offshoredrillin

Stecz has his for sale too, kevlar boat I think he is in the mid 70's price wise and his boat is pristine.
http://www.offshoreonlyclassifieds.c...o12819-en.html

BillR

Amen brother!

4195

Everyone starts off thinking they will sleep on it, but its not any fun. It's as close to being in a coffin as I want to get anytime soon.....but juming waves it's like 35ft jet ski

Tom A.

I have seen that boat many times in person and it is Real Nice!

thisistank

Makes sense....But as stated by others....I would love to spend the night on our Gun and planned on it even before we bought it. It's been 2 years and I've still not spent the night on it.

I understand your predicament but I wouldn't base your buying on the sole reason you want to be able to put two more people in the cabin to sleep.

Here's the plus for the older cabin and the plus for the new

(and of course we're talking about mid 90's guns/cafes "newer" cabins. Not the cover girl cabin...Just so everyones straight on that)

Newer cabin:

V-birth
facing seats with table (to mix cocktails, use ours ALLLLL the time)
Large (VERY LARGE) built in cooler
inclosed head
Lots of storage
bench seat on starboard side.
small sink
easy access to the radio from the helm

newer cockpit:

Updated bolsters (gives it at least a little updated look)
Updated grab handles in bolsters/deck and engine hatch (the older style had the stainless grab handles that date the boat a bit)

Newer boat (mid 90s) will come with white gauges usually.

Older cabin

V-brith
twin facing benches (for mor sleeping room)
stereo far forward in the cabin
I don't know about a sink or a cooler (?)
smaller head

oder cockpit
stainless grab handles
olde style bolsters (with out head rests)
pos. black gauges on older cigs

Those are the comparisons I made when looking. I leaned and eventually was dead set on getting a boat with the newer cabin/cockpit and have thanked the lord for my decisioin ever since.

With alot of people the cabin isn't a big part of their boating. With us, it's a huge part of our boating. I still believe the newer style cabin on the 90's cafe's/Gun's was the best cabin design on a performance boat ever.

Did I mention that cooler!!!??? You could put a body in that thing!


Then again, you get into Stecz's Cafe which is updated cockpit and older style cabin and nice,fast, reliable power, you just found yourself the best of both worlds....I'd say that's the boat to buy

4195

What your budget? Stecz's is well known on this sight, and although I have never seen it there are threads on here that follow the work he did. Find the boat you won't have to redo everything. I have over $12,000 just in cockpit interior new gauges and shifters in my boat, and that is already done on Stecz's boat. I think people sometimes don't relize how you can spend on a 10 year plus old boat. Save your money and find one that somebody has aleady done right

seafordguy

Unfortunately my budget is tight seeing as how I am getting married at the end of the summer, but I am willing to be somewhat patient.

Yeah - I came to that realization early on. I have a list of "I want the boat to have's" that I have compiled in my head. Items that are more than just a couple hundred dollars and woudl like to find a boat in which I can get a majority of.

Items like -

Swim Platform
Hydraulic Steering
White Dash
New Gauges
Vacu-Flush head with holding tank, pressurized Water System
Redone Cockpit Interior
Redone Cabin Interior
A/C - (please don't chastize me)
Switchable Mufflers

I would like to find a boat where I could get say, 7 out of 10. Otherwise, it is like you said, you could turn around and sink 20 grand in the boat before you know it.

P.S. EVERYONE - Thanks for the link to the Procharger System. I had heard of them before but didn't know what they were. I appreciate it.

seafordguy

I won't - a well maintained nicely updated boat at the right price would take precedent over my unruly friends's comfort - Since they won't be making the payment, or probably paying for gas, I am not going to pass up a great boat so they have somewhere to sleep one off.

The older style cabins do have a sink and small cooler (you can't fit a body in there). They also have a smaller head because they have a sink in there. Pretty unnecessary waste of space if you ask me.

Since I wasn't really looking last spring I have to ask - do you guys find that more boats come on the market in the Spring, or is the Fall the time when there is more supply. Fall is an obvious time to sell them so you don't have to insure, store, etc... all winter, but do you find that a lot of boats come up for sale in the spring as owners decide they want to go bigger, newer, better?

cosmic12

I have to say that the newer cabin would be my choice. I just about live on my boat all summer,week ends at least and that table with the seats is the answer. I looked all over for a good Cafe before I got the Thunder and couldn't find a good one that I could aford at the time, prices have dropped in the last year or so and the ones that have been shown to you are good deals, wish they were around a while ago. I love the Cafe's. Go for the newer cabin you will love it. Remember you get one long bench seat for one person to sleep on and ya just have to get the second one to have a little more of a buzz and the floor will look awful good!

BigDaddy96

can someone post a pic of newer vs older cabin?

Thanks