How do you like your walkaround?

[Nauti-Dawg]

Triumphrick; I own both a 1994 Mako 243 WA and a Key West 2020 CC. If we are inshore fishing or playing in the river we take the lighter Key West if we are going to do some serious offshore fishing ( 55 miles to the Gulf Stream) we take the much heavier Mako WA because the ride can't be beat, and you can walk around mine in heavy seas but you do need to hold on. The family loves the cabin and the separate head. My friends all own CC's but when it comes time to fish offshore they all want to take my boat because of the ride.

If you are looking for a used boat don't overlook high quality boats such as Grady, Pursuit, 1995 or older Mako's and several others. I bought mine real cheep and repowered with twin Suzuki 175 four strokes and have been very pleased with that decision. If you are going to go offshore I would recommend 24' at a minimum for the safety factor. Remember the Admiral may not let you do this again so do a lot of research and do not purchase a boat without a lengthy sea trial, I f you are not a boating expert take a marine surveyor with you, this is a must.

Good Luck and keep us posted

[abear]

If you like wood in your boat buy a great white! If you want the best buy a Robalo and don't worry about any wood in boat, there is none! Also the Yamaha that comes with it is a better motor.

[wiley]

If you like wood in your boat buy a great white! If you want the best buy a Robalo and don't worry about any wood in boat, there is none! Also the Yamaha that comes with it is a better motor.

[triumphrick]

How about 26' of Plate Alloy........This one is a sleeper top

And the 2nd Picture is a 7' walkaround.

Pacificboats.com

Welder..I really hadn't thought about a bigger aluminum boat. So I found some and their prices...$200,000 +

Whew...my house, big garage and 3 acres barely cost that!!

[marlinchaser]

If you like wood in your boat buy a great white! If you want the best buy a Robalo and don't worry about any wood in boat, there is none! Also the Yamaha that comes with it is a better motor.

Second what he said!! A friend has a GW and it can't hold a candle to the Robalo

[welder]

Welder..I really hadn't thought about a bigger aluminum boat. So I found some and their prices...$200,000 +

Whew...my house, big garage and 3 acres barely cost that!!

Rick, The two Pacifics I posted are NOT $200K but they do cost more than a Plastic boat of the same length. [ About 30%] , We consider them bullet proof .

Pacific guarantees their boats for LIFE , not 5 years, not 10 years............FOR LIFE.

Alloy is a love it or hate it thing , some people get it and some people don't.

The hard part of trying to buy used Alloy is there are none , we have guys that spend their evenings looking for used boats [ Most of them are Government boats ]

Good luck on your search...........

[triumphrick]

Thanks, Lester. I did mention earlier I considered the size, value and reliability as three factors to determine the boat we are looking for. I should have also mentioned price! I have looked for only a short while as yet, and did not see any alloy boats pop up.

We had a get together recently and one of the folks brought his 16' Alumaweld. Jeez...built like a tank! I felt I was on a much bigger boat. High freeboard and you could tell how high it was sitting in the water...it felt safe and comfy..

So...the reason for the boats I mentioned earlier was they would be used boats I could afford. I didn't mention KeyWest.the brand I now own. As good as this one has been, they are certainly in the running.

[welder]

Okey Dokey Rick , I'm with ya now . I always forget about the $$$$$ cause I don't have any and it's more fun to spend other peoples . LOL

Have you looked into any of the Parker line , if I went to FG I think I would go Parker and the 25' boats have a BUNCH of room .

They are a very simple boat built very tough and can be pushed with a single motor.

Good luck in your search .

[G8RDave]

Rick, if you're ever in South Tampa and want to seatrial a Grady 228, just let me know. I live very close to the ramp so its easy to drop her in. One word of caution though. Its nearly impossible for me to put the boat in the water without the entire family jumping on board! Also, we'll be hitting Homassasa in mid July for scalloping (assuming we find a place to stay). If you're still looking at that time you should swing by and take a ride.

[Mike Carrigan]

Ok, Mike, Prolines are great boats I agree; but if he likes the 23 Striper, he could do a lot worse; and the Striper has one of the best riding hulls in its class, as I'm sure you would agree. Remember that hull was designed for the west coast heavy Pacific surf, high bow and lots of sharp entry---good choice and fairly priced

STRIPER is a great boat also.

I'm allittle biased.

And when that guy with the C.I.B. is ready, damn right I'll give him every discount I can.

Best Wishes to you......

Mike