leftover or a dealer leftover (is there a difference)? That 16' express I mentioned earlier has been sold. I thought it was a good deal. Anyway, I do appreciate your help, it's narrowing my choices. Decisions.....decisions....

Most definitely a price difference between it being a factory leftover or a dealer leftover... unless the dealer just wants to cut his losses and get rid of it.

The factory has whatever it cost them to produce the boat sitting in their lot, the dealer pays some price more than the cost to manufacture and then tacks on his costs of doing business on top of that.

I have been trying to make up my mind also in the last two months I have looked hard at the g3 1860 & the war eagle 1860.Will the war eagle ride that much better with the 12 degree hull vs the g3 with the 6 degree hull also is the war eagle built that much better than the g3.Also what is the dead rise on the tritons. Thanks camohull

I wish that I could answer all of those questions for you but I can not. I have never ridden in a G3 but my buddy's WE rides okay. It doesn't ride anything like my boat but it is an apples/oranges comparison since my Triton has the pad hull. I'm not sure what the deadrise is on the Triton modV models. Side by side comparison on a dealer's lot, they look to be approx. the same as the WE.

The WE's have rivetted components in their interiors as well but the construction, fit and attention to detail seemed to be a lot better than the G3's that I looked at. The WE's don't have nearly as much plastic in them. The storage bins and console tops where the gauges mount in the G3's were all plastic. While that may be fine for a while, I plan on having my boat for a long time. Finding one of those parts for replacement 10 to 15 years from now probably won't happen. They will bust and need replacement at some point. There is no doubt about that. Also, the G3's that I looked at all had standing water in their storage compartments from sitting outside. No drains and it was obvious that their lid design was completely ineffective at keeping rain water out.

The downside to the WE's is that most models have limited storage. I'm not sure about the 18' boats but the 17's on down, most of them have either very little or no storage under the front deck.

I just noticed the seeming lack of storage on the WE 1860. One small hatch in the lower deck and if it did give you access to the whole deck area, how would you ever find anything? My next door neighbor has a WE (not sure which model) and it does look like a fine boat.

QuackerStacker, what do you mean when you say "pad hull"? I don't know what that term means.

Thanks,

Mike

A pad hull is the same shape that is under fiberglass bass and high performance boats. When on full plane, the boat rides on just the narrow flat "pad" in the center. Less drag=higher speed (and better ride).

Compare mine to the bottom of regular jons that have flat bottoms with strakes:



My boat has a super smooth ride and rides like a fiberglass bass boat rather than an aluminum.

Went and looked at a war eagle 860 today it had a 25" transon in place of the 21" transom. Do you guys see were this might cause any problems? I really liked the look of this boat they had a ctr. console & a side console I just need to make my mine up on which one I won't Thanks camo hull

A 25" transom would be nice on those rough days during duck season when your transom gets turned into the swells.

I'm not sure that that will do to your motor, though. It's not a tunnel hull, is it?

It is not a tunnel hull, The dealer says he has all of his 18 & 20' war eagle's built with the 25" transoms. Thanks camohull

It is a tough decision to make. Just take your time with it and go over every option and you will make the right choice.

Quackrstackr, I've really been looking at the Tritons now that you've brought them to my attention. I'm sure you posted it somewhere, but which motor do you have (hp...I know it's a merc) and how does it perform...speed and MPG, GPH?? Just curious. Thinking serious about an 1860 and wondering how the 90hp merc or yamaha will perform. And, although I know you are biased because it's yours, is there anything you don't like about it? Anything you wish was different about it? There's a boat show here this coming weekend and if I can find a steal on one I like, I'm gonna get it. Thanks a lot for your help.

I have the carb'd 2 stroke 90hp on mine. I'm not sure how many mpg or gph it consumes but it's not bad at all at 3/4 throttle. It drinks gas at WOT (where my boat is really fun).

The Optimax and 4 strokes get much better mileage to my understanding... but you pay a premium for them.

My boat is 17' and it will run right at 50mph. It would do a few mph better than that if I went up pitch size in props and raised the motor another hole or two. I just haven't had the time or $ to play with it. The only thing that I do not like about my boat is the location of the seat base on the front deck. My deck has a large hatch door in it at the front so that the entire bow can be used for storage. That large door moves the base so far forward that it makes the foot control for my trolling motor pretty much underneath me if I am sitting down. The regular mod V hulls have a different style dropped deck and I do not believe that it is an issue with them.

Other than that, I love the boat. I would probably like it better with an Optimax for mileage but I can buy a whole lot of gas with that $1,500 extra that it was going to cost me.