Boat question

[Treybiz]

Interesting advise in here...

Mid to late 90s :
MC, Malibu, and Natiques are great boats when they have been treated well. But, as was said they are meant to be tourney slalom boats. In addition to small wakes they can and will beat the shit out of you on a rough lake. They can also be easy to swamp if you don't know what you are doing.

For that kind of cash you can get a little later model I/O that would probably work well for what you are after. Crownline, Wellcraft, 4winns, ETC.

If you were going to spend in the 20k range I'd be more prone to suggest a v-drive if you planned on towing a lot.

No Bass Pro Tahoes...

And lol at the sailboat. (Not hating on sailboats... Just out of left field)

[jefehbk]

LMAO lincolnboy knows whats up!

Yeah...but I had to reread the damn thing 3x to understand full meaning. I swear Lincolnboy does it on purpose.

[crapstang]

My father owns a 1980-something Four Winns 180 Horizon with a GM 4.3l v6. It is the most reliable boat I have ever been around. Maintenance and proper storage is what makes them go a long way. His looks like new and performs like it too, since he drys it off, covers it, and stores in a garage or carport after every use. It'll touch 60 mph on calm waters (stainless steel prop is the best addition to it), and it will run all day on half of a tank of fuel. Don't be foolish with it, care for it, and generally they won't cause you pain. Negligence is what destroys them, and with it your wallet.

[Country cracker]

Regular tune ups and ethanol treatment in every tank is all I've done to my 1990 charger bass boat and it still runs just as good as the day it was new.

[93coupett]

10k is a pretty low budget when you start talking about dedicated ski and wakeboard boats. I would personally never own a direct drive because the dog house is a pain in the ass unless you are a competition skier. You can only fit about 5 people comfortably (with gear) in a 19 - 20 footer and it is hard to get a good wakeboarding wake because all the weight is in the middle of the boat.

Either consider bumping your budget 5 - 10k and get a decent V-drive wakeboard boat or look into multi purpose boats such as a four winns, crown line, etc. If you are dead set on a 10k ski boat I would look at the older ski and sport nautiques. There are several on craigslist right now around your price range and you could probably resell it a few years later for right around the same price because they are nice beginner boats. If you are just looking for a boat to get out on the water with I think your best option would be the multi purpose.

[crapstang]

Regular tune ups and ethanol treatment in every tank is all I've done to my 1990 charger bass boat and it still runs just as good as the day it was new.

I forgot about that. Ethanol free gasoline did wonders for the carb'd 4.3l. It can sit all winter and fire up like it's still warm with ethanol free gasoline in the bowl.

[mstng86]

You need a lake for a boat. I haven't seen one of those in a year.

[crapstang]

You need a lake for a boat. I haven't seen one of those in a year.

I figured he was just planning on hooking it up to the water hose in the yard.

[snacksnack]

Oh and if you really are into wakeboarding the inboard/outboard boats don't hold a speed for shit in comparison to a v/direct drive boat. Plus it's always fun to do full throttle 180's in a direct drive.

[tribaltalon]

You need a lake for a boat. I haven't seen one of those in a year.

I has a lake.

[bird_dog0347]

It all depends on what you want to do with it. If you want to surf AT ALL... your only option is an inboard, direct or V drive but the V Drive will generally have a much greater capacity for people and storage and is easier to place ballast. If you surf behind an I/O or an Outboard, you will eventually lose life or limb. DO NOT DO THAT!

As for wakeboats, they don't lose value nearly as fast as others since they are already expensive and the price keeps going up every year. Malibu, Mastercraft, Nautique, Tige, and Supra are the biggest names. I've personally got a Supra 24 SSV and it's one hell of a boat. It can cruise around fairly comfortably on rough water (for a wake boat), and throws a massive wake and huge surf wave. Your budget will determine what you can get, but I wouldn't hesitate to get a early 2000's Super Air Nautique Team Edition as those are great boats but they are only 21' so they are on the smaller side compared to mine. I've always got a big group with me (usually family) so my 24 can even feel cramped at times.

[DamonH]

The old man had a crowline. Very nice boat. It was around 20 feet. Had a 305 engine with 260hp. Counter rotating props bravo 3 outdrive. Also had captain's choice exhaust. Very nice boat and would run about 58mph wide open. Not a pic of his boat but it is identical.

I had almost the same boat in black/white. Crownline 202 LPX. I had good luck with it. I bought it with low hours, only had a few repair issues (most of which I handled myself). Sold it 3 years later for ~$2k less then I paid. I'd definitely recommend Crownline or Cobalt. They are both expensive, but they retain their value decently if you find the right deal.

Sea Ray has a bad rap, but they are not bad boats. Because of the rap they don't seem to hold value though. With gas prices, and the lake levels getting so dang low all the time I'm not sure I'd buy a boat. We sold ours when my wife got pregnant. I thought we'd get another after we finished having kids and they could swim, but I just don't think I'd get my money's worth out of it anymore. I'm leaning towards a camper instead and maybe rent a boat for a few outings in the summers.

[White90GT]

We have a small 97 Chris Craft Concept and the Volvo Penta I/O setup with the 4.3l Vortec engine has been great. 14 years old and no problems out of the engine aside from the seawater pump, circulation pump, and giving it a tune up last year. Seawater pumps should be replaced every year or two and we went a long time before first replacing ours which is why we ended up having to replace the circulation pump.

I did have to put a transom in the boat last summer, but I think that was mainly from a lot of abuse of hitting underwater objects and beaching the boat with the drive down in the sand. A couple things I won't be doing from now on after having to do the transom.

The boat is a little 17', but we built a ski pole setup with a strap down around the bow to support the pull. We put some weight in the bow and put an old waterbed mattress in the ski locker for ballast (yes we did some poor man $hit for wakeboarding LOL), but with those things, it made a nice wake for wakeboarding. My BIL got into it a lot mainly. For me I did a bit more of the surf-type wakeboarding. All of this was in the late 90s early 00s. Pretty much the last ten years its been for just me and my kids/family going tubing, kneeboarding, and skiing. As small as this little boat is, we can still fit 3-4 adults comfortably along with 3-5 kids if need be. Most of the time its 2 adults and 3-5 kids though.

[bird_dog0347]

Yeah beaching them can be hard on the hull... I have never and will never beach my Supra.

[Baron Von Crowder]

All you need.

+