26' Hustler?
 

I'm just curoius what people think about a 26' Hustler and Hustler boats in general. Boats like Pantera, Active Thunder, Sonic, ect. get a lot of positive responce when someone is looking for a 25-28' boat. I cant remember anyone sugesting a Hustler.

I was under the impression that they are one of the better boats out there.

Kirk

I'm no expert, but I think it is the same 'curse' that Cigarette, and maybe a few others have; Hustler has done so well with the 388 and bigger, everyone really overlooks their abilities in the smaller boats; less than 30 feet. Not so say they don't build an excellent, boat. I bet they do. They are just probably priced out of the range of your average buyer in that category.

There are others on the board with 26 Hustlers. Hopefully, you will get response from one of them. I have heard good comments on the model, and it did get good review from Powerboat in a test(probably '95-'98 timeframe). Sydways brings up a good point that Hustler has emphasized the larger models in recent years with the 344 Cheetah, 388 Slingshot, and the Huntress. Of course these bigger models, bring the bigger price tags. Hustler has never had a large number of dealers, like a Formula or Fountain. As a custom builder, production numbers are relatively low. There are not a lot of 26's on the marke at any given time. Compare that to some of the other manufacturers that produce higher volumes. In general, Hustler is a top quality product with an excellent ride.

whatever happened with the Moroso /Hustler project?

I have Doug Moroso's Hustler 26. Less the blown 640 :( Got the build sheet from Hustler and wondered why I had a boost gauge. :)

I don't have any experience in a 26, but I have (2) Hustlers,, a 388, and a 25 Talon, and both boats are built like brick$hit houses! :) No rattles when they land, just good quality construction, and craftsmanship. Good design behind a lot of their innovations in hull designs. The 25 Talon was designed by Gary Armington, when he released the Talon 25 in 1987.
Hope this helps...
Dean

I had a 21 Hustler 85 with a gill bracket. Told me I could put a V8 outboard on it. What a mistake. Did not stand by their product. Told me they never said that.

I loved mine had 260s then stroked them to 400+ it was a handful it would porpoise to 65 or so then would chine walk a little thru the 70s but what a rush to drive. Well made boat that took everything I put it through. I think the lifting strikes coming all the way to the knotched transom had a lot to do with both handling problems

...

The Hustler 26 is a very good boat especially for rough water. I am their dealer for Europe and have many(!) happy customers who run 26s or bigger Hustlers.

They are rock solid and Joe is a guy to count on. As others mentioned: production is not huge and so pricing got up. So they might be priced out of many people's pocket, but worth their price....

Heiko